Heather Klemick

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Valuation of Surface Water Quality Improvements

Since 1982, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has used benefit-cost analysis to evaluate many of its surface water quality regulations. Early regulations were aimed at controlling conventional and toxic pollutants that were directly linked to highly visible water quality problems. More recent regulations have focused on “unconventional” water quality stressors or more subtle distinctions in water quality. While a number of national-scale water quality models have been used over the years, there has been less exploration of economic models to estimate benefits. This article addresses three issues that have been particularly challenging in estimating the benefits from water quality improvement: defining standardized measures of water quality improvement, measuring benefits arising from ecological protection and restoration, and measuring nonuse benefits.

Pesticide Use and Fish Harvests in Vietnamese Rice Agroecosystems

Criticisms of the Green Revolution have focused on environmental and human health problems associated with pesticides. Pesticides may also have adverse effects on wild fish and other aquatic animals in rice paddies that supply an additional source of food and income for some farm households and provide natural pest control. We use survey data from the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam to estimate the impact of pesticides on fish harvests from rice fields. The results confirm findings of ecological studies that pesticide use harms fish populations. However, fish harvest losses are small enough that ignoring them is likely economically rational. Copyright 2008, Oxford University Press.

The Implicit Price of Aquatic Grasses

ABSTRACT Submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) in the Chesapeake Bay is well below half of its historic levels, largely due to excessive nutrient and sediment loads degrading water quality. SAV provides important ecosystem functions, many of which are beneficial to local residents. To understand the implicit value residents place on SAV and the ecosystem services it provides, we undertake a hedonic property value study using residential transactions in 11 Maryland counties adjacent to the Chesapeake Bay. These data are matched to highresolution maps of SAV coverage. We pose a quasi-experimental comparison and examine how the prices of homes near the waterfront vary with the presence of SAV. On average, waterfront and near-waterfront homes within 200 meters of the shore sell at about a 6.5% premium when SAV is present. Applying these estimates to the 185,000-acre SAV attainment goal suggests total property value gains on the order of

Policy Monitor U.S. Emergency Response and Removal: Superfund’s Overlooked Cleanup Program

436 million. JEL Codes: Q51, Q53.

Impacts of Ethanol Policy on Corn Prices: A Review and Meta-Analysis of Recent Evidence

Over the past five decades, the U.S. government has enacted laws and developed regulations to respond to actual and threatened releases of hazardous substances. This article describes a relatively understudied component of the nation’s response capability: the Superfund Emergency Response and Removal Program. This program addresses a wide range of threats, complicating efforts to assess its net benefits. We examine a new dataset of 113 recent removal actions at 88 sites in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region and find a great deal of diversity across sites, from the causes of contamination to the types of risks and the cleanup strategy. Contamination most frequently resulted from improper disposal, handling, or storage of materials. Soil, air, groundwater, and surface water contamination were prevalent at these sites, but risks from not yet released contained contaminants and potential fire or explosion were also common. We describe the involvement of potentially responsible parties and examine EPA expenditures on removal actions. Finally, we consider challenges for future research into the net benefits of the program.