Louise M. Arthur

Potential to Sequester Carbon in Canadian Forests: Some Economic Considerations

This paper examines the potential role of reforestation policies in reducing Canadas contribution to atmospheric CO2. The results indicate sequestering carbon by reforestation of forestlands may be a cost-effective means for Canada to offset domestic emissions of CO2 from other sources, and that planting forests on marginal agricultural lands also warrants consideration. But these policies need to be compared with alternatives for reducing CO2 emissions to determine their relative cost effectiveness. We find that reforestation is more costly than policies to increase the fuel efficiency of automobiles, but economically more efficient than converting vehicles to natural gas. Finally, we demonstrate that, because of its vast forests, Canada is a net carbon sink.

Arbitrage Pricing, Capital Asset Pricing, and Agricultural Assets

A new asset pricing model, the arbitrage pricing theory, has been developed as an alternative to the capital asset pricing model. The arbitrage pricing theory model is used to analyze the relationship between risk and return for agricultural assets. The major conclusion is that the arbitrage pricing theory results support previous capital asset pricing model findings that the estimated risk associated with agricultural assets is low. This conclusion is more robust for the arbitrage pricing theory application because it provides a better explanation of the relationship between risk and returns than does the capital asset pricing model.

An empirical investigation of farm mortgage loan borrowers

Cross-sectional data from a 1981 survey of Saskatchewan farmers are used to investigate the determinants of size of long-term loans from the Canadian Farm Credit Corporation. Heckmans procedure is used to correct for sample selectivity bias, which was shown to be present. The results are tentative due to the cross-sectional properties of the data. They seem to show that the Farm Credit Corporation is fulfilling its stated aims in lending to new, young, small operators but emphasizing ability to repay the loan.

EVALUATING INLAND WATERWAY NAVIGATION IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS: THE CASE OF THE BONNEVILLE LOCK

ABSTRACT: The period of time from identification of a possibly desirable inland waterway transportation project to its actual implementation has been observed to be inordinately long. It is Hypothesized that at Least one cause of delays in project approval and implementation is a analytical credibility associated with project feasibility analysis conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. This paper examines this hypothesis in terms of the proposal to construct a new, expanded lock at the Bonneville Dam on the Columbia River. The principle finding is that the analysis conducted by the Corps is conceptually flawed, methodologically questionable, internally inconsistant, and inappropriately narrow in scope.