Warren Kriesel

An Economic Evaluation of Beach Erosion Management Alternatives

This paper examines the relative economic efficiency of three distinct beach erosion management policies — beach nourishment with shoreline armoring, beach nourishment without armoring, and shoreline retreat. The analysis focuses on (i) the recreational benefits of beaches, (ii) the property value effects of beach management, and (iii) the costs associated with the three management scenarios. Assuming the removal of shoreline armoring improves overall beach quality, beach nourishment with shoreline armoring is the least desirable of the three alternatives. The countervailing property losses under a retreat strategy are of the same order of magnitude as the foregone management costs when the beneficial effects of retreat — higher values of housing services for those houses not lost to erosion — are considered. The relative desirability of these alternative strategies depends upon the realized erosion rate and how management costs change over time.

Correcting response bias in tourist spending surveys

Abstract Many studies that estimate economic impact, use onsite tourist contacts followed with mailed expenditure surveys. Typically, response rates to such surveys are under 50%. A recent study of tourism impacts in the Florida Keys (USA) had similar problems. Response bias was considered to be a significant concern. This paper documents the tests for response bias used to identify socioeconomic factors related to survey response and expenditures per tourist. These included income, age, race, and domestic residence. Corrective weights were developed from the four variables. Uncorrected expenditure means underestimated average spending slightly for the summer season, but overestimated it for winter by almost 9%.

Estimating the benefits of shore erosion protection in Ohio's Lake Erie Housing Market

Lakeshore erosion, characterized as a reduction in distance between property improvements and the lake, will eventually threaten improvements. An option price model suggests that erosion-prone lakeshore property will be discounted and this discount may be measured by hedonic price analysis. We discuss the conditions that permit benefit estimation from the hedonic regression. Analysis of mail survey returns estimates willingness to pay for erosion protection, as measured by the number of years remaining until property improvements are endangered.

Financing Beach Improvements: Comparing Two Approaches on the Georgia Coast

Fifty-five percent of Georgias developed coastline has been armored with various types of erosion protection devices. This article is about beach improvement projects at Jekyll Island that would operate under (a) a nourishment policy or (b) a retreat policy. Benefits are calculated from an intensive, on-site survey of beach visitors and the costs are calculated from observable sources. Two financing methods are considered: general revenue and user fee financing. The analyses imply recommending beach improvement as an effective policy within the considered time frame.

A COUNTY-LEVEL MODEL OF MANUFACTURING PLANT RECRUITMENT WITH IMPROVED INDUSTRIAL SITE QUALITY MEASUREMENT

Empirical analysis of manufacturing plant location requires the use of a single industrial site quality measure. Under hedonic price theory, the price of industrial sites can be explained by their quality characteristics. The estimated site price is included with ten other location factors in an ordered, categorical logit model of plant attraction to Georgia counties. The results inform public decision-makers of the relative impact of site location factors and how changes in location factors can alter the probability of attracting a manufacturing plant.

Agricultural Economists' Use of Classroom Economic Experiments

Results are presented from a Web-based survey of instructors in agricultural economics and related departments about their use of, and attitudes about, classroom economic experiments.

ASSESSING LOCAL INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT POTENTIAL

State and community leaders throughout the United States attempt to attract new manufacturing investment with a variety of state and local investments. Often these investment decisions are made without systematically assessing the influence of factors beyond the control and the probability of return on various investment strategies. This article demonstrates the utility of a model which community leaders can use in evaluating the resources they might allocate to manufacturing attraction efforts.

EXPANDING THE NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM TO COVER COASTAL EROSION DAMAGE

The National Flood Insurance Program does not currently cover damage strictly attributable to coastal erosion. This paper uses the results of a nationwide survey of coastal property owners to estimate the demand for such insurance. We find that there is significant demand at prices in the range of current flood insurance premiums. Demand is influenced in the hypothesized way by increased measures of erosion risk as well as by insurance price and income.

SCHOOL CHOICE IN RURAL GEORGIA: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS

Previous empirical studies of school choice have been at the national level, or have focussed on northeastern states. We estimate the demand for private education in rural Georgia, using proportion of private school attendance as an indicator variable. We find that income, tuition, race and school quality are important choice determinants. The results provide useful information for rural school administrators, and suggest that a tuition tax credit would have to be substantial to cause a significant exodus from public schools.

Cooperative provision of erosion protection: An empirical analysis of the Lake Erie shore

Officials involved in coastal erosion management have a wide set of policy options at their disposal. A subjective evaluation of each management option would estimate the benefits received by different groups of coastal users, establish the cost of the policy option, and formulate an optimal method to finance the policy. This article presents an example of this management approach via an empirical analysis of group formation among private property owners of the Ohio portion of the Lake Erie shore. A hedonic price model of erosion protection benefits is presented. An erosion protection cost function associated with a standard erosion control device is developed from the literature and expert opinion. Using benefit estimates for a sample of 228 homeowners and the cost function, the net benefits from belonging to a cooperative group are calculated under average cost and marginal cost allocation rules. Compared with “going it alone, “ it is found that group formation under an average cost allocation rule incr...