Source: MICHIGAN STATE UNIV submitted to NRP
BENEFITS AND COSTS OF NATURAL RESOURCES POLICIES AFFECTING ECOSYSTEM SERVICES ON PUBLIC AND PRIVATE LANDS
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
HATCH
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
0230638
Grant No.
(N/A)
Cumulative Award Amt.
(N/A)
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
W-3133
Project Start Date
Oct 1, 2012
Project End Date
Sep 30, 2017
Grant Year
(N/A)
Program Code
[(N/A)]- (N/A)
Recipient Organization
MICHIGAN STATE UNIV
(N/A)
EAST LANSING,MI 48824
Performing Department
Agricultural, Food, & Resource Economics
Non Technical Summary
The project examines the economics of land and water resource management. Ecosystems and natural resources are multi-faceted and dynamic--they change over time and space. This projects investigates how these changes affect economic activity and values and, in turn, how economic activity and values may affect ecosystems and natural resources. The specific goals are to (1) improve our knowledge of the linkages between ecosystems and economic systems, (2) improve the economic methods commonly used to estimate economic values natural resources and policies and (3) apply these valuation methods in case studies of specific land and water policies, programs and regulations. The expected outcomes include: 1) improved understanding of the linkages between ecosystem services, natural resources and economic behaviors at different scales and across different time periods; 2) improved methods to estimate values for ecosystems goods and services; 3) data collection on natural and designed experiments that supports applications of valuation methods in a range specific case studies; 4) evaluation of new valuation methods and tests of derived hypotheses using the collected data; and 5) estimates of ecosystem and natural resource values that may be used to evaluate the full benefits and costs of the policies under investigation and, in many cases, transferred to the evaluation of policies, programs and regulations outside the immediate purview of this research. The expected impacts include: 1) contributions to the public and professional development of ecosystem and natural resource policies through peer-reviewed publications, books and chapters in books, participation and presentations at public meetings, management training workshops and academic conferences, communication activities involving radio, television and the internet, and consultations with members of the public, government representatives and agencies; 2) better decision-making support to weigh the trade-offs between non-market good and services and market goods and services; 3) improved ability to manage the benefits and costs of conserving open spaces, restoring natural features and ecosystem qualities and controlling the effects of abrupt ecosystem changes and hazards.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
6050199301050%
6050210301050%
Knowledge Area
605 - Natural Resource and Environmental Economics;

Subject Of Investigation
0210 - Water resources; 0199 - Soil and land, general;

Field Of Science
3010 - Economics;
Goals / Objectives
Objective 1: Land and Water Resource Management in a Changing Environment. Task 1-1: Economic analysis of ag, forest and range land resources, open space, and WUI zones. Task 1-2: Economic analysis of natural hazards (fire, invasive species, climate change). Objective 2: Economic Valuation Methods. Task 2-1: Advances in stated/revealed preference methods. Task 2-2: Advances in benefit transfer methods. Task 2-3: Advances in spatial/environmental nexus. Objective 3: Integrated Ecosystem Services Valuation and Management. Task 3-1: Economic analysis of ecosystem services flows. Task 3-2: Economic analysis of recreation services. Task 3-3: Economic analysis of water quality, quantity and flow.
Project Methods
The research methods used vary according to the research objective. Objective 1 uses both theoretical and empirical methods to test hypotheses about how ecosystem quality, natural hazards and open space influence human activity, property values and property institutions. The theoretical modeling integrates key environmental variables and processes, such as lake levels and shoreline erosion, with economic behavioral models. The integrated models are then used to derive hypotheses about the linkages between environmental indicators and hazards with changes in willingness to pay, market values, institutions and the behavior of individuals and groups. The hypotheses may be empirical tested using either structural or reduced form equations estimated on secondary or primary data. Objective 2 uses theoretical methods to develop potential improvements in the design and implementation of valuation methods. The performance of these new methods is evaluated theoretically and empirically. Theoretical evaluation may include economic criteria such as compatibility with utility maximization and demand theory or econometric criteria such as efficiency, consistency and lack of bias. Empirical testing may include Monte Carlo methods and performance evaluation in case study applications in the Great Lakes region and elsewhere. Objective 3 takes advantage of the many opportunities to apply valuation methods to the programs and policies of local, state and national agencies and organizations that are active in the Great Lakes region. The researchers have ongoing research relationships and agreements with agencies such at the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the US Department of Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency and the US Department of Agriculture. Public support for programs such as conservation incentives, payments for environmental services and wildlife enhancement will be evaluated. An ongoing concern is the consistency of technical measures of ecosystem quality with public perceptions of ecosystem quality. Valuation functions are estimated to test the degree of complementarity between different services.

Progress 10/01/12 to 09/30/17

Outputs
Target Audience:Professional economists, environmental and natural resource managers and members of the public with an interest in sustainable natural resource systems. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The research involved training and development for graduate research assistants and contributed to several PhD dissertations. Research linkages with NIFA researchers were established and strengthened through research discussions, manuscript exchanges and review and joint research projects. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Research on recreation demand and valuation in Michigan and the Great Lakes has been extensively used by state and federal agencies facing resource management decisions. For example, the US Army Corps of Engineers has used valuation results to inform and support their efforts to assess the possible economic effects (positive and negative) of investments to reduce the risk of Asian Carp entering the Great Lakes via the Mississippi River system. Similarly, this research has been utilized in support of fishery management and habitat restoration investment decisions by regional partners at the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, the Great Lakes Commission, NOAA' Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory, and the USGS's Great Lakes Science Center, as well as by state decision makers at the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Research and expertise on the economics of harmful algal blooms (HABs) on Lake Erie has been and continues to be used by the International Joint Commission for policy recommendations and research priorities for dealing with HABs on Lake Erie and led to invited presentations to the IJC commissioners and at the Great Lakes Commission's Great Lakes Day in Washington D.C. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Publications this year centered on improved land and water managment, but also incorporated concepts from nonmarket valuation and policy analysis.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Garnache, C., S. Swinton, J. Herriges, F. Lupi, J. Stevenson, 2016, Solving the phosphorus pollution puzzle: Synthesis and directions for future research. American J. of Agricultural Economics. 98, 13141333.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Palm-Forster, L., S. Swinton, F. Lupi, R. Shupp, 2016. Too Burdensome to Bid: Transaction Costs and Pay-for-Performance Conservation. American J. of Agricultural Economics. 98, 1334-1359.


Progress 10/01/15 to 09/30/16

Outputs
Target Audience:Academic and professional economists, managers and other interested parties in education, government and the private sector who deal with natural resource and environmental policy and management. The research also contributes to the education and training of undergraduate and graduate students. The target audience is reached through journal articles, reports, books, seminars, meetings and consultations. The specific organizations, journals and groups targeted include USEPA, NCER, MI DNR, MI DEQ, IAGLR, CNREP, AABSS, W2133, AFRE Graduate Research Symposium, AFS, JWM, JEM, IJLE and students in courses at Michigan State University. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Students trained in research methods and analysis included: M. Chen; L Palm-Forster. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Research on beach demand and valuation was noted in policy arenas related to maintaining hunting and fishing resources in Michigan and enhancing funding for beach monitoring and testing of water quality at beaches. Results continue to services policy needs of regional organization such as the bi-national International Joint Commission. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?The research plan to be active in disseminating results and analysis in professional outlets such as journal and conferences. They continue to work and consult with local, state, regional, national and international agencies and non-governmental organizations.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The research had impacts on international, national, regional, and local policies and policy discussions. Lupi contributed to a natural resource and environmental policy at the state and national levels, including those of the State of Michigan Attorney Generals, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Research on beach demand and valuation was noted in policy arenas related to maintaining and enhancing funding for beach monitoring and testing of water quality at beaches. A recreational angler database was used provide a profiles of the characteristics and behaviors of bass anglers for a bass fishing regulations committee, and of pike and musky anglers, of various river and Great Lakes anglers for fisheries managers. Lupi made presentations to the new DNR management team on the implications of angler trends for license sales and resource management. The research continues to contribute to improved natural resource and environmental policies at academic institutions, especially Michigan State University.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Palm-Forster, L., F. Lupi and M. Chen, 2016. Valuing Lake Erie beaches using value and function transfers. Agricultural and Resource Economics Review. Knoche, S., F. Lupi. 2016. Demand for Fishery Regulations: Effects of Angler Heterogeneity and Catch Improvements on Preferences for Gear and Harvest Restrictions. Fisheries Research. 181: 163-171. Liu, W., C. Vogt, F. Lupi, G. He, Z. Ouyang, J. Liu. 2016. Evolution of tourism in a flagship protected area of China, J. Sustainable Tourism. 24, 203-226. Skevas, T., N. Hayden, S. Swinton, F. Lupi. 2016. Landowner willingness to supply marginal land for bioenergy production. Land Use Policy, 50, 507-517. Liu, W., A. Vi�a, F. Lupi, W. Yang, J. Liu, 2016. Energy Transition from Fuelwood to Electricity. Chapter 10 in Pandas and People: Coupling Human and Natural Systems for Sustainability. Eds. J. Liu, V. Hull, W. Yang A. Vi�a, X. Chen, Z. Ouyang and H. Zhang, Oxford University Press, New York.


Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/15

Outputs
Target Audience:Professional economists and other researchers with interests in economic valuation of ecosystem services and natural resources; professional associations and their journals; public agencies managers at the national, state and local levels; and public interest groups and private managers of natural resources. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Graduate students trained in research methods and analysis included: Giri Aryal, Cem Tekesin, Roland Ofori. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Published in profession journals and book; presented and disseminated at professional meetings including the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association and regional research groups, public agencies such as the State of Michigan Attorney General, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Continue to refine and extend the models and methods. Continue to work with natural resource managers, producers and user communities at the national, state and local levels.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The research results and products had impacts at multiple levels--international, national, regional, and local. Lupi contributed to a natural resource and environmental policy at the state and national levels, including those of the State of Michigan Attorney Generals, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Research on beach demand and valuation was noted in policy arenas related to maintaining and enhancing funding for beach monitoring and testing of water quality at beaches. Lupi's research on potential damages from algal blooms was used to shape priorities for research needs and policy recommendations by the IJC's Lake Erie Ecosystem Priority initiative. Lupi's recreational angler database was used provide a profiles of the characteristics and behaviors of bass anglers for a bass fishing regulations committee, and of pike and musky anglers, of various river and Great Lakes anglers for fisheries managers. Lupi made presentations to the new DNR management team on the implications of angler trends for license sales and resource management. Kaplowitz and Lupi continue to contribute to improved natural resource and environmental policies at academic institutions, especially Michigan State University. Hoehn completed an international database covering more than more than 700 local studies of urban and rural water demand studies and produced an initial meta-analysis of water demand elasticities. Hoehndeveloped a water valuation model using secondary data on regional water auctions.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Knoche, S., F. Lupi, A. Suiter. 2015. Harvesting benefits from habitat restoration: Influence of landscape position on economic benefits to pheasant hunters. Ecol. Econom. 113: 97-105.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Kwame, F., F. Lupi, M. Kaplowitz. 2015. Agricultural landowners willingness to participate in a filter strip program for watershed protection. Land Use Policy. 49: 7585.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Kwame, F., M. Kaplowitz, J. Kerr, F. Lupi, and L. Thorp. 2015. Sociocultural and institutional contexts of social cash transfer programs. Global Social Policy. 1-10.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Melstrom, R., F. Lupi, P. Esselman, R.J. Stevenson. 2015. Valuing recreational fishing quality at rivers and streams. Water Resources Research, 51, 140150, 2015.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Esselman, P., R. Stevenson, F. Lupi, C. Riseng, M Wiley. 2015. Landscape prediction and mapping of game fish biomass, an ecosystem service of Michigan rivers. N. Amer. J. of Fish. Mgmt. 35:302-320.


Progress 10/01/13 to 09/30/14

Outputs
Target Audience: Academic and professional economists, managers and other interested parties in education, government and the private sector who deal with natural resource and environmental policy and management. The research also contributes to the education and training of undergraduate and graduate students. The target audience is reached through journal articles, reports, books, seminars, meetings and consultations. The specific organizations, journals and groups targeted include USEPA, NCER, MI DNR, MI DEQ, IAGLR, CNREP, AABSS, W2133, AFRE Graduate Research Symposium, AFS, JWM, JEM, IJLE and students in courses at Michigan State University. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Students trained in research methods and analysis included: Giri Aryal and Matas Tamosiunas. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Lupi contributed to a natural resource and environmental policy at the state and national levels, including those of the State of Michigan Attorney Generals, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Research on beach demand and valuation was noted in policy arenas related to maintaining and enhancing funding for beach monitoring and testing of water quality at beaches. Lupi’s research on potential damages from algal blooms was used to shape priorities for research needs and policy recommendations by the IJC's Lake Erie Ecosystem Priority initiative. Lupi's recreational angler database was used provide a profiles of the characteristics and behaviors of bass anglers for a bass fishing regulations committee, and of pike and musky anglers, of various river and Great Lakes anglers for fisheries managers. Lupi made presentations to the new DNR management team on the implications of angler trends for license sales and resource management. Kaplowitz and Lupi continue to contribute to improved natural resource and environmental policies at academic institutions, especially Michigan State University. Hoehn contributed to eminent domain policy and property rights analyses in the United States and Canada. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Continue to refine and extend the models and methods. Continue to work with natural resource managers, producers and user communities at the national, state and local levels.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The research had impacts on international, national, regional, and local policies and policy discussions. Lupi contributed to a natural resource and environmental policy at the state and national levels, including those of the State of Michigan Attorney Generals, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Research on beach demand and valuation was noted in policy arenas related to maintaining and enhancing funding for beach monitoring and testing of water quality at beaches. Lupi’s research on potential damages from algal blooms was used to shape priorities for research needs and policy recommendations by the IJC's Lake Erie Ecosystem Priority initiative. Lupi's recreational angler database was used provide a profiles of the characteristics and behaviors of bass anglers for a bass fishing regulations committee, and of pike and musky anglers, of various river and Great Lakes anglers for fisheries managers. Lupi made presentations to the new DNR management team on the implications of angler trends for license sales and resource management. Kaplowitz and Lupi continue to contribute to improved natural resource and environmental policies at academic institutions, especially Michigan State University. Hoehn contributed to eminent domain policy and property rights analyses in the United States and Canada.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Melstrom, R., and F. Lupi. 2013. Valuing Recreational Fishing in the Great Lakes. North American Journal of Fisheries Management. 33 1184-1193.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Hoehn, J.P., 2014, Water Demand Elasticities: Selection Effects in Meta-Analysis, Annual Meeting Poster, American Applied Economics Association.


Progress 10/01/12 to 09/30/13

Outputs
Target Audience: Academic and professional economists, managers and other interested parties in education, government and the private sector who deal with natural resource and environmental policy and management. The research also contributes to the education and training of undergraduate and graduate students. The target audience is reached through journal articles, reports, books, seminars, meetings and consultations. The specific organizations, journals and groups targeted include USEPA, NCER, MI DNR, MI DEQ, IAGLR, CNREP, AABSS, W2133, AFRE Graduate Research Symposium, AFS, JWM, JEM, IJLE and students in courses at Michigan State University. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? The research contributed to course material for undergraduate and graduate course at Michigan State University. Students were trained in the research as undergraduate and graduate research assistantships. The research contributed or supported at least 3 masters theses and 1 PhD dissertation. Student trained in research methods and analysis included: Giri Aryal, Min Chen, T.A. Komarek, S. Sidique, F. Song, S.A. Weicksel, Matas Tamosiunas and F.K. Yeboah. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Yes. Results and contributions were disseminated to USEPA, NCER, MI DNR, MI DEQ, IAGLR, CNREP, AABSS, W2133, AFRE Graduate Research Symposium, AFS, JWM, JEM, IJLE and students in courses at Michigan State University. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Plan to continue the research along similar lines and address new problems as they arise in international, national, regional and local natural resource and environmental management situations.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The research had impacts on international, national, regional, and local policies and policy discussions. Lupi contributed to a natural resource and environmental policy at the state and national levels, including those of the State of Michigan Attorney Generals, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Lupi's recreational angler database was used provide a profiles of the characteristics and behaviors of bass anglers for a bass fishing regulations committee, and of pike and musky anglers, of various river and Great Lakes anglers for fisheries managers. Lupi made presentations to the new DNR management team and to the' Natural Resource Commission on the implications of angler trends for license sales and resource management. Lupi's research on social norms and conservation payments was covered in Science Daily. Kaplowitz and Lupi continue to contribute to improved natural resource and environmental policies at academic institutions, especially Michigan State University. Hoehn contributed to eminent domain policy and property rights analyses in the United States and Canada.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Knoche, Scott, Lupi, Frank. 2013. Economic Benefits of Publicly Accessible Land for Ruffed Grouse Hunters. Journal of Wildlife Management 77 (7): 1294-1300. doi: DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.589.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Sidique, Shaufique, Lupi, Frank, Joshi, Satish V. 2013. Estimating the Demand for Drop-Off Recycling Sites: A Random Utility Travel Cost Approach. Journal of Environmental Management 127 339-346.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Kaplowitz, Michael, Lupi, Frank, Yeboah, Felix K., Thorp, Laurie. 2013. Exploring the Middle Ground between Environmental Protection and Economic Growth. Public Understanding of Science 22 (4): 413-426. doi: doi:10.1177/0963662511424545.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Komarek, Tim A., Lupi, Frank, Kaplowitz, Michael, Thorp, Laurie. 2013. Influence of Energy Alternatives and Carbon Emissions on an Institutions Green Reputation. Journal of Environmental Management 128 335-344.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2014 Citation: Hoehn, J.P, and Kwami Adanu, What motivates voters' support for eminent domain reform: Ownership, vulnerability or ideology? International Journal of Law and Economics.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hoehn, J.P, Researcher versus the data: How does data selection affect the metaanalysis of water demand elasticities? AFRE Staff Paper, Michigan State University.