Markets and the Environment (Foundations of Contemporary Environmental Studies Series)

Title Page......Page 6
Copyright Page......Page 7
Table of Contents......Page 8
Preface......Page 10
Economics and the Environment......Page 14
Global Climate Change......Page 15
Organization and Content of This Book......Page 19
What We Hope Readers Will Take Away from This Book......Page 22
Ch. 2: Economic Efficiency and Environmental Protection......Page 24
Economic Efficiency......Page 25
Efficiency and Environmental Policy......Page 32
Equating Benefits and Costs on the Margin......Page 34
Dynamic Efficiency and Environmental Policy......Page 40
Conclusion......Page 43
Measuring Costs......Page 44
Evaluting Benefits......Page 46
Benefit-Cost Analysis......Page 56
Conclusion......Page 65
Ch. 4: The Efficiency of Markets......Page 67
Competitive Market Equilibriunm......Page 68
The Efficiency of Competitive Markets......Page 72
Conclusion......Page 76
Ch. 5: Market Failures in the Environmental Realm......Page 78
Externalities......Page 79
Public Goods......Page 83
The Tragedy of the Commons......Page 89
Conclusion......Page 95
Ch. 6: Managing Stocks: Natural Resources as Capital Assets......Page 97
Economic Scarcity......Page 98
Efficient Extraction in Two Periods......Page 100
A Closer Look at the Efficient Extraction Path......Page 103
The Critical Role of Property Rights......Page 107
Conclusion......Page 110
Economics of Forest Resources......Page 111
Fisheries......Page 123
Conclusion......Page 134
Appendix......Page 135
Ch. 8: Principles of Market-Based Environmental Policy......Page 138
The Coase Theorem......Page 139
The Array of Policy Instruments......Page 142
How Market-Based Policies Can Overcome Market Failure......Page 146
Is It Preferable to Set Prices or Quantities?......Page 156
Conclusion......Page 164
Ch. 9: The Case for Market-Based Instruments in the Real World......Page 166
Reducing Costs......Page 167
Promoting Technological Change......Page 177
Marked-Based Instruments for Managing Natural Resources......Page 181
Other Considerations......Page 186
Conclusion......Page 193
Ch. 10: Market-Based Instruments in Practice......Page 195
The U.S. Sulfur Dioxide Market......Page 196
Individual Tradable Quotas for Fishing in New Zealand......Page 203
Municipal Water Pricing......Page 208
Water Quality Trading......Page 211
Waste Management: “Pay As You Throw”......Page 212
Habitat and Land Management......Page 214
Conclusion......Page 218
Ch. 11: Sustainability and Economic Growth......Page 220
Limits to Growth?......Page 221
Sustainability, In Economic Terms......Page 227
Keeping Track: Green Accounting......Page 234
Conclusions......Page 241
What Does Economics Imply for Environmental Policy?......Page 243
The Roles of Firms, Consumers, and Governments......Page 244
Some Final Thoughts......Page 245
Discussion Questions......Page 248
References......Page 256
Further Reading......Page 272
Index......Page 280