ECONOMIC EVALUATION OF WATERSHED PROJECTS - AN OVERVIEW METHODOLOGY AND APPLICATION1

ABSTRACT: Deforestation and intensive land use on a global scale has resulted in watershed deterioration and threatened municipal and irrigation reservoirs. Watershed rehabilitation programs must allocate funds to priority projects. A tool for decisionmakers is presented which provides a four-step overview economic analysis by the integration of physical and biological considerations. The overview tool is applied to a current proposed watershed project in Morocco.     

越境环境污染的经济学分析

越境环境污染具有损害非一致性和混合非一致性特征。从外部性原理分析了越境环境这种典型的国外外部性的基本作形式，产生原因和内部化等问题，进而探讨了博弈论在越境环境污染分析中的应用，其中包括完全合作博弈，非合作博弈以及互联博弈。     

Dynamic Cost-Effective Reduction Strategies for Acidification in Europe: An Application to Ireland and the United Kingdom

This paper describes the application of an optimisation model for calculating cost-effective abatement strategies for the reduction of acidification in Europe while taking into account the dynamic character of soil acidification in a number of countries. Environmental constraints are defined in terms of soil quality indicators, e.g., pH, base saturation or the aluminium ion concentration in the soil solution within an optimisation model for transboundary air pollution.We present a case study for Ireland and the United Kingdom. Our results indicate that reduction of sulphur dioxide emission is more cost-effective than that of nitrogen oxides or ammonia. The reduction percentages for sulphur dioxide are highest, for two reasons: (i) marginal sulphur dioxide reduction costs are relatively low compared to marginal reduction costs of nitrogen oxides and ammonia and (ii) sulphur dioxide reduction is more effective in reducing acidification in physical terms than nitrogen oxides or ammonia abatement. Our dynamic analysis shows that a (fast) improvement of soil quality requires high emission reduction levels. These reduction levels are often higher than reduction levels that are typically deduced from the static critical loads approach. Once soil quality targets are reached, in our model, less stringent emission reductions are required to maintain the soil quality at a constant and good target level. Static critical load approaches that ignore dynamic aspects therefore may underestimate the emission reductions needed to achieve predefined soil quality targets.     

Choices of ecosystem capital without discounting and prices

In the last decade, neo-classical economists have used the Consumption-Growth Based Utility (CGBU) framework to suggestan appropriate discount rate for eco-system capital. The CGBU framework, being based on the simplicity and single-valued nature of man-made capital, is subject to many limitations. Three general limitations of the framework, irrespective of its use for man-made capital or ecosystem capital, paradox of consumption growth, expectations' insensitive utility specification, and insensitivity to the nature of returns, arediscussed. With respect to its use for ecosystem capital, the framework has two limitations: ecosystems cannot be commoditizedand ecosystem capital satisfies differentiated needs, and, hence, gross substitution between different components of ecosystem capital or between ecosystem capital and man-made capital is not possible. Therefore, the rate of discount for ecosystem capital suggested on the basis of the framework is arbitrary. In the context of international security, choices ofecosystem capital are similar to the choices of military decisions. Similar to military decisions, ecosystem choices should be made without discounting and prices. The neo-classicalframework does not have appropriate tools for such decision analyses, and other streams of economics, specifically post-Keynesian economics, may assist decision- makers in analysing ecosystem choices without prices and discounting.     

人口增长、经济增长、技术变化与环境变迁——中国现代环境变迁(1952—1990)

本文主要研究人口增长、经济增长、技术变化三大因素对环境质量变化的影响。作者提出环境变迁曲线,与人口转变曲线、工业化过程相联系,并划分了环境变迁四个阶段。根据环境变迁过程以及动因,在国际比较范围内,进一步说明了中国环境变迁的特点。作者认为,强化减少污染型技术因素是改善环境质量的主要途径,与此同时,坚持控制人口增长,以减少环境压力。     

国内传统村镇旅游发展研究评述

传统村镇旅游近年来在国内发展非常迅速。以1994—2004年中国期刊网上所收录的公开，出版发行的自然科学类、科学技术类、旅游类等中文期刊为主要范围，对国内近10年来传统村镇旅游发展文献进行了统计分析，分别从作者的研究地域与研究等题、论文发表年度以及研究内容等方面进行了研究，最后提出了国内在传统村镇旅游发展研究中的不足和发展趋势。     

灾害经济学中的减灾投入与成本问题

本文将经济学中的成本概念延伸至灾害学领域,构建出灾害成本的概念,并在该概念基础之上,建立了最优灾害成本经济模型,通过该模型探讨了防灾减灾的合理资金投入.     

建筑业安全问题的经济学分析

基于我国目前建筑业的安全现状和建筑业普遍存在的安全问题，从经济学的角度阐明了建筑业的安全问题是一种外部不经济现象，是企业为了追求利润的最大化而采取的经济活动所产生的后果，而导致这种现象的根本原因是市场或政府失灵，进而提出了改善安全状况的对策措施和建议。     

How the multilateral development banks can improve their technology transfer operations for water/sanitation projects in developing countries

Based on some 60 years of consulting practice in the field of environmental/sanitary engineering, about half in the USA and other affluent industrialized countries (ICs) and half with non-affluent developing countries (DCs), the Consultant summarizes the lessons leaned on why the technology transfer (TT) operation of the Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) and other International Assistance Agencies (IAAs) have failed to achieve effective transfer of appropriate technology to DC practicioners in the environmental/sanitary engineering field, and presents the Consultant’s recommendations on feasible measures by which MDBs can significantly improve their TT operations. Eleven specific measures are recommended, all believed to be feasible for use by MDBs, as follows: (i) post-construction monitoring of project performance, (ii) develop appropriate design criteria for key infrastructure sectors, (iii) be realistic on O&M expectations, (iv) increase infrastructure project budgets to support TT, (v) prepare appropriate technology textbooks, (vi) sponsor graduate university programs in appropriate TT, (vii) sponsor appropriate TT professional journal, (viii) furnish copies of selected 1C references to DC-ers, (ix) sponsor work-type training assignments in ICs, (x) plan TT projects as series of steps, (xi) utilize ratired IC-ers for peripatetic training in DCs.     

ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF WETLAND RESTORATION ALONG THE ILLINOIS RIVER1

Creating and restoring wetland and riparian ecosystems between farms and adjacent streams and rivers in the Upper Mississippi River Basin would reduce nitrogen loads and hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico and increase local environmental benefits. Economic efficiency and economic impacts of the Hennepin and Hopper Lakes Restoration Project in Illinois were evaluated. The project converted 999 ha of cropland to bottomland forest, backwater lakes, and flood‐plain wetland habitat. Project benefits were estimated by summing the economic values of wetlands estimated in other studies. Project costs were estimated by the loss in the gross value of agricultural production from the conversion of corn and soybean acreage to wetlands. Estimated annual net benefit of wetland restoration in the project area amounted to US$1,827 per ha of restored wetland or US$1.83 million for the project area, indicating that the project is economically efficient. Impacts of the project on the regional economy were estimated (using IMPLAN) in terms of changes in total output, household income, and employment. The project is estimated to increase total output by US$2,028,576, household income by US$1,379,676, and employment by 56 persons, indicating that it has positive net economic impacts on the regional economy.