Guide to the Web for Economics
CHAPTER 15
The Environment and Externalities
Socially efficient resource allocation occurs when all benefits and
all costs are incorporated into markets. Externalities occur when
some benefits and/or some costs are not reflected in the market,
distorting prices and output and leading to market inefficiency. The
presence of externalities creates an opportunity for government
intervention to improve market outcomes by better defining and
enforcing property rights. Web resources in this chapter relate to:
1) associations and organizations that conduct research on the
environment, 2) groups concerned with the preservation, conservation,
protection, and restoration of environmental resources, 3) government
projects, publications, laws, regulations, and research on the
environment, 4) reports on environmental issues such as emissions
reduction and global warming, 5) property rights issues, transactions
costs, and the Coase Theorem, and 6) the Clean Air Act and the
pollution permit system. These resources are organized as follows:
Environmental Economics:
Associations and Research Organizations
- Association of Environmental
and Resource Economists (AERE)
- Type: writing/list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes
- Home page for AERE contains information about the
association, its workshops, and publications, including the
Journal of Environmental Economics and Management.
- http://www.aere.org/
- AERE
Members with Web Pages
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes
- Site contains a directory of members of the Association of
Environmental and Resource Economists (AERE) who have Web
pages.
- http://www.ecu.edu/econ/aere/members.htm
- American Agricultural
Economics Association
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes
- Home page for AAEA with information about its publications
and other resources.
- www.aaea.org
- Earth Technologies
Forum
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes
- Site links to information about the forum and its annual
conference to provide information on environmental issues
affecting industry, focusing on bringing environmental
technologies to the marketplace to deal with climate change and
ozone protection.
- http://www.earthforum.com
- Resources for the
Future
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes
- Home page for RFF, providing independent research on
environmental and natural resource issues. Page contains links
to a wealth of detailed economic research on the environment,
natural resources, non-market valuation, cost-benefit analysis,
regulatory design, and more.
- http://www.rff.org/
Environmental Groups
and Organizations
- The Nature
Conservancy
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for an environmental organization that preserves
habitats and species by buying the lands and waters they need
to survive. Page includes information about TNC, nature news,
facts, photos and more.
- http://www.tnc.org/
- Foundation for Research
on Economics and the Environment
- Type: writing Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for F.R.E.E. with information about the groups
publications and activities to advance conservation and a
healthy environment using economic incentives and secure
property rights.
- http://www.free-eco.org/
- Sierra Club
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes
- Home page for the environmental group containing
information about the group, its publications and activities to
protect the environment. Also links to information about what
the club views as hot issues.
- http://www.sierraclub.org/
- Greenpeace
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for Greenpeace with links to reports and
information about major issues for the group, including climate
change, toxins, nuclear, ocean, genetic engineering, ocean
dumping, forests, and more.
- http://www.greenpeace.org/
- Zero Population
Growth
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for Zero Population Growth includes reports and
publications about the U.S. and world population, including the
groups view of the impact of a growing population on the world.
- http://www.zpg.org/
- League of Conservation
Voters
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for the League of Conservation Voters providing
information about the group and its activities, featuring a
detailed environmental scorecard of how each member of the U.S.
Senate and House has voted on legislation related to the
environment.
- http://www.lcv.org/
- National Wildlife
Federation
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for the National Wildlife Federation containing a
wealth of information about its projects and initiatives that
focus on endangered habitat, water quality, land stewardship,
wetlands, and sustainable communities.
- http://www.nwf.org/
- World Wildlife Fund
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for the conservation organization with links to
reports about the environment and human pressures upon it,
featuring the groups reports on climate change, endangered
seas, forests, and more.
- http://www.panda.org/
- Wilderness
Society
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes
- Home page for the Wilderness Society containing information
about the group and its efforts to protect Americas wilderness.
Links to the societys hot topics, newsroom, and eye on
Washington.
- http://www.wilderness.org
- Peninsula
Neighborhood Association
- Type: writing Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes
- Site of a grassroots community group dedicated to
protecting and preserving the small-town feel and rural quality
of life on the Gig Harbor and Key peninsula in Washington
State.
- http://www.harbornet.com/pna/
- Audubon Society
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for the conservation group containing information
about its activities to conserve and restore natural
ecosystems, focusing on preserving and protecting wetlands,
forests, and wildlife
- http://www.audubon.org/
- Ecoworld
- Type: publication/list
Level: basic Length:
long Links: yes Graphics: yes
- Home page for Ecoworld, containing current and back issues
of its publications that relate to the relationship between the
environment, government and markets.
- http://www.ecoworld.com/
Government
and the Environment
- Environmental Protection
Agency
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
containing a wealth of information about the EPA, its projects
and programs, laws and regulations, publications, and more.
- http://www.epa.gov/
- U.S. Department of the
Interior
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for the Department of the Interior with links to
news and information about the DOI, its eight bureaus, offices
and committees, FAQs, and more. Page has lots of graphics and
provides an internal search engine for DOI information.
- http://www.doi.gov/
- U.S. Department of
Agriculture
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for the USDA includes news and information about
the department, its agencies, and staff offices. Includes a
link to its economic resource service and more.
- http://www.usda.gov/
- Economics Research
Service
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Site of the Economics Research Service of the U.S.
Department of Agriculture, featuring links to recent reports
and publications on agriculture, data products, and more.
- http://www.econ.ag.gov
- President's
Council on Sustainable Development
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: pdf
- Page links to the full text of the 1999 report by the
Presidents Council on Sustainable Development, highlighting key
findings and recommendations on climate change, environmental
management, and more. Also links to previous reports by the
PCSD.
- http://www.whitehouse.gov/PCSD/Publications/
- Wilderness
Protection Timeline
- Type: writing/list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Site contains a graphic of a timeline of the major laws and
events that have shaped U.S. environmental public policy since
1872. Simply click on a year to find the major environmental
laws and events for that year.
- http://www.wilderness.org/eyewash/history/wild_time.htm
- National Park Service
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for the National Park Service linking to
information about park history, natural resources in parks, and
more.
- http://www.nps.gov/
- Laws and
Regulations Related to Cultural Resources
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
long Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Site links to documentation for dozens of laws,
regulations, guidelines, and executive orders that relate to
cultural resources.
- http://www.cr.nps.gov/linklaws.htm
- Digest
of Federal Resource Laws
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
long Links: yes Graphics: no
- Page contains a digest of dozens of federal resource laws
of interest to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Links
directly to the law or a synopsis of the law.
- http://www.fws.gov/laws/digest/reslaws/laws.html
- National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page for the NOAA with information about the agency,
its major organizations, environmental data, and more.
- http://www.noaa.gov/
- Bureau of Land
Management
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: search
- Home page of the BLM containing news, information, and
facts about the Bureau. Also links to BLM clean water
initiative, a 1999 report on the worth of BLM-managed public
lands, and more.
- http://www.blm.gov/
Environmental
Issues
- Environmental
Economics Glossary
- Type: writing Level: intermediate Length:
long Links: yes Graphics: no
- A long glossary of terms and definitions for environmental
economics with links to several other online dictionaries and
educational resources for environmental economics.
- http://www.damagevaluation.com/glossary.htm
- Guide
to Environmental Issues
- Type: publication Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: pdf
- Page from the Environmental Protection Agency links to its
1996 Guide to Environmental Issues, available in pdf of
html. The guide discusses the major environmental issues for
the EPA, describes more than a dozen of the major environmental
laws, and contains a very useful glossary of terms and
acronyms.
- http://www.epa.gov/epahome/epadocs/guide/
- Environmental
Issues Information
- Economic
Impact of Emission Reduction
- Type: report Level: intermediate Length:
long Links: no Graphics: yes
- Page has full text and graphics for a 1998 special report
entitled "Economic Impacts of Alternative Emission Reduction
Scenarios."
- http://www.accf.org/manne-richels1098.htm
- Implications
of Global Warming Policy
- Type: report Level: advanced Length:
long Links: no Graphics: yes
- Page from the National Center for Policy Analysis
containing a lengthy report on the economic implications of
global warming policy.
- http://www.ncpa.org/studies/s224.html
- Economic
Implications of Global Warming
- Type: list Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes
- Page lists a series of links to the full text of papers
analyzing the economic implications of carbon dioxide
emissions, global warming, emissions trading, and the Kyoto
Treaty.
- http://www.ncpa.org/hotlines/global/gwhot2.html
- Global
Climate Change and Human Health
- Type: publication/list
Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes Other: pdf/search
- Site from the American Council on Science and Health links
to information about the Council and contains a position paper
dealing with the health effects of global climate change and
how policymakers should respond.
- http://www.acsh.org/publications/reports/global.html
- Environmental
Issues Index
- Type: publication/list
Level: basic Length:
short Links: yes Graphics: yes
- Page contains links to the text of numerous articles
dealing with all types of environmental issues, including air
and water pollution, endangered species, public lands, global
issues, and more.
- http://www.ncpa.org/pi/enviro/envdex1.html
Property Rights
Issues
Tradable Pollution Permits and the
Environment