Spring 2005

ECO 359M • Environmental and Natural Resource Economics

Course Description

This semester-long course will study the economics of public policy toward natural resources and the environment. It is designed primarily for advanced undergraduates in economics. Prerequisites include microeconomics and calculus. We will start with the concepts of externalities, public goods, property rights, market failure, and social cost-benefit analysis. Within this framework, we will consider a few additional problems such as information, uncertainty, and risk analysis. The first set of applications of these tools will involve natural resources. Other applications include air pollution, water pollution, solid waste management, and hazardous substances. In addressing each of these problems, we will compare public policy responses such as administrative regulation, marketable permits, tax incentives, and direct subsidies. We will study several methods to value environmental benefits.

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