LOST BIRD-YEARS: QUANTIFYING BIRD INJURIES IN NATURAL RESOURCE DAMAGE ASSESSMENTS FOR OIL SPILLS1

2005 ◽  
Vol 2005 (1) ◽  
pp. 1019-1023 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Zafante ◽  
Steve Hampton
Keyword(s):  
Natural Resource ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Ecological Benefits ◽  
Restoration Project ◽  
The Public ◽  
Recovery Times ◽  
Bird Mortality ◽  
Recovery Mechanisms ◽  
One Year ◽  
The Cost

ABSTRACT Large oil spills routinely impact hundreds or even thousands of birds. In order to determine the compensation that responsible parties owe the public, trustee agencies typically examine the number of live and dead birds collected to estimate total bird mortality caused by the spill (Ford et al., 1987). In these natural resource damage assessments (NRDA), compensation is typically based upon the potential ecological benefits that flow from a restoration project. In the case of a bird kill, final compensation is based upon the cost of implementing a restoration project and not upon a dollar value per bird. The dominant paradigm for calculating compensatory restoration for bird injuries is Resource Equivalency Analysis (REA). This paper begins by providing a brief overview of REA when applied to birds. We then examine the REA implications of varying the level of mortality, baseline variability, and demographic variables in a simple population model that tracks both injured and baseline population levels. After finding no evidence that these factors necessarily produce short recovery times, we summarize two general approaches for calculating lost bird-years. We conclude that short recovery times (e.g., one-year) are unlikely for birds when using individual-based measures of injury. Further, we believe that recovery times may be much longer than currently calculated for situations where plausible “recovery mechanisms” cannot be defined.

The Cost of Certainty in Natural Resource Damage Assessment Under the Oil Pollution Act of 19901

2001 ◽  
Vol 2001 (1) ◽  
pp. 231-234 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Robert Greene
Keyword(s):  
Natural Resources ◽  
Natural Resource ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Hedonic Price ◽  
The Public ◽  
Hedonic Price Models ◽  
Habitat Equivalency Analysis ◽  
Natural Resource Damage Assessment ◽  
Scaling Methods ◽  
The Cost

ABSTRACT Pursuant to the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA 90), natural resource trustees are empowered to seek recovery for damages to natural resources caused by discharges of oil and/or certain threats of discharges of oil. To determine the proper amount of damages, trustees undertake the process of “scaling,” which is an attempt to calculate the size of restoration actions that would be required to expedite recovery of injured natural resources to baseline and compensate the public for interim lost resources and services. Trustees utilize various scaling methods, including service-to-service methods, such as habitat equivalency analysis, and value-to-value methods, such as hedonic price models and contingent valuation. Regardless of the method chosen, however, the scaling is directly dependent on the level of injury caused by a spill. Disputes between trustees and those parties designated as responsible for the spill (responsible parties or RPs) often occur in determining the level of injury. In many cases, as a result of either these disputes or the trustees' desire to determine the precise level of injury, trustees undertake costly and time-consuming injury studies. These studies oftentimes are inefficient because the resulting gains in certainty often are achieved through disproportionately expensive studies relative to the resulting gains in restoration. In certain instances, attempts to achieve greater certainty can destroy an otherwise efficient and cooperative restoration effort and run contrary to the OPA 90 regulations. Such attempts also can lead to costly litigation for both the public and the RP involved. Lastly, attempts to achieve greater certainty during injury assessment can unnecessarily increase the scale of compensatory restoration because of delays in implementing restoration actions. Both trustees and RPs must recognize those instances in which achieving greater certainty leads to increased costs to both the public and the RP. In such situations, stipulating to certain injury assumptions can lead to overall net gains for both the public and the RP. These stipulations can be used to induce RPs to increase other aspects of the restoration, thereby increasing overall gains for the public at less cost to the RP.

scholarly journals Habitat and Resource Equivalency Analysis: 30 Years of Lessons Learned and a Look to the Future

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey Wakefield ◽  
Theodore Tomasi ◽  
Angeline Morrow ◽  
Christopher Pfeifer ◽  
Heath Byrd
Keyword(s):  
Natural Resource ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
The Public ◽  
Habitat Equivalency Analysis ◽  
Natural Resource Damage Assessment ◽  
Creative Solutions ◽  
The Future ◽  
Technical Basis

ABSTRACT Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA) is a process used to determine the amount of compensation due to the public for natural resource injuries arising from oil spills. Two models, Resource Equivalency Analysis (REA) and Habitat Equivalency Analysis (HEA), are used in essentially all OPA NRDAs to compute compensatory restoration requirements. REA is applied when members of wildlife populations are injured: usually mortality or a loss of reproduction among a species of bird, turtle, marine mammal, or fish. HEA is used when habitats are injured: usually oiling of beaches, wetlands, or sediments. The models are often implemented in a cooperative setting with input from both the Responsible Party and the Trustees. In this setting the models provide a structure for organizing negotiations and identifying the types of agreements that need to be reached before restoration can be identified and “right sized.” The models also have a technical basis in economic theory that is fully justified, but only in particular, limited circumstances. This technical basis is the only means of assuring the Trustees, RPs, and stakeholders that the NRDA process has identified an appropriate level of compensation. When the circumstances of a spill do not approximate those in which HEA and REA are defensible, creative solutions are needed to adjust the models to the circumstances of the case if they are to provide a convincing basis for scaling restoration and reaching resolution. This paper identifies the circumstances under which REA and HEA are fully defensible as well as 35 years of evolving adjustments designed to make them “work” when applied to real-world cases they do not quite fit. We also look to the future and how climate change may alter restoration scaling.

scholarly journals Extrapolating Injury from Larger to Smaller Oil Spills: Lessons in Louisiana

2001 ◽  
Vol 2001 (1) ◽  
pp. 213-217
Author(s):  
John C. Kern
Keyword(s):  
Crude Oil ◽  
Natural Resource ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Aquatic Organisms ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Assessment Method ◽  
Specific Model ◽  
Effective Manner ◽  
Injury Assessment ◽  
The Cost

ABSTRACT One challenge for trustees in a natural resource damage assessment (NRDA) is to adequately quantify natural resource injuries in a cost-effective manner. This is particularly true for smaller spills, where the cost of more expansive and more expensive injury assessment studies could dwarf the cost of the restoration actions to compensate for those injuries. The need for cost-effective assessments must he balanced against the need for the assessment methods to be technically defensible and useful in identifying and scaling appropriate restoration actions. In this paper, it is shown how the injury assessment results from the Lake Barre oil spill of May 1997 (which released 6,561 barrels of crude oil) were used to help inform trustees about the likely magnitude of injury for two smaller crude oil spills in Louisiana. For the Lake Barre spill, the trustees developed an incident-specific model—adapted from the Type A model—to quantify injury to birds and aquatic fauna. The results of this model were used to evaluate a restoration offer as compensation for these injuries from the responsible party (RP). Subsequently, the results of the Lake Barre assessment were used to help quantify injury to birds and aquatic organisms for the September 1998 release of up to 1,500 barrels of crude oil from a well blowout into Lake Grande Ecaille. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) again used the Lake Barre results to quantify injury to water column organisms for a November 1999 release of 850 barrels of crude oil from a pipeline in Four-Bayou Pass. Estimating injury by extrapolation from one spill to similar spills represents one cost-effective approach toward quantifying injury for small incidents, and should be considered as a potential injury assessment method for those spills where it is impractical or otherwise difficult to justify conducting large incident-specific injury studies. This technique can be done quickly, potentially speeding the settlement and restoration implementation process, thereby compensating the public in an expeditious manner.

NON-USE VALUE IN NATURAL RESOURCE DAMAGE ASSESSMENTS: THE NESTUCCA OIL SPILL

1993 ◽  
Vol 1993 (1) ◽  
pp. 689-693 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas A. Grigalunas ◽  
James J. Opaluch
Keyword(s):  
Contingent Valuation ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Natural Resource ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Use Value ◽  
Controversial Subject ◽  
The Public ◽  
Survey Responses

ABSTRACT A contingent valuation (CV) study that attempts to estimate non-use damages from the Nestucca spill was reviewed. The CV study faces formidable obstacles because it focuses on a controversial subject, oil spills, about which the public is known to have exaggerated perceptions, and because respondents may not have well defined dollar values for the environment. An examination of survey responses leads us to conclude that these problems are significant, and that, despite the substantial efforts by well known CV researchers, the results provide no basis for estimating damages due to this spill.

scholarly journals The Case Against the Universal Basic Income

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Le Dong Hai Nguyen
Keyword(s):  
Business Community ◽  
Basic Income ◽  
Quantitative Evidence ◽  
The Public ◽  
Welfare Systems ◽  
Implementation Costs ◽  
Mass Displacement ◽  
One Year ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact

With the cost of implementation shrinking and robot-to-workers ratio skyrocketing, the effects of automation on our economy and society are more palpable than ever. According to various studies, over half of our jobs could be fully executed by machines over the next decade or two, with severe impacts concentrated disproportionately on manufacturing-focused developing countries. In response to the threat of mass displacement of labour due to automation, economists, politicians, and even the business community have come to see Universal Basic Income (UBI) as the panacea. This paper argued against a UBI by addressing its implementation costs and efficiency in mitigating the impact of automation through quantitative evidence as well as results of failed UBI-comparable programs across the world. The author of this paper instead advocated for the continuation of existing means-tested welfare systems and further investment in education scheme for unskilled and low-skilled labour.This paper was submitted to the “Young Economist of the Year 2019” essay competition hosted by the Financial Times and the Royal Economic Society, where it won a high commendation and was one of the 36 best papers shortlisted among 1,300 qualified submissions to be honoured on the website of the Royal Economic Society (2.7% acceptance rate). Due to the rules and policies of the Royal Economic Society, the author could only make this paper available to the public at least one year after the original date of submission.

Challenges in Using Habitat Equivalency Analysis for Scaling Compensatory Restoration

2003 ◽  
Vol 2003 (1) ◽  
pp. 791-796 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard W. Dunford ◽  
Poh Boon Ung ◽  
Jeremy A. Cook ◽  
Gary S. Mauseth
Keyword(s):  
Natural Resource ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
The United States ◽  
Ecological Services ◽  
Ecological Service ◽  
Habitat Equivalency Analysis ◽  
Compensatory Habitat ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Compensatory Restoration

ABSTRACT Some oil spills cause losses of ecological services in coastal wetlands, other shoreline environments, intertidal ecosystems, and upland environments. In the United States, habitat equivalency analysis (HEA) is being used frequently in natural resource damage assessments for such oil spills to determine the scale of compensatory-restoration projects needed to offset the ecological service losses. The cost of the scaled compensatory-restoration project(s) that offset the ecological service losses is the measure of natural resource damages for the lost ecological services. Our paper describes the HEA process and provides an example of its application. Then we examine several challenges that arise in some HEA applications, including the role of leasing versus purchasing compensatory habitat, increasing values of compensatory habitat over time due to decreasing availability, accounting for service gains from compensatory habitat in the distant future when the present value of those services is essentially zero, and addressing uncertainties in estimating HEA inputs (such as the magnitude of annual service losses and gains). The final section of our paper provides our conclusions with respect to these challenges.

PREDICTING NATURAL RESOURCE DAMAGES FROM OIL SPILLS IN THE UNITED STATES

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 (1) ◽  
pp. 588-603 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard W. Dunford ◽  
Melissa K. Lynes
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Statistical Model ◽  
Natural Resource ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Geographic Location ◽  
The United States ◽  
Point Estimate ◽  
Government Agencies ◽  
The Public ◽  
Threatened And Endangered Species

ABSTRACT Most major oil spills in the United States result in some natural resource damages (NRD), which arise from injuries to natural resources and losses of their services. Other things being equal, larger spills lead to larger NRD. However, factors other than the number of gallons spilled can affect the subsequent amount of natural resource damages. These factors may include the type of oil spilled, the geographic location of the spill, the season in which the spill occurred, whether threatened and endangered species were injured, whether recreation closures occurred, whether the spill occurred in saltwater or freshwater, and other characteristics of the spill. This paper presents a statistical model using multiple-regression analysis that explains variations in 86 NRD settlements for oil spills in the United States based on a variety of factors. The results of the statistical analysis identify which of the factors influence NRD settlements and the magnitude of the effect. Then, the results of the statistical model are used to predict a point estimate and 90% confidence interval for the NRD settlement for three hypothetical oil spills. Such predictions could give both Trustees (i.e., government agencies that pursue NRD claims on behalf of the public) and responsible parties a useful damage range, for planning purposes, within days of future oil spills.

scholarly journals Linkages between Oil Spill Removal Activities and Natural Resource Damages

1991 ◽  
Vol 1991 (1) ◽  
pp. 377-383
Author(s):  
Richard W. Dunford ◽  
Sara P. Hudson ◽  
William H. Desvousges
Keyword(s):  
Natural Resources ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Natural Resource ◽  
Damage Assessment ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Total Cost ◽  
The Cost

ABSTRACT The new Oil Pollution Act of 1990 defines natural resource damages from oil spills as the sum of the cost to restore foregone natural resource services, the diminution of value of natural resource services prior to restoration, and damage assessment costs. Natural resource damages are usually determined once removal activities (containment, protection, and cleanup) are completed. Nevertheless, removal activities affect the magnitude of all three natural resource damage components. Consequently, to minimize the total cost of oil spills, decisions on removal activities should consider the linkages between removal activities and natural resource damages. Successful containment results in minimal natural resource damages, because oil generally does far less damage to natural resources in open water than on shore. If oil cannot be contained, the potential natural resource damages from oil coming ashore in certain areas can help determine priorities for protection activities. In particular, oil may harm natural resource services much more in some areas than in others. Furthermore, some natural resource services are more costly to restore and assess than others. Finally, some cleanup activities do more harm than good to natural resource services. If the effects of cleanup activities on natural resource damages are ignored, “excessive” cleanup activities are likely.

Sonographically guided, transcatheter foam sclerotherapy of the great saphenous vein

Phlebologie ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 36 (06) ◽  
pp. 309-312 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Schulz ◽  
M. Jünger ◽  
M. Hahn
Keyword(s):  
Saphenous Vein ◽  
Great Saphenous Vein ◽  
Clinical Stage ◽  
Clinical Signs ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Duplex Sonography ◽  
Foam Sclerotherapy ◽  
Average Loss ◽  
One Year ◽  
The Cost

Summary Objective: The goal of the study was to assess the effectiveness and patient tolerability of single-session, sonographically guided, transcatheter foam sclerotherapy and to evaluate its economic impact. Patients, methods: We treated 20 patients with a total of 22 varicoses of the great saphenous vein (GSV) in Hach stage III-IV, clinical stage C2-C5 and a mean GSV diameter of 9 mm (range: 7 to 13 mm). We used 10 ml 3% Aethoxysklerol®. Additional varicoses of the auxiliary veins of the GSV were sclerosed immediately afterwards. Results: The occlusion rate in the treated GSVs was 100% one week after therapy as demonstrated with duplex sonography. The cost of the procedure was 207.91 E including follow-up visit, with an average loss of working time of 0.6 days. After one year one patient showed clinical signs of recurrent varicosis in the GSV; duplex sonography showed reflux in the region of the saphenofemoral junction in a total of seven patients (32% of the treated GSVs). Conclusion: Transcatheter foam sclerotherapy of the GSV is a cost-effective, safe method of treating varicoses of GSV and broadens the spectrum of therapeutic options. Relapses can be re-treated inexpensively with sclerotherapy.

A comparison of the cost of research in South Africa's public research and higher education institutions

2008 ◽  
Vol 104 (11/12) ◽  
Author(s):  
D.R. Walwyn
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Public Research ◽  
Pricing Policy ◽  
The Public ◽  
Annual Salary ◽  
Research Sector ◽  
Salary Survey ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Comparative Information

Despite the importance of labour and overhead costs to both funders and performers of research in South Africa, there is little published information on the remuneration structures for researchers, technician and research support staff. Moreover, there are widely different pricing practices and perceptions within the public research and higher education institutions, which in some cases do not reflect the underlying costs to the institution or the inherent value of the research. In this article, data from the 2004/5 Research and Development Survey have been used to generate comparative information on the cost of research in various performance sectors. It is shown that this cost is lowest in the higher education institutions, and highest in the business sector, although the differences in direct labour and overheads are not as large as may have been expected. The calculated cost of research is then compared with the gazetted rates for engineers, scientists and auditors performing work on behalf of the public sector, which in all cases are higher than the research sector. This analysis emphasizes the need within the public research and higher education institutions for the development of a common pricing policy and for an annual salary survey, in order to dispel some of the myths around the relative costs of research, the relative levels of overhead ratios and the apparent disparity in remuneration levels.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document