The Ecosystem Impacts of Severe Warming

This paper uses a quantitative dynamic ecosystem vegetation model to explore the potential impact of warming up to 9-12 degrees C on global ecosystems. The paper does not find evidence of a global collapse in terrestrial ecosystems but there is evidence of substantial changes. Temperate and tropical forests expand and replace boreal forests and forests shift to woodlands and parkland at high temperatures. Net primary productivity and standing forest biomass per hectare rise. These changes will affect dependent animal species. Further research is needed to measure the resulting benefits and damages to market and nonmarket services.

A Conjoint Analysis of Public Preferences for Agricultural Land Preservation

Public preferences for the nonmarket services of permanently preserved agricultural land are measured and compared using conjoint analysis. The results from a survey of 199 Delawareans suggest environmental and nonmarket-agricultural services are the most important preserved-land attributes. Results also suggest that open space associated with wetlands on farms is neither an amenity nor a disamenity. On the margin, preserved parcels with agricultural and environmental attributes provide net benefits, which may exceed $1,000,000 for a 1,000-acre parcel. Preserved forestland provides benefits per acre that are statistically equivalent to cropland, though forestland may be less expensive to preserve.

Regional forest resource accounting: a northern Alberta case study

This study outlines the development of a resource accounting system for a region of public forestland in northern Alberta. The purpose of this exercise is to provide a clearer picture of the market and nonmarket benefits provided by the forest. The services valued include commercial activities such as forestry, trapping, and fishing plus noncommercial or nonmarket activities. Nonmarket services include recreational activities (fishing, hunting, and camping), subsistence resource use, and environmental control services (carbon sequestration and biodiversity maintenance). The case study provides the basis for future estimates that when tracked over time can provide information regarding the sustainability of income flows from the region. Many of the complexities of resource accounting at this finer resolution parallel those of resource accounting at the national level. The case study also illustrates constraints and challenges unique to the regional and forestry context.

Measuring the Nonmarket Value of Massachusetts Agricultural Land: A Case Study

Agricultural land provides a variety of “nonmarket” services to the Commonwealth, including wildlife habitat, scenic vistas, and recreation. This study utilizes an iterative bidding game to estimate willingness-to-pay of residents of three central Massachusetts counties to preserve state agricultural land. Through the use of these data, estimates of the value of these nonmarket amenities are derived so that a fuller measure of the value of agricultural land can be obtained. This information may be useful to policy makers administering such programs as the Agricultural Preservation Restriction Act (Chapter 780) which are designed to arrest the conversion of Massachusetts farmland to urban uses.