| Course ID: | FANR 3300-3300D. 2 hours. |
| Course Title: | Economics of Renewable Resources |
Course
Description: | An overview of theory, tools, and methods of economic analysis as
applied to the broad range of renewable resources (forests,
wildlife, fisheries, and water)to impart an understanding of the
economic factors that influence management decisions and to
introduce some tools used in analyzing these decisions. Economic
and non-market concepts and methods used to analyze investments,
problems, and issues of interest to resource managers will be
covered. |
| Oasis Title: | ECON OF RENEW RES |
| Duplicate Credit: | Not open to students with credit in FORS 3710-3710D |
| Nontraditional Format: | Course will meet for seven weeks only. The lecture portion of
this course will meet on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for one
period. Discussion section will meet on Tuesday or Thursday for
one period. |
Semester Course
Offered: | Offered fall and spring semester every year. |
| Grading System: | A-F (Traditional) |
|
| Course Objectives: | By the end of the course the student will:
1. Understand outputs vs. values of natural resources
2. Understand renewable resources in a market context
3. Understand market vs. non-market resources/goods/services
4. Understand values of public vs. privately owned renewable
resources
5. Calculate costs and benefits of resource based investments
6. Understand the time value of money
7. Learn how to apply discounted cash flow formulas for
benefit/cost analysis
8. Understand the concept of opportunity cost with respect to
resource based decisions
9. Understand the concepts of supply and demand in renewable
resource markets
10.Learn the principles of economic valuation for resources
11.Understand scarcity concepts and its relation to the
allocation of natural resources
12.Understand total economic value
13.Understand how to evaluate mixtures of economic and social
variables |
| Topical Outline: | Lecture outline:
The role of economics in renewable resource decision making
Rational behavior
Classification of resources
Economic importance of renewable resources in the U.S.
Basic economic principles applied to renewable resource
management decisions
Demand
Supply
Price Formation
Optimal management of common and pool renewable resources
The problem of common and pool renewable resources
The economics of fisheries and wildlife production decisions
Regulation vs. market based approaches for controlling
overharvest
Optimal management of private renewable resources
The economics of forest production decisions
Optimal harvest timing of private renewable resources
Inclusion of multiple products in decision-making
Optimal management of water
The economics and institutions of water allocation
Issues in the valuation of renewable resources
Methods for valuing market and nonmarket resources
Opportunity cost approach for environmental evaluation
Auctions for determining market values
Contingent valuation for hypothetical markets
Discussion outline:
1. Discounting, compounding and the time value of money
2. Discounting multiple cash flows
3. Spreadsheet analysis of investments
4. Inflation and its measurement
5. Investment analysis and criteria
6. The incorporation of taxes in investments
7. Presenting and evaluating economic data |