Environmental Policy Program¹
at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

The Environmental Policy Program is a major research and training center that has the objective of enhancing the quality of environmental policy in the state, the nation and in countries throughout the world. Engaged in scholarly research projects focused on water resources and environmental and natural resources policy and management, the Program has provided policy advice to the government and private sectors since 1993.

The Program has established collaborative partnerships between other universities and organizations that include Oak Ridge National Laboratory, as well as the University of Georgia and Emory University. The Program’s water resources consortium, the Georgia Water Planning & Policy Center, is a partnership between Albany State University (Flint River Water Planning & Policy Center), Georgia Southern University (Coastal Rivers Water Planning & Policy Center) and Georgia State University (North Georgia Water Planning & Policy Center, housed in the Environmental Policy Program). Each university center includes a research program and an academic program in Water Resources Management and Policy. The programs are available via videoconferencing and Internet technologies, and are offered in the evenings to accommodate working students and career professionals.

Other major research areas in the Program include Brownfields management and the study of economic behavior in various policy settings. The Experimental Economics Laboratory maintains research and academic training in experimental economics. The Economics program offers a specialization in Environmental Policy, and students can earn a Ph.D. in Economics, with a specialization in Environmental Policy. Ronald G. Cummings is the Program's Director.

In This Section:

• Program
• Projects
• Proposals Under Review
• The Environmental and Experimental Economics Laboratory
• Publications

Programs

Brownfields Program. The Brownfields Project assists policymakers with new ideas in the economic management of revitalizing toxic industrial sites. The project uses a unique database of commercial and industrial properties in Atlanta to quantify the reduced economic potential of Brownfields and their possible spillover effects onto surrounding properties in the most comprehensive manner possible, and to disseminate this information in a manner accessible to policy makers, community leaders, and all stakeholders.

Joint Research with Georgia Southern University. This program has continued development of academic and certificate training programs in Water and Natural Resources Management with the Coastal Rivers Water Planning and Policy Center.

Joint Research with Albany State University. This program has continued development of graduate and certificate training programs in Water and Natural Resources Management with the Flint River Water Planning and Policy Center.

Environmental Damage Assessment Program. This program is focused on the development and application of innovative methods for assessing the value of environmental systems.

Projects

Agricultural Water Policy Research Center (U.S. Department of Agriculture). Ronald G. Cummings. Research and development for water planning in the coastal area of Georgia to assist stakeholders who rely upon the Floridan Aquifer. Renewal for third year, August 1, 2003-July 31, 2004. ($664,891)

Agricultural Water Policy Research Center (U.S. Department of Agriculture). Paul J. Ferraro. Research and development for water planning in the coastal area of Georgia to assist stakeholders who rely upon the Floridan Aquifer. July 1, 2004-June 30, 2005. ($837,429)

Innovative Water Policies (Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission). Ronald G. Cummings. Mary Beth Walker serves as senior investigator, collaborating on two projects: conservation pricing for residential water use in Georgia; and analyses of data derived from Georgia’s ongoing agricultural metering program. This project provides research and leadership in the study of alternative policies for water planning and management in Georgia. Renewal for third year, July 1, 2003-June 30, 2004. ($632,662) Renewal for fourth year, July 1, 2004-June 30, 2005. ($650,000)

Building a Foundation for Water Quality Trading in Georgia (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency). Ronald G. Cummings. The project joins experts in economics, policy, law, water quality, engineering and environmental modeling to advance the opportunity to implement water quality trading in Georgia watersheds. September 1, 2004-August 30, 2005. ($99,400)

Game Theory and Social Interaction (National Science Foundation). Susan K. Laury. The project is a "virtual collaboratory" to study game theory using Web-based economics experiments. Renewal for third year, June 1, 2003-May 31, 2004. ($50,247) Renewal for fourth year, June 1, 2004-May 31, 2005. ($43,077)

Impact of Insurance Markets on Biases (National Science Foundation). Susan K. Laury. This project focuses on risky decision making in the presence of insurance markets. Renewal for second year, August 1, 2003-July 31, 2004. (29,434) Renewal for third year, August 1, 2004-July 31, 2005. ($22,989)

Experimental Tests of Provision Rules in Conjoint Applications for Environmental Valuation. (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency). Laura O. Taylor. May 1, 2003-April 30, 2005. ($129,000)

Evaluating the Effectiveness and Efficiency of Sea Turtle Conservation. (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)/National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). Paul J. Ferraro. September 15, 2004-June 30, 2006. ($54,040)

Research Instrumentation Grant: Updating and Enhancing the Experimental Economics Laboratory. (Georgia State University). Paul J. Ferraro, Susan K. Laury, Ragan Petrie, and Laura O. Taylor; and Sebastien Pouget and Ann Gillette from the Robinson College of Business. ($46,206)

Proposals Under Review

Trusting Appearances and Reciprocating Looks: Experimental Evidence on Gender and Race Preferences. (Georgia State University Advancement of Women Faculty Scholarship Mentoring Grant Pilot Project). Ragan Petrie.

Investigating Altruism Spillovers. (National Science Foundation). Laura O. Taylor and Susan K. Laury, Co-principal Investigators. (Submitted February 2004, $108,000)

The Environmental and Experimental Economics Laboratory

With support from the Georgia Research Alliance, the Environmental & Experimental Economics Laboratory is a state-of-the-art facility unique to the Southeast. It functions as a research center to assist in determining valuations for environmental damages, assessing market values for non-renewable resources and projecting future economic resource needs. Its primary use is for studies that focus on critical behavioral relationships between policy rules, individual perceptions of the incentives associated with these rules, and outcomes. Ronald G. Cummings is the Director of the Environmental & Experimental Economics Laboratory.

The 40-station lab provides a facility for research and teaching in the areas of environmental regulation compliance, non-market valuation, a transition to the use of markets, and collective decisions in the management of environmental resources. Critical policy questions concern the response of individuals to proposed policy initiatives. Through the laboratory, users gain insights into the impact of the use of markets for the trading of emissions and the extent of compliance with environmental regulations. The laboratory also allows evaluation of methods for obtaining individual valuation of environmental resources. For example, in the area of Fiscal Policy, it provides a means of testing the behavioral aspects of various programs designed to enhance tax compliance and of investigating the conditions under which voluntary contributions will be successful in providing collective goods.

The Portable Laboratory

The Portable Laboratory consists of 30 Pentium notebook subject stations, a notebook server and portable hubs. With travel cases designed specifically to transport the facility, staff can easily conduct laboratory experiments throughout the nation and abroad.

Laboratory Activities and Visitors

The lab was moved to its new location in the Andrew Young School in June and has undergone a complete renovation, expanding from 24 research subject stations to 40 stations. Computers were upgraded with a grant from Georgia State University. The first experiments in the new lab were held in December.

Outreach

Kathleen Banks represented the Program, and the Andrew Young School, to the National Wildlife Foundation’s summer program for high school students held at the Clark Atlanta University campus, May 2004.

Summer undergraduate interns Stephanie Hill (from Notre Dame) and Menbera Shiferaw (from University of Georgia) worked with Ragan Petrie and Paul J. Ferraro on projects focused on environmental evaluation and water pricing.

Environmental & Experimental Economics Forum
2004 Seminar Series

Publications

Water Policy Working Papers:

1. For a complete listing of AYSPS Active Research Sponsored Grants from CY2004, see the Appendix: Report on External Funding.