Graduate Curriculum Committee Course Proposal Form
for Courses Numbered 6000 and Higher
Note: Before completing this form, please carefully read the accompanying instructions.
Submission guidelines are posted to the GCC Web site: http://www.ecu.edu/cs-acad/gcc/index.cfm
1. Course prefix and number:
ECON 8540
2. Date:
09/15/2011
3. Requested action:
X New Course
Revision of Active Course
Revision & Unbanking of a Banked Course
Renumbering of an Existing Course from
from
to
#
Required
X
#
Elective
4. Method(s) of delivery (check all boxes that apply for both current/proposed and expected
future delivery methods within the next three years):
Current or
Proposed Delivery
Method(s):
X
On-campus (face to face)
Expected
Future Delivery
Method(s):
X
Distance Course (face to face off campus)
Online (delivery of 50% or more of the instruction is offered online)
5. Justification (must cite accreditation and/or assessment by the graduate faculty) for new course
or course revision or course renumbering:
The graduate faculty of the Department of Economics identified a need in government,
the private sector, and in academia for PhD graduates with advanced analytic and
technical skills necessary for analysis, mitigation, management and regulation of risk—
both environmental and financial. This requires an understanding of the underlying
individual decision maker and firm behavior and their interaction within market and
nonmarket settings. Theoretical modeling and empirical analysis complete the picture
and allow for the identification of effective public policy and regulation. This doctoral
program is unique within the state of North Carolina because it emphasizes risk modeling
and analysis over a broad scope of applications that range from financial markets to
natural hazards. Students with training from this program will be well equipped to
qualify for high level positions within Federal and State Agencies that deal with natural
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hazards and regulation of risk, as well as businesses for management and mitigation of
risk.
The assessment process of the Economics Graduate Faculty has determined that a course
that develops the theory and applied research methods for resource and environmental
economics would enhance the proposed doctoral program and strengthen the
environmental risk and hazards component of the program of study.
6. Course description exactly as it should appear in the next catalog:
8540. Environmental and Resource Economics (3) P: ECON 8112, 8310. Advanced economic
theory of environmental management and policy, treatment of externalities, market and nonmarket approaches to environmental improvement, sustainable use of resources and nonrenewable resources, and economics of climate change.
7. If this is a course revision, briefly describe the requested change:
n/a
8. Course credit:
Lecture Hours
3
3
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Lab
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Studio
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Practicum
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Internship
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Other (e.g., independent study) Please explain.
s.h.
3
Total Credit Hours
s.h.
8
9. Anticipated annual student enrollment:
10. Changes in degree hours of your programs:
Degree(s)/Program(s)
Changes in Degree Hours
PhD/Economics
N/A
11. Affected degrees or academic programs, other than your programs:
Degree(s)/Program(s)
Changes in Degree Hours
12. Overlapping or duplication with affected units or programs:
X Not applicable
Documentation of notification to the affected academic degree programs is
attached.
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13. Council for Teacher Education (CTE) approval (for courses affecting teacher education):
X Not applicable
Applicable and CTE has given their approval.
14. University Service-Learning Committee (USLC) approval:
X Not applicable
Applicable and USLC has given their approval.
15. Statements of support:
a. Staff
X Current staff is adequate
Additional staff is needed (describe needs in the box below):
b. Facilities
X Current facilities are adequate
Additional facilities are needed (describe needs in the box below):
c. Library
X
Initial library resources are adequate
Initial resources are needed (in the box below, give a brief explanation and an
estimate for the cost of acquisition of required initial resources):
d. Unit computer resources
X
Unit computer resources are adequate
Additional unit computer resources are needed (in the box below, give a brief
explanation and an estimate for the cost of acquisition):
e. ITCS resources
X
ITCS resources are not needed
The following ITCS resources are needed (put a check beside each need):
Mainframe computer system
Statistical services
Network connections
Computer lab for students
Software
Approval from the Director of ITCS attached
16. Course information (see: Graduate Curriculum and Program Development Manual for
instructions):
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a. Textbook(s) and/or readings: author(s), name, publication date, publisher, and
city/state/country. Include ISBN (when applicable).
Textbooks
Required:
Hanley, N., J.F. Shogren & B. White. (2007). Environmental Economics in Theory and
Practice. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN: 978-0333971376
Recommended:
Haab, T., and T.E. McConnell. (2002), Valuing Environmental and Natural Resources:
The Econometrics of Nonmarket Valuation, Edward Elgar Publishers. ISBN: 9781840647044
Baumol, W.J. & W.E. Oates. (1988). The Theory of Environmental Policy, (2nd Ed.).
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN: 978-0521311120
Selected Readings:
Brock, W.A. & Xepapadeas, A. (2003). Valuing Biodiversity from an Economic
Perspective: A Unified Economic, Ecological, and Genetic Approach. American
Economic Review. (93, pp.1597-1614).
Cabe, R., & Herriges, J. (1992). The Regulation of Non-point Source Pollution under
Imperfect and Asymmetric Information. Journal of Environmental Economics
and Management. (22, pp. 134-146).
Cropper, M., Evans, W., Berardi, S., Ducla-Soares, M., & Portney, P. (1992). The
Determinants of Pesticide Regulation: A Statistical Analysis of EPA DecisionMaking. Journal of Political Economy (100, pp. 175-197).
Cropper, M.L., & Oates, W.E. (1992). Environmental Economics: A Survey. Journal
of Economic Literature, vol. XXX: (pp. 675-740).
Ehmke, M.D. and Shogren, J. (2009). Experimental Methods for Environment and
Development Economics. Environment and Development Economics (14:419456).
Kaplow, L. & Shavell, S. (1994). Optimal Law Enforcement with Self-Reporting of
Behavior. Journal of Political Economy. (102, pp. 583-606).
Kotchen, M. & Moore, M. R. (2007). Private Provision of Environmental Public
Goods: Household Participation in Green-Electricity Programs. Journal of
Environmental Economics and Management. (53, pp.1-16).
Laffont, J.-J., & Tirole, J. (1993). A Theory of Incentives in Procurement and
Regulation. Chapters 1.1-2.2.
Langpap, C., & Wu, J. (2004). Voluntary Conservation of Endangered Species: When
Does No Regulatory Assurance Mean No Conservation? Journal of
Environmental Economics and Management 47: (pp. 435-57).
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Layton, D. & Brown, G. (2000). Heterogenous Preferences Regarding Global Climate
Change. The Review of Economics and Statistics (82(4), pp. 616-624).
Lewis, T. (1996). Protecting the Environment When Costs and Benefits are Privately
Known. Rand Journal of Economics. (27, pp. 819-847).
Murdock, J. (2006). Handling Unobserved Site Characteristics in Random Utility Models
of Recreation Demand. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management.
(51, pp. 1-25).
Oates, W., Portney, P. & McGartland, A. (1989). The Net Benefits of Incentive-Based
Regulation: A Case Study of Environmental Standard Setting. American
Economic Review (79, pp.1233-42).
Polasky, S., and Doremus, H. (1998). When the Truth Hurts: Endangered Species
Policy on Private Land with Incomplete Information. J. Environ. Econom.
Management 35(1): (pp. 22-47).
Segerson, K. (1988). Uncertainty and Incentives for Nonpoint Pollution Control. J.
Environ. Econom. Management. (15, pp. 87-98).
Segerson, K., & Miceli, T.J. (1998). Voluntary Environmental Agreements: Good or
Bad News for Environmental Protection? J. Environmental Economics and
Management (2, pp. 109-130).
Segerson, K., & Wu, J. (2006). Voluntary Approaches to Nonpoint Pollution Control:
Inducing First-Best Outcomes through the Use of Threats. Journal of
Environmental Economics and Management 51: (pp. 165-184).
Shibuta, H., & J. Winrich. (1983). Control of Pollution when the Offended Defend
Themselves. Economica (50: pp.425-437).
Spulber, D. (1985). Effluent Regulation and Long-Run Optimality. J. Environmental
Economics and Management (12: pp. 103-116).
Spulber, D. (1988). Optimal Environmental Regulation under Asymmetric Information.
Journal of Public Economics (35: pp.163-181).
Swierzbinski, J.E. (1994). Guilty until Proven Innocent – Regulation with Costly and
Limited Enforcement. J. Environ. Econom. Management. (27, pp.127-146).
Weitzman, M.L. (1974) Prices vs. Quantities. Rev. Econom. Studies 41: (pp.477-91).
Wu, J. (2006). Environmental Amenities, Urban Sprawl, and Community
Characteristics. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management. 52:
(pp. 527-547).
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b. Course objectives for the course (student – centered, behavioral focus)
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:



Apply the tools of economic analysis to study environmental issues.
Evaluate the impacts of uncertainty and information asymmetry on the choice
of policy instruments for regulating externalities.
Measure non-market benefits of environmental amenities.
c. Course topic outline











Overview of Environmental Economics
Externalities and Environmental Policy Instruments I: Complete
Information
Tradable Permits
Incentive-Based Approaches for Resource Conservation and
Environmental Protection2.
Externalities and Environmental Policy Instruments II: Incomplete
Information
- Instrument Choice Under Uncertainty
Non-Point Source Pollution
Monitoring and Enforcement
Environmental Regulation in Practice
The Choice of Policy Instruments in Practice
Voluntary vs. Mandatory Approaches for Environmental Protection
Spatial Modeling and the Economics of Land Use
d. List of course assignments, weighting of each assignment, and grading/evaluation system
for determining a grade



Exam I = 30%
Exam II = 30%
Research Paper = 40%
Evaluation System
A
90% to 100%
B
89% to 80%
C
79% to 70%
F
Below 70%
Outstanding Performance
Acceptable Performance
Inadequate Performance
Failure
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