“[Gross domestic product] does not allow for the health of our children, the quality of their education, or the joy of their play. It does not include the beauty of our poetry or the strength of our marriages, the intelligence of our public debate or the integrity of our public officials. It measures neither our …
During the summer of 2022, I created and taught a course entitled “The Economics of Climate Change.” In honor of the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, I thought I would share the outline of the course and reading materials. We began by a brief overview of the physical causes …
How does a permaculture designer talk shop with an environmental economist? I am a permaculture designer and now I work for an environmental economist. Both ways of thinking are part of the larger conversation about sustainability so they have a lot in common but I sometimes wonder how permaculture and economics can talk. What they …
Hynes, et al. 2022. “Estimating the costs and benefits of protecting a coastal amenity from climate change-related hazards: Nature based solutions via oyster reef restoration versus grey infrastructure.” Ecological Economics, vol 194. While ecologists have known that nature-based solutions to problems like flooding and pollution control are in many cases less expensive and more efficient …
At rbouvier consulting, we understand how vital Census data is at all levels of society. Not only is decennial Census data used to appropriate seats in the US House of Representatives, state governments, and allocate billions of dollars in federal funding, it’s also vital data used in research across the country that supports both public …
By Kayley Weeks Maine lawmakers have passed the nation’s first extended producer responsibility law for packaging materials made out of materials such as plastic, cardboard and paper. The new law will require producers of products that are sold in Maine to pay a fee based on the type of packaging material they adopt for their …
What is a Nor’Easter? In January of this year, coastal communities on the East Coast were hit with a Nor’easter that set record snow falls in Boston. The storm brought more than just snow, with severe winds, power outages, and flooding. Nor’easters are a type of storm caused by low pressure moving along the coast. …
This quarter, I focus on three recently published articles that highlight the value of environmental goods and services: regulations to combat the emerald ash borer, the value of agricultural land, and the value of wetland restoration. Hope, Emily; McKenney, Daniel; Pedlar, John; Lawrence, Kevin; MacDonald, Heather. 2021. “Canadian efforts to slow the spread of Emerald …
As an environmental economics firm, we are often called upon to assign a dollar value to something that doesn’t normally have a price tag assigned to it. This is often a confusing, and sometimes contradictory, idea to many people. In the United States we live in a culture that tends to equate something’s value in …
rbouvier consulting is proud to announce the publication of Feasibility of Point-Nonpoint Nutrient Trading in the Long Island Sound Watershed, the culmination of a year’s long project with NEIWPCC (formerly known as the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Council). The report summarizes the potential for nutrient trading to meet the goals of the Long …