596 Miller Economics Today, Nineteenth Edition
Chapter 31 Environmental Economics
No Manure, Sherlock
The milk cattle produce large amounts of manure, which is liquefied and spread on farmland as fertilizer.
A problem arises when it is spread too thickly and there is rain or snowmelt. Then polluted water runs from
How Chinese Fish Farming Helps Wild Fish Populations
Fish farming, or the growing of edible fish in small freshwater ponds and sea inlets blocked with earthen
dams, began in China thousands of years ago. Twenty years ago, Chinese fish farmers were producing
about a million tons of fish each year. Since then, production of farmed fish has increased dramatically.
Chinese fish farmers currently produce almost 35 million tons of fish per year, or more than 70 percent of
The Uncertain Economics of Ethanol
For years, farmers have sold corn and corn by-products for use in the production of a fuel called ethanol,
which is an alternative to gasoline in powering cars and trucks. The firms that produce ethanol, which
yields less pollution than gasoline, receive a per-unit subsidy of about 51 cents for each gallon of ethanol
Lecture Extender Examples 597
A Dutch Gain from a Lower Marginal Cost of Pollution Abatement in Brazil
In 1997, in Kyoto, Japan, the Dutch government joined 130 other nations in signing a treaty called the
Kyoto Protocol, committing the nations to reducing their emissions of methane and other global-warming
gases. Under the terms of this agreement, the Dutch government gets equal credit for battling pollution
anywhere on the planet. In Dutch urban areas, overall air quality is better than in many Brazilian cities.
How Much Does Society Pay to Protect Endangered Species?
Of the nearly 1,300 species officially classified as endangered under the 1973 Endangered Species Act,
between 450 and 500 are usually considered to be stable or improving. The remaining species are
continuing to die out. So far only about 10 species that have appeared on the endangered list have been
Preventing Overfishing by Trading Quotas
for the amounts of
fish that their fishermen can catch in various areas of the sea. In most European nations, governments
control the allocation of fishing rights under these quotas. When a fisherman dies or retires, his quota
goes into a pool to be reallocated. In the United Kingdom, however, fishermen can buy, sell, or lease their
quotas. It turns out that this has had beneficial side effects for fish conservation.
598 Miller Economics Today, Nineteenth Edition
Trying to Lay Claim to Trees That Sop Up Pollution
American Electric Power (AEP) owns power plants around the United States that together release about
3 percent of U.S. carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions every year. The company has entered into a voluntary
agreement with the U.S. government to reduce its CO2 emissions by 1 percent every year. AEP has
determined that building cleaner power plants would cost between $50 and $75 per ton of eliminated CO2
emissions. In contrast, it would cost only about $1 to $2 per ton of CO2 emissions by planting trees that
convert CO2 into wood.
Earning Profits from Conserving Natural Wonders
-foot tall rock arch
called Natural Bridge. A tributary of the James River flows beneath. A 347-foot cavern lies inside the
park surrounding Natural Bridge. The 1,600-acre park receives about 300,000 visitors a year. This park has
been in private hands since 1774, when Thomas Jefferson paid King George III 20 shillings for it. Today,
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