211-447 Forest Economics 2

Credit Points

Coordinator

Semester

Contact

Subject Description

On completion of this course, students should be able to perform simple cost-benefit analyses, have an understanding of welfare economics and the questions of efficiency and distribution, be able to make resource management decisions on an economic basis, be familiar with the methods for the economic valuation of non-market goods. Content: Financial and economic analysis: inflation, discounting, taxes and subsidies, criteria. Principles of welfare economics. Social cost-benefit analysis: criteria, opportunity costs, market prices vs shadow prices, transfer payments, non-market goods and services. Water resource economics: scarcity prices. Recreation economics: willingness to pay, travel cost method, introduction to contingent valuation. Conservation economics: public consumption goods, hedonic prices, contingent valuation, problems of biodiversity and global warming.

Assessment

One 2-hour written examination at the end of the semester and up to two practical reports each up to 1000 words.