Environment Economics

Code:

LEC514

Acronym:

EMA

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	Economics

Instance: 2007/2008 - 2S

Active?	Yes
Responsible unit:	Grupo de Economia
Course/CS Responsible:	ECONOMICS

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
ECO	131	Official Curricular Structure since 2004	4	2	4	-
GES	48	Official Curricular Structure since 2004	4	2	4	-

Teaching language

Portuguese

Objectives

Informations and readings will be provided to the students, so that they shoud be able to understand and discuss the main theoretical and practical issues of environmental economics.

Program

1. Environment and Economics: Introduction: Environment as source of opportunities; Interaction; Basic concepts: Notion of Environmental and Natural Resource Economics; The origins of environmental economics
2. The mainstream in environmental economics: Central concepts - Tragedy of the Commons; Free riding; Externality; Behavior of external cost functions; Externality as market failure; Marginal and total abatement costs; Social efficient level of pollution
3. Instruments of environmental politics - economic perspective: Command-and-control approach – standards; Market approach: Pollution taxes and charges; Subsidies; Property rights and negotiations; Marketable Pollution Permits
4. From the theory to the praxis: Markets for tradable Allowances (Regional and international application – The Kyoto Protocol; European market for CO2 allowances – the case of Portugal); Taxes and subsidies: Green Tax Reform; Voluntary approaches: environmental management and green marketing
5. Total economic value of the environment. Monetary evaluation of the environment. Theoretical fundamentals, most common evaluation methods (substitution and hipothetical markets), Practical case studies
6. Growth and sustainable development: weak and strong sustentability; sustentability indicators

Main Bibliography

Pearce, David W.; Turner, R. Kerry: Economics of Natural Resources and the Environment', Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1990.
Faucheux, Sylvie; Noel, Jean-François: Economia dos Recursos Naturais e do Meio Ambiente, Instituto Piaget, 1995.

Complementary Bibliography

• Baumol, William J.; Oates, W.E.: The Theory of Environmental Policy, 2 ed. reprinted, Cambridge [u.a.]: Univ. Press, 1988
• Field, Barry C.: Environmental Economics - An Introduction, McGraw Hill, 1997
• Folmer, Henk; Gabel, Landis; Opschoor, Hans: Principles of Environmental and Resource Economics, Edward Elgar Publishing, 1997
• Kula, E. (1998): History of Environmental Economic Thought, Routledge Studies in the History of Economics
• Tylecote, Andrew; van der Straaten, Jan: Environment, Technology and Economic Growth - The Challenge to Sustainable Development, Edward Elgar Publishing, 1997

Teaching methods and learning activities

Mixed lectures and tutorials.

Evaluation Type

Assessment Components

Description	Type	Time (hours)	Weight (%)	End date
Subject Classes	Participação presencial	30,00
	Total:	-	0,00

Eligibility for exams

Does not apply to this case

Calculation formula of final grade

1. Final Classification = classification of final exam
2. Final Classification = 70% x classification of research project and presentation + 30% x classification of test
3. Final Classification + optional bonus for participation in the classes (till 7,5%)

Examinations or Special Assignments

Does not apply to this case

Special assessment (TE, DA, ...)

It folows the general rules

Classification improvement

It folows the general rules

Observations

Condition for research project: class attendance > 75%