Essays of environmental and sustainable economics

Kuan-Ju Chen

My dissertation consists of three essays, each comprising a paper that examines user preferences (consumers and producers) for sustainable products and biotechnology, and the effect of energy policy on agricultural and biomaterial markets. The first paper, Biotechnology to Sustainability: Consumer Preferences for Food Products Grown on Biodegradable Mulches, evaluates consumer preferences for strawberries grown on biodegradable mulches (BDMs), an environmentally friendly soil cover that sustains plant growth and does not contribute to landfill waste. I applied a dichotomous-choice contingent valuation method to estimate consumer premiums on those strawberries, and show that consumers are willing to pay (WTP) on average 10.3% more for strawberries grown on BDMs. The second paper, Co-movement of the Biomaterial and Agricultural Commodity Markets, investigates the relationship between agricultural and sustainable products in the biomaterial market from the perspectives of the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007. I tested hypotheses regarding the effect of EISA on the co-movement of lignin prices with corn and soybean meal prices (which serve as proxies for starch and protein, respectively). Using two-stage time series approaches, the findings suggest that lignin and agricultural commodities prices are linked in long-run equilibrium relationships and the effect of EISA on the U.S. bio-agricultural markets is positive and insignificant. In the third paper, Willingness to Pay for Attributes of Biodegradable Plastic Mulches in the Agricultural Sector, studies agricultural plastic pollution from plastic mulches used to grow strawberries and other crops, which incineration or dumping causes environmental damage and reduces crop yield. I designed a choice experiment to assess the agricultural participants’ (e.g. farmers, crop advisors, educators, and others) WTP for the adoption of BDMs in the agricultural supply chain to attain soil agronomy; and how these participants value the different attributes of BDMs. The results revealed that the respondents were willing to pay a price premium on healthier soils and lower portion of plastic residue left in the field after the harvesting season. In this context, regulators may consider subsidizing farmers to purchase BDMs to induce conservation efforts.

Essays of environmental and sustainable economics

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