January 2004, Volume 5, Issue 1

Peter is Professor of Agricultural and Resource Economics and has done considerable work on forests, fish, and the environment. It was most interesting to see the extraordinary range of topics Peter has addressed in his prolific research program and to appreciate the extent to which he utilizes stringent modeling and quantitative analytical procedures.

Several of Peter’s research projects have involved forests and forestry. He evaluated the “taking” of land to create the Redwood National Park and concluded that these actions significantly raised redwood lumber prices and increased the wealth of forest owners. In a more general study Peter’s models suggested that, despite theory predicting that natural resource prices will rise over time, technical progress in resource extraction, environmental constraints, and resource abundance generally result in stagnant or declining prices.

Peter and colleagues recently studied the relationship between poverty and employment in timber-dependent counties — whether reduction in timber harvest and associated job losses result in economic stagnation. They analyzed multi-county, time-series data from 1983 to 1993 and showed that employment base multiplier effects of timber employment on other types or employment in each county are small; poverty is driven primarily by state economic conditions rather than by local employment. This is probably because laid-off workers were able to move to new locations or new jobs.

Peter has done several studies on pollution. In studying regulation of ozone pollution in the San Joaquin Valley, Peter’s research explored the trade-off between local and regional permit systems. Marketable permits were shown to be an effective way of reducing costs of achieving a specified emissions target, but can lead to inequitable distribution of emissions and trading across county boundaries. In a study on recycling done for the State Legislature, Peter’s group evaluated the relation between alternative levels of refund values on the level of bottle recycling and the impact of recycling on California’s economy. And in a study for the California Air Resources Board and California Energy Commission Peter and colleagues studied the economy-wide effects of fuel saving and alternative fuel technologies. Using computable, general equilibrium models of the California economy Peter and his associates analyzed the economic relationships between producers, consumers, and government on the costs and benefits of alternative scenarios and policies. Depending on assumptions made, results suggested that control of pollution and energy savings can be done at acceptable costs.

Another interesting resource issue that Peter has studied is that, despite regulation, the world’s fish stocks are rapidly diminishing. Peter’s analysis shows that, due in part to industry pressure, the fisheries regulators are either reluctant or unable to limit entry to the industry or to regulate harvest. Instead, regulators have relied on restricting the technology that may be used or the length of the fishing season. Thus the regulator is “captured”, tends to act in the industry’s favor, and actually accentuates over-fishing. Peter raises important questions regarding the efficiency of alternative management systems and overall political and regulatory failure in addressing this issue.

Peter uses his research as a basis for his undergraduate and graduate courses on environmental economics and policy. He is a firm believer of the philosophy that “if you teach the basics well the students can generally figure out the rest”. His courses treat resources as natural capital. He says: “You have to understand the system — determine what the market does well and why it sometimes fails”. I was particularly interested to learn that Peter was one of four faculty who founded a new teaching program they call “The Global Environment House”. Rather than hoping that students come to their classes, Peter and faculty colleagues take their subject matter to student dorms and each semester provide introductory seminars with field trips on environmental and social issues. The students are enthusiastic about getting to know faculty on a personal basis and getting first hand exposure to natural resource issues.

Peter is an internationally known expert in his field and travels extensively. In recognizing his broad contributions the University of Umeå, Sweden, last year awarded him an Honorary Doctorate. He currently serves as editor of the American Journal of Agricultural Economics (that includes forestry). And he is currently chair of the UC Systemwide Task Force on the Merced Campus. In this capacity he has had the shared responsibility for hiring the initial set of deans and faculty and setting in motion all aspects of campus governance. I think you can see that Peter is a tremendous asset to the College and is contributing greatly to its reputation as a leader in natural resource issues.