Abstract
This paper develops a framework for the valuation and management of tropical forests that reflects their ecological and economic characteristics. The analysis demonstrates the importance of modeling the feasible use patterns and the information structure in tropical forest management decisions. The model predicts that cases exist where the foresighted management of forests leads to more preservation than the traditional expected value approach. An application in Thailand provides evidence that such cases occur in relevant ranges of benefit flows. The model focuses tropical forest management on assessments of sustainability and feasible sequences in light of uncertainty and information flows.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Albers, H. J. (1992), ‘Economics of Tropical Forest Management: Uncertainty, Irreversibility, and Spatial Relationships’. Dissertation, Berkeley: University of California.
Albers, H. J. (1996), ‘Ecological Constraints on Tropical Forest Management: Spatial Relationships, Irreversibility, and Uncertainty’. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, forthcoming.
Arrow, K. J. and A. C. Fisher (1974), ‘Environmental Preservation, Uncertainty, and Irreversibility’. Quarterly Journal of Economics 88.
Barbier, E. B., J. C. Burgess and A. Markandya (1991), ‘The Economics of Tropical Deforestation’. Ambio.
Batie, S. S. (1989), ‘Sustainable Development: Challenges to the Profession of Agricultural Economics’. American Journal of Agricultural Economics.
Binswanger, H. P. (1991), ‘Brazilian Policies that Encourage Deforestation in the Amazon’. World Development 19 (7).
CallicottJ. B. (1986), ‘On the Intrinsic Value of Nonhuman Species’, in B. G.Norton, ed., The Preservation of Species: The Value of Biological Diversity. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
DixonJ. A. and P. B.Sherman (1990), Economics of Protected Areas: A New Look at Benefits and Costs. Covelo: Island Press.
Dobias, R. J., T. Tech, V. Wangwacharakul and N. Sangswang (1988), ‘Beneficial Use Quantifications of Khao Yai National Park: Executive Summary and Main Report’. Report on WWF Project 3757.
Erwin, T. L. (1982), ‘Tropical Forests: Their Richness in Coleoptera and Other Arthropod Species’. Coleopterists Bulletin 36.
Fankhauser, S. (1994), ‘The Social Costs of Greenhouse Gas Emissions: An Expected Value Approach’. The Energy Journal 15.
FisherA. C. and W. M.Hanemann (1986), ‘Option Value and the Extinction of Species’, in V. K.Smith, ed., Advances in Applied Micro-Economics. Greenwich: JAI Press.
Fisher, A. C., J. V. Krutilla and C. J. Cicchetti (1972), ‘The Economics of Environmental Preservation: A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis’. American Economic Review 62.
GradwohlJ. and R.Greenberg (1988), Saving the Tropical Forests. Washington: Island Press.
Hanemann, W. M. (1989), ‘Information and the Concept of Option Value’. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 16.
Henry, C. (1974), ‘Investment Decisions Under Uncertainty: The Irreversibility Effect’. American Economic Review 64.
Hilton, R. W. (1981), ‘The Determinants of Information Value: Synthesizing Some General Results’. Management Science 27.
NashR. F. (1989), The Rights of Nature: A History of Environmental Ethics. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press.
National Academy of Sciences (1982), Ecological Aspects of Development in the Humid Tropics. Washington: National Academy Press.
OnchanT., ed. (1990), A Land Policy Study. Thailand Development Research Institute, Research Monograph No. 3, Bangkok.
PearceD. W., A.Markandya and E. B.Barbier (1989), Blueprint for a Green Economy. London: Earthscan.
Peters, C. M., A. H. Gentry, and R. O. Mendelsohn (1989), ‘Valuation of an Amazonian Rainforest’. Nature 339.
PostelS. and L.Heise (1988), ‘Reforesting the Earth’, in State of the World. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., Worldwatch Institute.
RausserG. C. and E.Hochman (1979), Dynamic Agricultural Systems: Economic Prediction and Control. New York: North Holland.
ReidW. V. and K. R.Miller (1989), Keeping Options Alive: The Scientific Basis for Conserving Biodiversity. Washington: World Resources Institute.
RepettoR. (1988), ‘Overview’, in R.Repetto and M.Gillis, eds., Public Policies and the Misuse of Forest Resources. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
SouléMichael E. (1990), Viable Populations for Conservation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Thailand Development Research Institute (1986), Land Policy Study: Final Report. Bangkok: Thailand Development Research Institute.
Tongpan, S., T. Panayotou, S. Jetanavanich, K. Faichampa and C. Mehl (1990), ‘Deforestation and Poverty: Can Commercial and Social Forestry Break the Vicious Circle?’. Research Report No. 2, 1990 TDRI Year-End Conference.
TurnerR. K., D. W.Pearce and I. J.Bateman (1994), Environmental Economics. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Uhl, C., D. Nepstad, R. Buschbacher, K. Clark, B. Kauffman and S. Subler (1990), ‘Studies of Ecosystem Response to Natural and Anthropogenic Disturbances Provide Guidelines for Designing Sustainable Land-Use Systems in Amazonia’, in Anthony B. Anderson, ed., Alternatives to Deforestation. Columbia University Press.
WaltersC. (1986), Adaptive Management of Renewable Resources. New York: Macmillan Publishing.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Albers, H.J., Fisher, A.C. & Hanemann, W.M. Valuation and management of tropical forests. Environmental and Resource Economics 8, 39–61 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00340652
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00340652