Welfare measurements for an environmental disamenity in the residential real estate market.

摘要

he purpose of this research is to investigate the social welfare effects of land-filling flue gas desulfurization (FGD) byproduct in Ohio. FGD technology reduces the amount of sulfur dioxide pollution caused by burning of high sulfur coal in the generation of electricity. This study addresses the impacts of four landfills, two open and two closed, on property prices in Franklin County, Ohio.;In this dissertation, the social welfare losses caused by landfilling FGD byproduct are estimated through application of a combined hedonic price-urban amenity model. The model specifically recognizes the role of environmental and locational factors, housing and neighborhood characteristics, and property taxes and commuting costs in housing choice. In addition, the social welfare effects of information about environmental disamenities are investigated.;To implement the model, primary data were collected consisting of auditors' property transaction records for all households within 3.25 miles of four landfill sites in Franklin County. The primary data were supplemented by Census micro data and data from a mail survey conducted specifically for this dissertation.;The empirical model is developed in two stages. In the first stage, a hedonic price function is estimated from which marginal implicit prices for property characteristics are derived. In the second stage, marginal willingness to pay curves derived from CES and translog utility functions are estimated and compared. Finally, compensating variation (CV) measures of social welfare are estimated, based on the assumption that households are moved from their present location to one 3.25 miles from the closest landfill.;The econometric results demonstrate the significant effects of both landfill life expectancy and information about an environmental disamenity on residential real estate prices. It was found that welfare losses are a decreasing function of landfill life expectancy, and households located near landfills do not have widespread information about landfills. In addition, individuals with knowledge of landfills, who also chose to live near landfills, are able to use that knowledge to bid down the price of their home. The CV estimated here results in empirical measures of the social costs of landfilling in Franklin County that range from