CERF - Environmental Economics Research Hub

Director  Professor Jeff Bennett, ANU

The goal of the Environmental Economics Research Hub is to address Australia's major environmental management challenges with integrated economic research that provides immediate and continuing policy impacts. It brings together leading environmental economists, scientists, educators and policy makers to face the challenges of sustainable water use, soil loss and salinity, biodiversity loss and adaptation to climate change. The Hub's integrated research, modelling and capacity-building encompasses the establishment of markets to achieve environmental goals, environmental valuation and the assessment and development of government intervention in environmental management. It will provide end users with the tools, understanding and framework to promote environmental sustainability in Australia.

Funding for the Hub is provided by the Department of Environment and Water Resources under the Commonwealth Environment Research Facility.

CQUniversity led projects

1. Theme D - Research project 2:  Estimating Values at General and Case Study Levels  
2. Theme A - Research project 4: Designing metric assessments for biodiversity tenders

Project reports:

Rolfe, J. Gregg, D. and Tucker, G. Valuing local recreation in the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, EERH Research report # 102. August 2011

Rolfe, J. and  Brouwer, R., Testing for value stability with a meta-analysis of choice experiments: River health in Australia, EERH Research Report No.95,  March 2011

Windle, J.,and  Rolfe, J., Assessing community values for reducing agricultural emissions to improve water quality and protect coral health in the Great Barrier Reef, EERH Research Report No. 84,  November 2010

Rolfe, J. and Windle, J. Assessing national values to protect the health of the Great Barrier Reef, EERH Research Report No.72, October 2010

Rolfe, J., and Windle, J., Testing for geographic scope and scale effects with choice modelling: Application to the Great Barrier Reef: , EERH Research Report No.69, September 2010

Ivanova, G., Rolfe, J., and Tucker, G., Using Choice Modelling to assess the willingness to pay of Queensland households to reduce greenhouse emissions, EERH Research Report No.67, May 2010

Rolfe, J., and Windle, J.,  Valuing environmental improvements in the Great Barrier Reef: Ecological and preference heterogeneity in local area case studies, EERH Research Report No.66, July 2010

Rolfe, J., and Windle, J., Do values for protecting iconic assets vary across populations? A Great Barrier Reef case study, EERH Research Report No.65, May 2010

John Rolfe and Jill Windle 2010 Valuing protection of the Great Barrier Reef with choice modelling by management policy options, EERH Research Report No.57,  January 2010

Jill Windle and John Rolfe 2010 Restricted versus unrestricted choice in labelled choice experiments: exploring the tradeoffs of expanding choice dimensions, EERH Research Report No.56,  March 2010

Jill Windle and John Rolfe 2009 Comparing responses from web and paper-based collection modes in a choice modelling experiment, EERH Research Report No.45,  December 2009

John Rolfe and Jill Windle  2009  Valuing the control of red imported fire ants in Australia with choice modelling, EERH Research Report No.44, December 2009

John Rolfe and Jill Windle 2009  Comparing a best management practice scorecard with an auction metric to select proposals in a water quality tender, EERH Research Report No.43, December 2009.

John Rolfe and Jill Windle 2009 Costing water quality improvements with auction mechanisms: case studies for the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, EERH Research Report # 35, August 2009.

Jill Windle, John Rolfe and Roy Brouwer 2009 Public values for improved water security for domestic and environmental use. Environmental Economics Research Hub Research Report # 18, January 2009.

Xuehong Wang and John Rolfe 2009 Incorporating issues of risk and uncertainty into choice modelling experiments, Environmental Economics Research Hub Research Report #12, January 2009.

John Rolfe and Xuehong Wang 2008 Exploring scope and scale issues in choice modelling design, Environmental Economics Research Hub Research Report # 7, November 2008. 

Rolfe, J. Windle, J. and Bennett, J. 2008. Designing choice experiments to incorporate tests for geographic scale and scope differences, Environmental Economics Research Hub Research Report # 3, August 2008.

1.  Theme D - Research project 2:  Estimating Values at General and Case Study Levels  

Project leader: Prof John Rolfe

Project overview

The core focus for this research project is to assess values for a major iconic natural resource asset while developing key methodological improvements to the application of non-market valuation techniques. The iconic site that has been selected for assessment is the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland, while three key areas of methodology have been identified for close attention. The first of these is dealing with the scale issue, where broad community protection values for natural assets often need to be apportioned down to particular case study levels to be useful to policy makers. The second is dealing with issues of risk and uncertainty, where values for environmental improvements might be affected by uncertainty over issues such as climate change and policy outcomes. The third include a range of design and presentation issues for stated preference surveys, where the goal is to identify practices that do not unduly affect the value estimation process. It is planned to test these different issues across a range of non-market valuation applications, including field applications and experimental work with focus groups and students.

Overall aims for the project

2.  Theme A - Research project 4: Designing metric assessments for biodiversity tenders

Project leader: Prof John Rolfe 

Project overview

The core focus for this research project is to identify how community values and priorities for conservation and natural resource management can be incorporated into the metrics (evaluation process) for conservation auctions and other market based instruments. Two case study areas have been identified for particular focus. The first of these is the evaluation of a major conservation tender process being run in the Burdekin region of north Queensland to reduce water quality impacts from agriculture, while the second is a design of how an offset program might operate in central Queensland. Three mechanisms to identify the appropriate weights for an evaluation metric are proposed. The first is the assessment of community preferences using non-market valuation techniques. The second involves inputs from various experts and key stakeholders to determine the weightings, while the third involves the use of meta-analysis techniques to pool valuation data from various sources.

Overall aims for the project

• Develop the application of choice modelling to incorporate community preferences in biodiversity metrics,
• Identify how community values can be better incorporated into the metrics used to assess conservation tenders and public purchases of environmental services,
• Identify how community values can be better incorporated into the metrics used in offset programs and other quantity trading systems,
• Compare metrics incorporating community values with metrics based on technical information and the preferences of scientists and key stakeholders,
• Assess the potential for meta-analysis and other techniques to contribute to biodiversity metrics