title: Environmental cost-effectiveness analysis in intertemporal natural resource policy: evaluation of selective fishing gear.
abstract: In most decision-making involving natural resources, the achievements of a given policy (e.g., improved ecosystem or biodiversity) are rather difficult to measure in monetary units. To address this problem, the current paper develops an environmental cost-effectiveness analysis (ECEA) to include intangible benefits in intertemporal natural resource problems. This approach can assist managers in prioritizing management actions as least cost solutions to achieve quantitative policy targets. The ECEA framework is applied to a selective gear policy case in Danish mixed trawl fisheries in Kattegat and Skagerrak. The empirical analysis demonstrates how a policy with large negative net benefits might be justified if the intangible benefits are included.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental and Business Economics, University of Southern Denmark, Niels Bohrs Vej 9, DK-6700 Esbjerg, Denmark. Electronic address: lg@sam.sdu.dk.
authors.forename: Lone Grønbæk
authors.initials: LG
authors.lastname: Kronbak
authors.forename: Niels
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Vestergaard
mesh_terms: D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000191:economics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D003657:Decision Making; D005398:Fisheries / Q000191:economics / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*
keywords: Bio-economic model; Cost-effectiveness analysis; D61; D99; Evaluation; Fishing gear; Q20; Q22; Selective fisheries