EPA's Environmental Economics Research Strategy - now available

The EPA Environmental Economics Research Strategy identifies and prioritizes environmental economics and decision science research that will be conducted over the next several years to improve the scientific foundation for EPA's decision-making and policy initiatives. The Environmental Economics Research Strategy was developed to guide future environmental economics research directions at the Agency. The authors interviewed EPA staff and managers to identify research priorities.
These priorities were compared with existing research to establish strategic objectives whereby allocation of EPA resources could help the Agency and its clients to achieve their missions. The environmental economics research described in this strategy will become a cornerstone of the economic analyses that EPA needs to develop environmental policy.

The strategic research objectives include: (1) human health valuation;
(2) ecological valuation; (3) environmental behavior and decision-making; (4) market mechanisms and incentives; and (5) benefits of environmental information disclosure. These strategic objectives frequently require an interdisciplinary approach to develop sound research. EPA will devote internal and extramural resources to filling the most important research gaps in these areas and will develop and encourage interdisciplinary teams when needed.

This research strategy is intended for EPA Program Offices, other federal agencies, academics, states, local governments, and other researchers to consult to understand what EPA (in particular, the National Center for Environmental Economics and the National Center for Environmental Research) has planned and the results the Agency expects.
These parties can use the strategy to plan their own research or analyses to make the best use of EPA’s efforts. The strategy will guide research for several years or until circumstances change, at which time it will be revised.

The Environmental Economics Research Strategy is divided into two parts; the first is the strategy itself, and the second is a compilation of appendices which, among other things, provides more detail on the needs assessment survey process and results, and the external peer review comments of the Environmental Economics Advisory Committee of EPA's Science Advisory Board. This final strategy reflects the comments of both internal and external peer review.

The EPA Environmental Economics Research Strategy can be accessed and downloaded from EPA's Office of Research and Development here, and here.