Department of Agricultural & Resource Economics

University of Connecticut

Summer 2014

ARE 1110 FINAL EXAM GUIDE: IMPORTANT CONCEPTS AND TOPICS

Lecture Module 1
Readings - Miller and Spoolman, Chapter 1 and Supplement 5 (pp. S31-S38); Withgott and
Laposata, Chapter 6 and Appendix B (pp. B1-B4); Tierney; McCoy; Peterson; Baumol & Blinder;
Ausubel, et al.; Goodwin
Homework Assignment
Videos - Economic Development: A Global Challenge, Earth Day 40 - Connecticut's
Environment: Past, Present, and Future
Discussion 1
Worldwide Population Statistics & Trends in Population Growth (J-Shaped Curve)
Malthusian & Cornucopian World Views
Trends in Natural Resource Prices, Resource Availability, and Environmental Quality
Microeconomics vs. Macroeconomics
Demand & Supply, Market Equilibrium
Shortage, Surplus, Shifts in Demand & Supply
Externalities - External Costs & External Benefits
Marginal Benefit & Marginal Cost - Private vs. Social
Market Failure, Policies to Correct Market Failures (Taxes, Subsidies, Quotas, Permits)
Economic Growth & Its Measurement (GDP, GNI, NNP, NNI, Per Capita Measures)
Limitations of Per Capita GNI as a Measure of National Well-being
Trends in U.S. Household Income Distribution
Growing Gap Between More Developed Countries (MDCs) & Less Developed Countries
(LDCs)
Nonrenewable Resources, Perpetual Resources, Potentially Renewable Resources
Physical vs. Economic Depletion
Carrying Capacity, Sustainable Resource Harvest & Maximum Sustainable Yield
Pollution & Its Sources (Point, Non-Point)
Severity of a Pollutant (Chemical Nature, Concentration, Persistence)
Pollution Control Strategies (Prevention, Abatement, Clean-up)
Hunter-Gatherer Stage, Slash-and-Burn Agriculture (Shifting Cultivation, Subsistence
Farming)
Agricultural Revolution
Industrial Revolution.(Characteristics, Causes, Social & Environmental Impacts)
U.S. Environmental History & Legislation (Waves of Conservation and Set-backs, Evolution
of Institutions and Laws)
Connecticuts Environmental History, Evolution of Laws and Institutions, and Future
Prospects

Lecture Module 2
Readings - Withgott and Laposata, Chapters 8 and 13; Jacobson; Haub; Dasgupta; Economist;
Boyd, Caballero, and Simpson
Video - World in the Balance
Population Growth Worldwide, MDC & LDC Trends
Determinants of Population Growth Rate - Birth, Death, Immigration, & Emigration Rates
(in % terms)
Crude Birth & Crude Death Rates, Rate of Natural Increase
Determinants of Birth, Fertility, & Death Rates, Birth & Death Rate Trends for MDCs &
LDCs
Chinas Great Famine Causes & Consequences
Total Fertility Rate, Replacement Level Fertility Rate
Fertility and Population Growth Trends in the U.S.
Life Expectancy, Infant Mortality Rate
Comparison of Demographic & and Socio-Economic Performance of MDCs & LDCs
Age Structure Statistics & Diagrams
Theory of Demographic Transition, Computer Models
Need for Population Control in Some LDCs Global vs. Local Perspective, Role of
Common Property Resources
Methods & Policies for Population Control, Description & Evaluation of Population Control
Policy in China & India, Nature of Continuing Challenges
Demographic Issues Facing MDCs like U.S. and Japan
Urban Area, Degree of Urbanization, Worldwide Patterns of Urbanization & Trends in
Urban Growth
Sources & Causes of Urban Growth, Problems of Urban Areas (MDCs vs. LDCs)
Urban Sprawl
Issues in Transportation (Advantages & Disadvantages of Individual Auto Transit, Mass
Transit & Its History in the U.S., Policy Issues and Options)
Need for Preservation of Rural & Urban Open Space
Methods and Policies of Controlling Urban Land Use (Cluster Development, Zoning,
Conservation Easements, Tradable Development Rights)

Lecture Module 3: Water, Food, and Other Resources

Readings Withgott and Laposata, Chapters 9, 10, 11, 12 and 15 (pp. 388-408); Mellor;
Prosterman, Hanstad, and Ping; Kates; Economist; Ferraro and Simpson
Videos - Thirst, King Corn
Discussions 2 and 3
Fresh Water Availability- Worldwide & U.S., Sources of Freshwarer, Major Uses of Water &
Major Areas of Water Scarcity

Surface Water, Groundwater

Water Table, Aquifer (Confined, Unconfined), Withdrawals, Recharge, Groundwater Overdraft
(i.e., Aquifer Depletion), Possible Consequences of Aquifer Depletion, Ogallala Aquifer,
Common Property Problem & Economics of Aquifer Depletion, Water Conserving Irrigation
Methods - Drips, Sprinklers
Surface Water Management (Water Rights Doctrines in U.S.- Riparian & Prior Appropriation,
Water Markets & Other Ways of Improving Efficiency)
Privatization of Municipal Water Supplies Pros & Cons
Dams & Reservoirs - Pros & Cons; Chinas Three Gorges Dam
Reservoir Sedimentation and Its Management Types of Sediment Removal Techniques
Soil Horizons & Soil Profile
Topsoil, Humus, Loams
Determinants of Quality of Agricultural Soils - Water-Holding Capacity, Aeration, Workability,
Chemical Properties (e.g., Soil Acidity, Nitrogen Content)
Soil Erosion - Its Causes & Consequences
Types of Soil Erosion - Sheet, Rill & Gully Erosion; Desertification
The Dust Bowl
Externalities and the Economics of Controlling Soil Erosion
Soil Conservation & Reclamation Practices (Conservation Tillage, Contour Farming, Terracing,
Strip Cropping, Alley Cropping, Gully Reclamation, Fertilization, Crop Rotation, Land Use
Control)
Soil Degradation (Soil Salinization & Waterlogging) & Policy Implications
Types of Agricultural Systems
Green Revolution, Advantages and Disadvantages of Green Revolution Technologies
Characteristics of U.S. Agriculture & Comparison with LDC Agriculture
Poverty and Environmental Degradation in LDCs
Policies for Improving Agricultural Production in China
Types of Pesticides, Characteristics Persistence, Spectrum, Pros and Cons of Using Pesticides,
Alternatives to Pesticides (Modification of Cultivation Procedures, Biological Control, Organic
Farming), Integrated Pest Management, Regulation of Pesticides in U.S. (FIFRA)
Sustainable Agriculture
Food Distribution Issues, Concepts of Nutritional Adequacy & Health, Chronic Hunger vs.
Starvation, Production Oriented Policies vs. Distribution Oriented Policies
U.S. Agricultural Subsidies Winners & Losers, Potential for Reform
Importance of Forests, Types of Forests
Systems of Forest Management, Private vs. Social Forestry, Selective-Cutting vs. Clear-Cutting
National Forests and Other Public Lands in U.S., Principles of Sustainable Yield & Multiple Use
Old-Growth Forests and Tropical Forests
Causes and Consequences of Deforestation in the Tropics
Ways of Reducing Tropical Deforestation (Debt-For-Nature Swaps, Conservation Concessions,
etc.)
Importance of Preserving Biodiversity in Plant and Animal Species
Human Activities that Threaten Species
Definitions of Endangered and Threatened Species, Laws and Other Ways of Protecting Wild
Species (Endangered Species Act, CITES Convention, Wildlife Refuges, Gene Banks, etc.),
Importance of Habitat Preservation

Lecture Module 4: Environmental Management

Readings Withgott and Laposata, Chapters 7, 15 (pp. 408-418), 17, 18 and 22; Ruff; Baumol
and Blinder; Economist; Harris and Codur
Video - Heat
Discussion 4
Reasons for Controlling Pollution (Market Failure Externalities, Imperfect Information)
Cost-Benefit Analysis, Principle of Marginalism
Determining the Socially Desirable Level of Pollution Control
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis, Achievement of Cost-Effective Pollution Control, Standards vs.
Taxes vs. Tradable Permits
Estimation of Benefits and Costs - Techniques for Estimating Non-Market Benefits or Costs
(Travel Cost, Property Value, and Contingent Valuation Methods)
Non-hazardous Solid Waste and Its Sources
Alternative Attitudes and Ways of Dealing with Solid Waste - Waste Disposal vs. Waste
Reduction, Economic Analysis of Waste Reduction
Policies for Encouraging Waste Reduction and Recycling (e.g., Aluminum, Glass) Disposal
Fees, Beverage Container Deposits and Other Measures
Hazardous Waste Management, U.S. Laws - RCRA and CERCLA (Superfund Act)
Indoor Air Pollution Important Pollutants, Effects on Human Health, and Possible Solutions
Outdoor Air Pollution - Global vs. Regional & Local Air Pollution
Causes and Consequences of Photochemical Smog and Acid Deposition
U.S. Laws (Clean Air Acts), Cap & Trade Program, Achievements & Limitations
Role of Ozone in Stratosphere, Causes of Its Generation and Destruction, Consequences of
Ozone Depletion, Ways of Protecting the Ozone Layer
Global Climate Change Nature of Evidence
Causes of Greenhouse Effect, Possible Consequences of Global Warming
Politics of Global Climate Change
Ways of Reducing the Threat of Global Warming, International Treaties and their Assessment
Kinds of Water Pollutants and Their Sources (Point, Non-Point)
Pollution of Groundwater, Rivers, and Lakes (Cultural Eutrophication)
Methods of Pollution Control Prevention vs. Clean-up, U.S. Laws (e.g., Clean Water Act,
Water Quality Act, Safe Drinking Water Act) Achievements & Limitations