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EPA Economist Advances Understanding of Benefit-cost Analysis of Water Quality Regulations
Dr. William Wheeler, an economist working in the Environmental Protection Agency's National Center for Environmental Research, recently published a chapter in the new book, Cost-Benefit Analysis and Water Resources Management, with co-author Charles W. Griffiths. "Benefit-Cost Analysis of U.S. Regulations Affecting Surface Water Quality in the United States" reviews the major water-quality rules and the issues surrounding them, especially those related to water valuation. Five rules were published from 1993-2003 which were classified as 'economically significant' -- that is, rules with an annual economic impact of more then $100 million. Sections of the chapter include a summary of the institutional context of water management in the US, including the Clean Water Act; a discussion of the embedding of benefit-cost analysis in regulations and executive orders; a discussion and and cost benefit analysis of the five economically significant rules affecting surface water quality; and finally a reflection on the use of benefit-cost analysis in the past and prediction