In this dissertation, I examine how the spatial configuration of forest ownership influences the risk-mitigating behavior of public and private forestland owners over time. I determine whether or not the predicted equilibrium outcomes are socially optimal and, if not, whether the introduction of regulation, liability, or private insurance would lead...
Firms' participation in exporting or foreign direct investment is an extremely rare behavior: only 4 percent of over 5.5 million U.S. firms were exporters in 2000. Exporters are generally larger (e.g. output and employment) and more productive than firms serving only domestic markets. Such heterogeneity within a narrowly defined industry...
This dissertation's three essays explore the determinants of food insecurity for rural farm households, the influence of rainfall variability and long-run changes in rainfall levels on the migration decisions of working-age household heads, and the distributional impacts in core and periphery regions of food assistance to households in the hinterland....
The three essays in this dissertation progressively answer the following questions: (a) How important are constraints? (b) Who benefits from removing constraints? (c) When does a constraint for a single market predominantly affect closely related markets? These questions are applied in the context of time, weather, and minimum wage constraints,...
The success of the U.S. government in persuading Japan to
liberalize the beef market is viewed as a relief to the U.S.
beef industry. The economic benefit (to the U.S. beef
producers!) of the trade liberalization however is yet to be
seen. The size of this benefit is determined, among...
The elasticity of excess demand held by foreign buyers of United States agricultural products is critical for understanding the impacts of changes in farm policy and is a parameter that is much debated. The objective of my study is to estimate this parameter for major U.S. export crops, including wheat,...
The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of commodity promotion activities on the United States' hazelnut farmer's economic welfare. Commodity promotion activities, such as generic advertising and research, are the responsibilities of government mandated commodity commissions, such as the Hazelnut Marketing Board (HMB). The HMB is a...
Blueberry production in Oregon is highly reliant upon the ecosystem services of native pollinators, which provide as much as a quarter of the total pollination services received by Blueberry growers. However, the health of these pollinator populations may be affected in yet unforeseen ways as growers adopt new pest management...
A structural model of the Pacific halibut fishery is developed. Hypothesis tests
are developed within the framework of the "new empirical industry organization" for
the exertion of market power by Pacific halibut processors in both the exvessel market
and the wholesale market. The relationship of market power exertion and IPHC's...