Grantee Research Project Results
2023 Progress Report: Estimating the missing benefits of water quality by nesting recreation demand and hedonic modeling
EPA Grant Number: R840466Title: Estimating the missing benefits of water quality by nesting recreation demand and hedonic modeling
Investigators: Olmstead, Sheila , Phaneuf, Daniel J. , Kuwayama, Yusuke , Miller, Nolan , Zheng, Jiameng
Institution: University of Texas at Austin , University of Wisconsin - Madison , University of Maryland - Baltimore County , University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
EPA Project Officer: Packard, Benjamin H
Project Period: September 1, 2022 through May 2, 2025
Project Period Covered by this Report: September 1, 2022 through August 31,2023
Project Amount: $741,054
RFA: Water Quality Benefits (2022) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Water , Water Quality
Objective:
(1) Implement innovative models to estimate the effects on property values of water quality changes from nutrient pollution in 3 under-studied coastal regions, separately estimating local amenity and regional recreation impacts. (2) Monetize the aggregate property value impact of long-run changes in dissolved oxygen in each region. (3) Describe regional differences in the extent of the market for and variation by waterbody type in the recreational and amenity value of water quality. (4) Describe intra- and inter-regional variation in recreational and amenity values of water quality by race, income, and other socioeconomic indicators. (5) Disseminate results widely. (6) Train a diverse set of graduate students.
Progress Summary:
Our work has proceeded as planned in the project's first year. The team has engaged in the tasks listed below.
- Completed project literature review.
- Purchased, collected and cleaned the property characteristics and transaction data for all three study regions from CoreLogic, Inc.
- Collected and cleaned water quality data for all three study regions from the federal Water Quality Portal, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, and the Washington State Department of Ecology.
- Collected and cleaned recreational visitation data for all three study regions from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Marine Resource Inventory Program, the Texas Coastal Creel Survey, and the Washington State Parks Visitation Reports.
- Used the supercomputing resources at the Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC) to calculate travel costs from each zip code (in the Long Island Sound and Puget Sound regions) or county (in Texas) to the recreation sites in each of the three study regions.
- Started on recreation demand model and hedonic model estimation and refinement using the two-stage approach from the proposal, adapting as necessary to the specific characteristics of each site.
- Generated some preliminary results, allowing us to begin working toward a final set of models for a first paper co-authored by the full project team that will report and compare results from all three regions.
- Purchased and started collecting mobility data using a different provider (Cuebiq-Spectus) than anticipated at the proposal stage, which has provided higher-quality data for all three sites (rather than just one) that are well-suited to our analysis.
- Implemented a preliminary approach to defining aquatic recreation sites and also delineating visits with the mobility data in Long Island Sound, which we will continue refining and then apply to the remaining two regions.
- Started collecting sociodemographic data for the three study sites from the U.S. Census Bureau.
- Used the water quality data and property transaction data collected for our work in the Long Island Sound region to begin a second paper (sole-authored by the UT Austin doctoral student working on the project) that estimates willingness-to-pay for nutrient reductions attributable to a TMDL in Long Island Sound, which has been implemented in the State of Connecticut using water quality trading.
Future Activities:
In year 2 of the project, we will: (1) continue with estimation and refinement of the two-stage models using the traditional recreational visitation data collected for each of the three study regions; (2) complete mobility data collection for all three study regions and begin model development and estimation using the new approach we will pilot with these data; (3) complete sociodemographic data collection for all three study regions to begin examining differences in the degree to which water quality capitalizes into property prices by race and income; (4) draft at least two papers for eventual submission to peer-reviewed journals (one focused on the traditional visitation data, and one using the mobility data) -- papers will likely not be submitted until year 3; (5) continue presenting results at scholarly seminars and conferences.
Journal Articles:
No journal articles submitted with this report: View all 16 publications for this projectSupplemental Keywords:
Water quality, watersheds, non-market valuation, willingness-to-pay, economics, recreation demand modeling, hedonic analysis, Northwest, Northeast, South CentralProgress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.