ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY CONSIDERATIONS IN THE GRAIN-LIVESTOCK SUBSECTORS IN CANADA, MEXICO AND THE UNITED STATES

Environmental Economics and Policy,

TRANSGENIC CROPS AND THE ENVIRONMENT: MISSING MARKETS AND PUBLIC ROLE

The rapidity of change has left scant opportunity for investigation of the consequences of biotechnology adoption on long-term ecosystem or economic system functioning. Economic theory suggests that, if the "Biotechnology Revolution" is left to market forces alone,there will be neglected public goods. Theory and limited empirical evidence suggests that there are significant incentives for private firms to discount and neglect certain environmental impacts and to develop products that meet only the needs of those able and willing to pay. Negative distributional impacts on rural societies and economies will not normally enter the private calculus nor will the long-term problems of insect and plant resistance. Thus, there is a strong case for enhanced public roles with respect to the use of transgenic crops. The adoption of the precautionary approach in public policies addressing transgenic crops is one alternative to better reflect public concerns.Environmental Economics and Policy, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

Irreducible wavelet representations and ergodic automorphisms on solenoids

We focus on the irreducibility of wavelet representations. We present some connections between the following notions: covariant wavelet representations, ergodic shifts on solenoids, fixed points of transfer (Ruelle) operators and solutions of refinement equations. We investigate the irreducibility of the wavelet representations, in particular the representation associated to the Cantor set, introduced in \cite{DuJo06b}, and we present several equivalent formulations of the problem

Population characteristics and habitat selection of muskrats (Ondatra zibethicus) in response to water level management at the Summerberry Marsh Complex, The Pas, Manitoba, Canada

Hydroelectric developments have significantly altered the hydrology and the historical wetland cycle in the Saskatchewan River Delta (SRD) by reducing both long term and within year flood frequency. This research details the responses of SRD wetlands to water level manipulation and links it to the habitats selected by muskrats thus highlighting the conditions that should be the focus of wetland management. Following the partial drawdown (PD) in the fall of 2007, muskrat densities derived from mark recapture surveys did not differ between PD and full supply level (FSL) wetlands. On a per flooded area basis, PD wetlands supported residual muskrat population at similar densities as FSL wetlands during the years of the drawdown. The partial drawdown resulted in increased amounts of senescent vegetation in PD wetlands in 2008 and 2009, mainly affecting Carex and Typha vegetation classes. The result of habitat selection modeling was generally consistent with other studies of muskrats, although it was complicated by the habitat structure of these northern wetlands. Muskrats selected for rooted Typha with greater frequency than any other habitat, followed by rooted Equisetum. Ducks Unlimited Canada\u27s records from 1979 to 1990 show that water level drawdowns were successful at increasing muskrat house densities in SRD wetlands. In the years after a drawdown muskrat house densities generally increased and peaked three years after a drawdown, however the ten year densities were unaffected. Low muskrat densities, and low recruitment in SMC wetlands compared to other northern deltas are likely due to degenerating wetland habitat conditions created by prolonged water level stabilization. Small scale water level manipulation efforts by various managers, most notably Ducks Unlimited Canada, have produced increases in muskrat populations. Although expensive and logistically difficult the results I have presented suggest that a large scale drawdown and refill would stimulate muskrat populations in the SRD

Future dimensions of agricultural trade

Cover title."International Small Farm Program.""Agricultural Policy Seminar, Agricultural Science Week, February 1984, sponsored by Department of Agricultural Economics, College of Agriculture, University of Missouri-Columbia"--P. 1

Intellectual and Developmental Disability: Healthcare Financing

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates global spending on healthcare at $6.5 trillion, approximately 10.5$2.6 trillion, essentially quadrupling since 1980. The 2010 United States Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), also known as Obamacare, has stimulated extensive debate over the way in which healthcare is financed, and whether or not the costs of healthcare are sustainable. Among publicly funded healthcare in the US, Medicaid and Medicare are primary sources of funding. In federal fiscal year 2012, Medicaid spending on acute health exceeded $275.4 billion, while a further$122.7 billion expended in Medicaid long term services and supports. The impact of an aging population worldwide (the so-called “wave of wisdom”), as the Baby Boomer generation reaches senior status, and attendant increases in chronic conditions, will be a substantial driver of healthcare costs in the future. Among people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), cost estimates vary depending on a range of factors. Some children with IDD, for example, are covered for at least some healthcare needs by private insurance policies held by their parents, while other children and most adults with IDD rely heavily on Medicaid and, to a lesser extent, Medicare and other publicly financed healthcare options. In many US states, certain nursing and home health services are presumed to be part of funding of home and community-based service (HCBS) medicaid waiver services (typically considered part of residential service reimbursements under these waivers), and rely on medicaid state plans for other acute health services. There are also wide ranges of estimates of uncompensated care that, when combined with other variables that are difficult to control, make accurate aggregate cost estimates difficult. Birenbaum and Cohen offer a review of healthcare utilization and costs in general for people with IDD

Will Business-Led Environmental Initiatives Grow in Agriculture?

This article was stimulated by a 1997 American Agricultural Economics Association annual meeting preconference designed by Batie and Ervin. The authors felt that there was considerable interest and activity in business-led environmental management (also caLLed corporate environmental management)-but most of the interest was found outside of the agricultural sector and the profession. The conference was a means to investigate the extent, motivation, and consequences of business-led poLLution prevention activities. The DuPont and the StahLbush Island Farms examples used in this article were drawn from discussions that took place at the conference and which were published in the proceedings. In the article, the authors draw lessons for agriculture informed by the experiences of nonagricultural businesses. They identify and distiLL from these experiences the major roles for the public sector to enable agricultural business-led initiatives to flourish and to be successful

Effects of Group Counseling

Staff members of the Lucas County (Toledo, Ohio) Family Court Center became concerned because it seemed that while diagnosis of delinquent behavior was leaning toward an indi vidualized, differential technique, treatment methods were not correspondingly developed. The traditional one-to-one interview was often ineffective. In an effort to find useful alternative meth ods, several staff members who had participated in a group therapy experience themselves and had received in-service train ing in group methods decided to experiment. On the basis of prior social and psychological studies, six juvenile probationers were selected to participate in a series of group counseling sessions.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/67169/2/10.1177_001112876501100406.pd