Performance payments for carnivore conservation in Sweden

Solving carnivore-livestock conflicts is essential if goals to preserve biodiversity conservation are taken seriously and livelihoods especially of poor livestock owners are to be safeguarded. This paper presents an innovative performance payment approach for carnivore conservation, that has been successfully implemented in Sweden. Performance payments are made to reindeer herding Sami villages for certified carnivore offspring on the villages’ territories. First results support the assumption that this approach has the potential to solve many problems inherent to conventional compensation schemes. A well designed common pool regime is deemed necessary to direct the incentives set by the internal distribution of the performance payments toward collective action in carnivore conservation.Performance payments, Carnivore conservation, Sweden, Collective action, Environmental Economics and Policy, Institutional and Behavioral Economics, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, Q2, Q57,

Modelling regional maize market and transport distances for biogas production in Germany

Our location model aims to simulate location decisions for biogas plants based on profit maximisation to generate regional demand functions for maize and corresponding plant size structure and transport distances. By linking it with an agricultural sector model we derived regional maize markets. Comparing results for the REA with a scenario applying uniform per unit subsidy and producing the same energy, we see higher subsidy costs with the REA but lower transportation distances.Biogas, environmental effects, transport costs, choice of location, Agricultural Finance, Environmental Economics and Policy,

Towards a certification of biomass: Feasibility of a certifications scheme of sustainability standards for trade and production of bioethanol in Brazil

Bioenergy produced from biomass is increasingly used to substitute fossil energy sources. Trade of biomass is expected to increase in the following years due to disparities in production costs and potentials in countries and regions. In this paper the possibility of a certification scheme for minimizing negative socio-ecological impacts and for increasing a sustainable production of biomass is discussed, taking Brazilian bioethanol as an example. This case-study comes up with a first set of feasible sustainability standards for Brazilian bioethanol and discusses issues to be considered when developing sustainability standards. At the same time problematic aspects are identified. When incorporating opinions of different stakeholders, the setting of sustainability standards holds the inherent danger of being used as non-tariff trade barriers. This leads to the need for a regionalisation of sustainability standards and raises questions on structure and level of a certification scheme.certification, sustainability standards, bioethanol, Environmental Economics and Policy, Institutional and Behavioral Economics, International Relations/Trade, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, F18, Q24,

Der Internationale Vertrag über pflanzengenetische Ressourcen für Ernährung und Landwirtschaft – ein Meilenstein zur Erleichterung der Pflanzenzüchtung?

Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

Neue Entwicklungen in der Debatte um gentechnisch veränderte Pflanzen

Agricultural and Food Policy, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

Bewertung nicht-marktfähiger Leistungen der Landwirtschaft – eine Herausforderung für die Forschung

Environmental Economics and Policy, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods,

Abschätzung der Wertschöpfungspotenziale im ländlichen Raum durch Biokraftstoffe am Beispiel Nordrhein-Westfalens

To enhance the use of biofuels is stated priority of EU and German energy policy. Reasons given for this priority inter alia include positive income effects for the rural areas. This paper uses the example of North Rhine-Westphalia to investigate rural areas’ possibilities to profit from the added value of bio fuel production. It is shown that the main channel of income generation is based on stabilized demand for agricultural products. Taking into account recent policy shifts in Germany there remain few chances to participate in the added value of downstream production steps. In addition, due to considerable support for biogas plants maize production considerably reduces areas consecrated to bio fuel production.biofuel, development of rural areas, income effects, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, Community/Rural/Urban Development,

Das neue Gentechnikgesetz - ein Gentechnikverhinderungsgesetz?

In addition to existing juridical analyses of the new German act for genetic engineering, this article deals with an environmental economic assessment. It is examined what kind of external costs will arise by using/applying genetic engineering and how they will be allocated. Our focus is on the costs that explicitly evolve from the societal postulated coexistence of conventional/ organic farms and users of biotechnology. If the protection of the existing production is accepted, as postulated by politics, the new act internalizes the so called market losses relatively well. In this context, the design of precautionary duties that have to be still established by law is of utmost importance. To avoid the dangers of an excessive liability by the farmer, it is from an economic point of view a good alternative, if the producers of genetically modified crops take the responsibility for any litigation claims to farmers. Furthermore negotiations between neighbouring farms could be an option to keep the costs for damage prevention to a minimum. Erganzend zu den bereits vorliegenden juristischen Analysen des neuen deutschen Gentechnikgesetzes beschaftigt sich der vorliegende Artikel mit einer umweltokonomischen Beurteilung. Untersucht wird, welche externen Kosten bei der Nutzung der "Grunen Gentechnik" entstehen und wie sie auf die Beteiligten verteilt werden. Dabei liegt der Fokus auf den Kosten, die explizit fur die gesellschaftlich geforderte Koexistenz von konventionellen/ okologischen Betrieben und Nutzern der Gentechnik entstehen. Wird der politisch gesetzte estandsschutz fur die bestehenden Produktionssysteme akzeptiert, so zeigt sich, dass eine korrekte Internalisierung der so genannten Vermarktungsschaden relativ gut erreicht werden kann. In diesem Zusammenhang spielt jedoch die Ausgestaltung der Vorsorgepflichten, die noch in einer Rechtsverordnung zur Guten fachlichen Praxis festgeschrieben warden mussen, eine erhebliche Rolle. Um der Gefahr einer Ubermasshaftung durch Landwirte zu begegnen, ist aus okonomischer Sicht die Haftungsubernahme durch die Hersteller der gentechnisch veranderten Pflanzen eine gute Moglichkeit. Auch bieten sich Verhandlungslosungen zwischen benachbarten Landwirten an, um eine kostenminimale Vermeidung von Schaden zu erreichen. Schlusselworter: gentechnikgesetz, haftung, koexistenz, vermarktungsschadenact for genetic engineering, liability, coexistence, market loss, Agricultural and Food Policy, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, K32, Q55,

Agrarumweltpolitik

Agricultural and Food Policy, Environmental Economics and Policy,

Das neue Gentechnikgesetz Рein Gentechnikverhinderungsgesetz? Eine umwelțkonomische Analyse der haftungsrechtlichen Neuerungen im Gentechnikgesetz

In this article, legal consequences of the new German genetic engineering act are analyzed. In addition environmental economic analysis is presented of those parts of the act that introduce new litigation regulation to farmers. The different kinds of external costs arising from genetic engineering of plants and their allocation to different actors are considered. The paper focuses on the costs resulting from the postulated coexistence of conventional/organic farms and users of biotechnology. Excessive liability of farmers can be avoided, if the producers of genetically modified seeds accept any litigation claims against farmers. Furthermore, negotiations between neighbouring farms can be an option to keep the costs of damage prevention at reasonable levels.genetic engineering act, liability, coexistence, market loss, precautionary principle, Agricultural and Food Policy, Environmental Economics and Policy, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, Risk and Uncertainty,