Product Description

With a tight integration of public policy and economic theory, this best-selling text provides a well-rounded introduction to the field. Tietenberg’s extensive work in research and policy lends a crucial real-world context, so that students explore the latest questions and debates.

The Seventh Edition offers a wealth of new examples and hot topics such as genetically modified organisms and the cost-effectiveness of new transportation fuels. International issues receive increased attention through discussions of environmental problems and policies in Western Europe, China, and developing nations.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #775931 in Books
• Published on: 2005-09-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 656 pages

Customer Reviews

broad coverage but not clearly written
This book offers a broad introduction, but unfortunately the writing lacks clarity and manages to make even simple concepts seem confusing.

The main tools of analysis are graphs, and you will need to have a done a basic intro course in economics to understand the graphs clearly.

The appendix of some chapters cover more mathematical treatments - to understand this math you need to know some calculus, what optimized constraints are, for example.

Most chapters have a set of excercises that are either discussion questions or mathematical problems: for the math, any basic first-year course is enough as prerequisite.

The contents of the book is this:
1. Visions of the future
2. Economics of the environment
3. Property rights, externalities, and environmental problems
4. Regulating the market
5. The population problem
6. The allocation of depletable and renewable resources
7. Depletable, nonrecyclable energy resources
8. Recyclable resources
9. Replenishable but depletable resources
10. Reproducible private-property resources
11. Storable, renewable resources
12. Renewable common-property resources
13. Generalized resource-scarcity
14. Economics of pollution control
15. Stationary-source local air pollution
16. Regional and global air-pollutants
17. Mobile-source air pollution
18. Water pollution
19. Toxic substances
20. Environmental justice
21. Development, poverty, and the environment
22. The quest for sustainable development
23. Visions of the future revisited

...that took a while.
Anyhow, now you see how broad the coverage is.

The main thing I liked about the book was the very broad content.
But, like I said above, the writing lacks clarity in many places and manages to make even simple concepts seem confusing.
Consequently you may have to re-read a paragraph a number of times to understand what he means.
Also, the book has a heavy focus on US policy, which is not relevant to an international audience.

Overall, for the used-price of this book it's not a bad investment, if you don't have much to spend. I would not buy it new though, as Hussen's books Principles of Environmental Economics: Ecology, Economics and Public Policy are written with greater clarity than this book.
And if you want something with greater analytical and mathematical treatments then Stagl's book Ecological Economics: An Introduction is much better.