This page has only limited features, please log in for full access.
Dr. Iverson is an environmental economist and macroeconomist who uses applied theory and numerical methods to study issues in the economics of climate change and other environmental policy problems. In recent work, he has also worked on the optimal government response to the COVID-19 pandemic. He teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in environmental economics, including a senior seminar on the economics of climate change.
We examine the effectiveness of sub-national actions to control a novel disease, such as COVID-19, in the absence of national policy. Evidence shows that countries where sub-national governments have undertaken unilateral social distancing measures to combat the pandemic with little or no coordination have performed less well in controlling the spread of the disease. We explore analytically whether agreement on a common social distancing policy among sub-national governments, i.e., states or provinces, can lead to a better outcome than if each state or province pursues its own social distancing policy in isolation. A key feature of our model is that it accounts for the inter-jurisdictional spillover effects of each sub-national jurisdiction’s policy choice with respect to social distancing. Our results show that, in the absence of a national mandatory agreement, a sub-national agreement with sufficient coordination of social distancing policy among states yields a more effective and efficient control of a pandemic compared to states choosing policy unilaterally. These findings strongly support calls for greater cooperation among and assistance for sub-national governments to improve the effectiveness of their social distancing efforts in controlling the pandemic.
Terrence Iverson; Edward Barbier. National and Sub-National Social Distancing Responses to COVID-19. Economies 2021, 9, 69 .
AMA StyleTerrence Iverson, Edward Barbier. National and Sub-National Social Distancing Responses to COVID-19. Economies. 2021; 9 (2):69.
Chicago/Turabian StyleTerrence Iverson; Edward Barbier. 2021. "National and Sub-National Social Distancing Responses to COVID-19." Economies 9, no. 2: 69.
Although national commitments to the Paris Climate Accord have waned, carbon mitigation by sub-national entities is on the rise globally. We examine the effectiveness of sub-national jurisdictions (e.g., states, provinces, cities) in collectively enacting greenhouse gas abatement strategies. We develop a simple model to explore the conditions under which an agreement among sub-national jurisdictions within a country may lead to substantial carbon abatement relative to a national policy determined through majority rule. We find that, in the absence of a functional national policy response, a coordinated sub-national agreement can generate meaningful abatement. This could form an important stopgap measure in the absence of better alternatives.
Terrence Iverson; Joanne Burgess; Edward Barbier. Are Sub-National Agreements for Carbon Abatement Effective? Energies 2020, 13, 3675 .
AMA StyleTerrence Iverson, Joanne Burgess, Edward Barbier. Are Sub-National Agreements for Carbon Abatement Effective? Energies. 2020; 13 (14):3675.
Chicago/Turabian StyleTerrence Iverson; Joanne Burgess; Edward Barbier. 2020. "Are Sub-National Agreements for Carbon Abatement Effective?" Energies 13, no. 14: 3675.
About one-fifth of the total housing stock in Detroit, Michigan is vacant, blighted or abandoned. Abandoned homes are particularly vulnerable to arson, with an estimated 20 such structures set ablaze each day. In 2011 the Fire Commissioner of Detroit announced a policy of fire non-suppression for abandoned structures. The policy is referred to as “Let in Burn.” While such a policy has the merit of focusing scarce firefighting resources on situations in which people's lives are immediately at risk, we show that the policy exposes residents city-wide to various hazardous inorganic gases (CO, SO2, and NO2) released in uncontrolled fire events. By exploiting an annual tradition in Detroit called Devil's Night, we overcome a measurement problem involving the statistical attribution of changes in city-wide air quality due to fire emissions, and we conservatively estimate per burn pollutant externality costs from inorganic gas releases that include health damages in excess mortality and hospitalization for circulatory conditions in elderly populations. The estimated present value health burden for elderly residents of Detroit due to cardiovascular complications resulting from arson-related emissions of CO is greater than $300 million dollars. Since this is only a subset of the total social costs attributable to arson, the results suggest that a large scale blight reduction program might be socially efficient. Building on our empirical findings, we argue that the dilemma facing Detroit has the structure of a classic poverty trap. The corresponding insights may be relevant for other so-called rust belt cities grappling with the ecological economics of depopulation, housing abandonment, and arson.
Sammy Zahran; Terrence Iverson; Shawn P. McElmurry; Stephan Weiler; Ryan Levitt. Hidden Costs of Blight and Arson in Detroit: Evidence From a Natural Experiment in Devil's Night. Ecological Economics 2018, 157, 266 -277.
AMA StyleSammy Zahran, Terrence Iverson, Shawn P. McElmurry, Stephan Weiler, Ryan Levitt. Hidden Costs of Blight and Arson in Detroit: Evidence From a Natural Experiment in Devil's Night. Ecological Economics. 2018; 157 ():266-277.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSammy Zahran; Terrence Iverson; Shawn P. McElmurry; Stephan Weiler; Ryan Levitt. 2018. "Hidden Costs of Blight and Arson in Detroit: Evidence From a Natural Experiment in Devil's Night." Ecological Economics 157, no. : 266-277.
New extraction technologies, including hydraulic fracturing (fracking), have increased fossil fuel reserves in the United States. Despite local economic benefits, many jurisdictions have adopted bans on fracking. We develop a dynamic learning model parameterized with a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model to quantify the associated quasi-option value (QOV), and to explore if uncertainty about environmental damages with the potential to learn can rationalize such bans. The model is calibrated to a representative municipality in Colorado, the site of several fracking bans. With plausible damages, we find that the QOV increases the incentive to delay drilling within a range of energy prices. The results suggest that improving the ability to learn about fracking impacts could increase the prevalence of bans in the short run and lead to better policymaking over time. Incorporating CGE output into a dynamic learning framework permits calculation of the locality-wide QOV associated with a range of policies.
Joshua H. Hess; Dale T. Manning; Terry Iverson; Harvey Cutler. Uncertainty, learning, and local opposition to hydraulic fracturing. Resource and Energy Economics 2018, 55, 102 -123.
AMA StyleJoshua H. Hess, Dale T. Manning, Terry Iverson, Harvey Cutler. Uncertainty, learning, and local opposition to hydraulic fracturing. Resource and Energy Economics. 2018; 55 ():102-123.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJoshua H. Hess; Dale T. Manning; Terry Iverson; Harvey Cutler. 2018. "Uncertainty, learning, and local opposition to hydraulic fracturing." Resource and Energy Economics 55, no. : 102-123.
Sammy Zahran; Terrence Iverson; Shawn P. McElmurry; Stephan Weiler. The Effect of Leaded Aviation Gasoline on Blood Lead in Children. Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists 2017, 4, 575 -610.
AMA StyleSammy Zahran, Terrence Iverson, Shawn P. McElmurry, Stephan Weiler. The Effect of Leaded Aviation Gasoline on Blood Lead in Children. Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists. 2017; 4 (2):575-610.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSammy Zahran; Terrence Iverson; Shawn P. McElmurry; Stephan Weiler. 2017. "The Effect of Leaded Aviation Gasoline on Blood Lead in Children." Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists 4, no. 2: 575-610.
Christopher Hannum; Harvey Cutler; Terrence Iverson; David Keyser. Estimating the implied cost of carbon in future scenarios using a CGE model: The Case of Colorado. Energy Policy 2017, 102, 500 -511.
AMA StyleChristopher Hannum, Harvey Cutler, Terrence Iverson, David Keyser. Estimating the implied cost of carbon in future scenarios using a CGE model: The Case of Colorado. Energy Policy. 2017; 102 ():500-511.
Chicago/Turabian StyleChristopher Hannum; Harvey Cutler; Terrence Iverson; David Keyser. 2017. "Estimating the implied cost of carbon in future scenarios using a CGE model: The Case of Colorado." Energy Policy 102, no. : 500-511.
Roughly 20 percent of current CO2 emissions will likely remain in the atmosphere for thousands of years (Solomon et al. 2008). Despite this, climate damages attributable to current emissions that occur beyond 150 years or so have almost no effect on the current optimal carbon tax in typical integrated assessment models. The source of this strong result is conventional economic discounting. The current paper builds on recent work by Gerlagh and Liski (2013) and Iverson (J Environ Econ Manag 66:598–608, 2013a, b) to demonstrate this fact in a simple way and to show that it is not robust to plausible changes in the calibration approach for discounting parameters. Specifically, when time preference rates decline, a possibility supported by a wide variety of studies from psychology and economics, long run consumption impacts are potentially very important and so are long run features of the carbon cycle. The paper follows (Gerlagh and Liski 2013) in showing that this remains true even when the discounting parameters are calibrated to match historical interests rates, thus avoiding the main economic critique of the Stern Review (Stern 2007; Nordhaus 2008; Weitzman Rev Econ Stat 91:1–19 2009). The effects are quantified using a formula for the optimal carbon tax from Iverson (J Environ Econ Manag 66:598–608, 2013a, b), which we use to decompose the current optimal tax into the cumulative contribution from consumption impacts at different horizons.
Terrence Iverson; Scott Denning; Sammy Zahran. When the long run matters. Climatic Change 2015, 129, 57 -72.
AMA StyleTerrence Iverson, Scott Denning, Sammy Zahran. When the long run matters. Climatic Change. 2015; 129 (1):57-72.
Chicago/Turabian StyleTerrence Iverson; Scott Denning; Sammy Zahran. 2015. "When the long run matters." Climatic Change 129, no. 1: 57-72.
We investigate the accuracy of facility-reported data both within and across emissions and off-site transfer inventories of lead (Pb) in time. We build on recent work using Benford’s Law to detect statistical anomalies in large data sets. Our application exploits a regulatory experiment to test for systematic changes in firm behavior triggered by the 2001 implementation of the Final Rule, a major regulatory change governing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) oversight of lead emissions. Statistical results show that the EPA’s Final Rule functioned to significantly improve the accuracy of facility-reported lead data. This finding is surprising because abatement requirements increased and both the probability of firm audit and expected penalties for misreporting apparently decreased in the post-Final Rule period. To explain this counterintuitive result we develop a reporting model for the firm. We argue that organizational investments made in response to specific requirements of the Final Rule, as well as rising public awareness of the risks of lead, may have induced firms to report more accurately.
Sammy Zahran; Terrence Iverson; Stephan Weiler; Anthony Underwood. Evidence that the accuracy of self-reported lead emissions data improved: A puzzle and discussion. Journal of Risk and Uncertainty 2014, 49, 235 -257.
AMA StyleSammy Zahran, Terrence Iverson, Stephan Weiler, Anthony Underwood. Evidence that the accuracy of self-reported lead emissions data improved: A puzzle and discussion. Journal of Risk and Uncertainty. 2014; 49 (3):235-257.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSammy Zahran; Terrence Iverson; Stephan Weiler; Anthony Underwood. 2014. "Evidence that the accuracy of self-reported lead emissions data improved: A puzzle and discussion." Journal of Risk and Uncertainty 49, no. 3: 235-257.
Terrence Iverson. Minimax regret discounting. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 2013, 66, 598 -608.
AMA StyleTerrence Iverson. Minimax regret discounting. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management. 2013; 66 (3):598-608.
Chicago/Turabian StyleTerrence Iverson. 2013. "Minimax regret discounting." Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 66, no. 3: 598-608.
The paper considers the decision that arises in climate policy where there is expert disagreement about the correct scientific model and where a group of stakeholders needs to agree on a common policy target. Policy choice is posed as a decision under Knightian uncertainty, where decision-makers lack grounds for assigning a particular probability distribution across contending forecasting models. The decision is then framed as one of balancing two competing objectives that plausibly align with the dominant concern of stakeholders from each side in the policy debate. A decision criterion is proposed to identify options for compromise that balance these objectives in different ways. The criterion spans three standard non-Bayesian decision criteria. Policies generated by the criterion are combined with visual tools to communicate “what's at stake” in an environmental policy decision in which stakeholders disagree both about scientific models and about the relative importance of risks to the environment versus risks to economic growth. The approach summarizes information that could be useful to policy-makers tasked with negotiating a compromise. The framework is applied to climate policy using DICE-2007 (Nordhaus 2008). The results highlight a basic asymmetry between the mistake of “doing too little” and that of “doing too much” that suggests a strong argument for avoiding the current status quo of global inaction.
Terrence Iverson. Communicating Trade-offs amid Controversial Science: Decision Support for Climate Policy. Ecological Economics 2012, 77, 74 -90.
AMA StyleTerrence Iverson. Communicating Trade-offs amid Controversial Science: Decision Support for Climate Policy. Ecological Economics. 2012; 77 ():74-90.
Chicago/Turabian StyleTerrence Iverson. 2012. "Communicating Trade-offs amid Controversial Science: Decision Support for Climate Policy." Ecological Economics 77, no. : 74-90.
Catherine M.H. Keske; Samuel G. Evans; Terrence Iverson. Total Cost Electricity Pricing: A Market Solution for Increasingly Rigorous Environmental Standards. The Electricity Journal 2012, 25, 7 -15.
AMA StyleCatherine M.H. Keske, Samuel G. Evans, Terrence Iverson. Total Cost Electricity Pricing: A Market Solution for Increasingly Rigorous Environmental Standards. The Electricity Journal. 2012; 25 (2):7-15.
Chicago/Turabian StyleCatherine M.H. Keske; Samuel G. Evans; Terrence Iverson. 2012. "Total Cost Electricity Pricing: A Market Solution for Increasingly Rigorous Environmental Standards." The Electricity Journal 25, no. 2: 7-15.
Terrence Iverson; Charles Perrings. Precaution and proportionality in the management of global environmental change. Global Environmental Change 2012, 22, 161 -177.
AMA StyleTerrence Iverson, Charles Perrings. Precaution and proportionality in the management of global environmental change. Global Environmental Change. 2012; 22 (1):161-177.
Chicago/Turabian StyleTerrence Iverson; Charles Perrings. 2012. "Precaution and proportionality in the management of global environmental change." Global Environmental Change 22, no. 1: 161-177.
Single-wall fullerene nanotubes were converted from nearly endless, highly tangled ropes into short, open-ended pipes that behave as individual macromolecules. Raw nanotube material was purified in large batches, and the ropes were cut into 100- to 300-nanometer lengths. The resulting pieces formed a stable colloidal suspension in water with the help of surfactants. These suspensions permit a variety of manipulations, such as sorting by length, derivatization, and tethering to gold surfaces.
Jie Liu; Andrew G. Rinzler; Hongjie Dai; Jason Hafner; R. Kelley Bradley; Peter J. Boul; Adrian Lu; Terrence Iverson; Konstantin Shelimov; Chad B. Huffman; Fernando Rodriguez-Macias; Young-Seok Shon; T. Randall Lee; Daniel T. Colbert; Richard E. Smalley. Fullerene Pipes. Science 1998, 280, 1253 -1256.
AMA StyleJie Liu, Andrew G. Rinzler, Hongjie Dai, Jason Hafner, R. Kelley Bradley, Peter J. Boul, Adrian Lu, Terrence Iverson, Konstantin Shelimov, Chad B. Huffman, Fernando Rodriguez-Macias, Young-Seok Shon, T. Randall Lee, Daniel T. Colbert, Richard E. Smalley. Fullerene Pipes. Science. 1998; 280 (5367):1253-1256.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJie Liu; Andrew G. Rinzler; Hongjie Dai; Jason Hafner; R. Kelley Bradley; Peter J. Boul; Adrian Lu; Terrence Iverson; Konstantin Shelimov; Chad B. Huffman; Fernando Rodriguez-Macias; Young-Seok Shon; T. Randall Lee; Daniel T. Colbert; Richard E. Smalley. 1998. "Fullerene Pipes." Science 280, no. 5367: 1253-1256.