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Social Cost of Biomass Energy from Switchgrass in Western Massachusetts

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 September 2016

David Timmons
David Timmons*
Affiliation:
Economics Department at University of Massachusetts Boston
*
Correspondence: David Timmons ▪ Economics Department ▪ University of Massachusetts ▪ 100 Morrissey Boulevard ▪ Boston MA 02125-3393 ▪ Phone 617.287.6945 ▪ Email [email protected].
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Abstract

Producing biomass energy requires much land, and effects of biomass production on ecosystem services could greatly affect total biomass energy cost. This study estimates switchgrass production cost in western Massachusetts at three levels: private production cost, private cost plus social cost of nitrogen fertilizer externalities, and those costs plus the social opportunity cost of foregone forest ecosystem services. Values for nitrogen externalities and forest ecosystem services estimated with benefit transfer suggest that social cost is much greater than private switchgrass production cost. The benefit-transfer estimates are only first approximations, but conclusions are robust to a large range of values.

Keywords

ALMANACbiomass energyecosystem servicesfertilizer externalitiesswitchgrass
Type
Selected Papers
Information
Agricultural and Resource Economics Review , Volume 42 , Issue 1 , April 2013 , pp. 176 - 195
Copyright
Copyright © 2013 Northeastern Agricultural and Resource Economics Association 

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