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Natural Resource Economics Commons

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Theses/Dissertations

The University of Maine

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Articles 1 - 9 of 9

Full-Text Articles in Natural Resource Economics

To Know The Land With Hands And Minds: Negotiating Agricultural Knowledge In Late-Nineteenth-Century New England And Westphalia, Justus Hillebrand Aug 2021

To Know The Land With Hands And Minds: Negotiating Agricultural Knowledge In Late-Nineteenth-Century New England And Westphalia, Justus Hillebrand

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Ever since the eighteenth century, experts have tried to tell farmers how to farm. The agricultural enlightenment in Europe marked the beginning of a long arc of new experts aiming to change agricultural knowledge and practice. This dissertation analyzes the pivotal period in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century in Germany and the United States when scientists, improvers, and market agents began to develop comprehensive ways to communicate agricultural innovation to farmers. In a functional approach to analyzing the negotiation of agricultural knowledge through its communication in things, words, and practices, this dissertation argues that the process of change …


Valuing The Economic Benefits Of Conservation Lands In Downeast Maine, Lesley Lichko May 2019

Valuing The Economic Benefits Of Conservation Lands In Downeast Maine, Lesley Lichko

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Natural ecosystems provide numerous benefits that contribute to humans and the economy, including market goods such as timber and forest products, as well as benefits that are not directly measured in the marketplace, such as wildlife habitat provision and recreational provision. These benefits are collectively known as ecosystem services. Natural ecosystems are under significant pressure to be converted to other uses from factors such as shifts in ownership, land use change, fragmentation and climate change. To counter these effects, and to protect ecosystem services, public and private entities have worked to place land in conservation; however, conservation is often controversial …


Ecological And Economic Implications Of Increased Storm Frequency And Severity For Boreal Lakes, Kathryn Warner May 2019

Ecological And Economic Implications Of Increased Storm Frequency And Severity For Boreal Lakes, Kathryn Warner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In boreal regions, increased precipitation events have been linked to increased concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), however less is known about the extent and implications of these events on lakes. We assessed the effects of precipitation events on six drinking water lakes in Maine, USA to better understand how DOC concentration and quality change in response to precipitation events. Our results revealed three types of responses: (1) an initial spike in DOC concentrations and quality metrics; (2) a sustained increase in DOC concentrations and quality metrics and; (3) no change during all sampling periods. Lake residence time was a …


Social Ecological Food Systems: Sustainability Lessons From Maine Dairy Networks, Julia B. Mcguire Aug 2016

Social Ecological Food Systems: Sustainability Lessons From Maine Dairy Networks, Julia B. Mcguire

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Milk production has played an integral role in the culture, landscape, and economy of Maine’s agriculture. Maine dairy farmers have faced numerous sustainability challenges to economic, environmental, and social aspects of their industry. Like many other complex social ecological systems, the Maine dairy industry faces a gap between scientific knowledge and actionable management or policy. A cultural dichotomy exists between conventional and organic farming. Shifting the focus from this binary, metrics such as social capital may play a key role in solving sustainability issues. Difficulties arise in the governance of complex social ecological systems when the scales of assessment, management, …


Sharing A Landscape: The Construction Of Sense Of Place On The Maine Coast, Andrea Jane Ednie Dec 2007

Sharing A Landscape: The Construction Of Sense Of Place On The Maine Coast, Andrea Jane Ednie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Motivated by interest and concern over the changing coastline in Maine, this study uses the concept of sense of place to develop an understanding of how a range of users share the resource, and to explore how place meanings are associated with their social experiences and perceptions. The site for this study was the Stonington region archipelago, an area that has not yet experienced the same amount of development as seen on the southern Maine coast, yet one that has witnessed a boom in recreational use and an influx of people from other areas. Using a mixed methodology, two groups …


Economic Approaches To Public And Private Land Conservation In The United States, Amy Claire Hudnor Aug 2007

Economic Approaches To Public And Private Land Conservation In The United States, Amy Claire Hudnor

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research is composed of two essays, both using economic approaches to evaluate land conservation in the United States. Essay I uses econometric methods to evaluate public lands, and Essay II uses New Institutional Economics to gain insight into private land conservation. Essay I is titled "The Relationship Between Public Conservation Lands and Tourism Employment in the United States." This research examines the relationship between public conservation lands and the importance of tourism in United States counties. A spatial error model is used on three categories of conservation land: general public land, recreational land, and wilderness areas. A positive, significant …


Development And Assessment Of A Spatial Decision Support System For Conservation Planning, Sean Murphy Dec 2003

Development And Assessment Of A Spatial Decision Support System For Conservation Planning, Sean Murphy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Land conservation is frequently cited as the most effective means of limiting the detrimental effects of anthropogenic forces on natural resources. Because governmental entities can be hampered by fiscal and political concerns, land trusts are increasing relied on to protect habitat. However, these groups often lack the analysis and research tools necessary to meet their mission. Geographic Information System (GIs) technologies such as Spatial Decision Support Systems (SDSS) offer the promise of allowing decision makers to explore their decision space at a landscape level of analysis. But critics have charged that research in this arena is largely anecdotal in nature. …


An Engineering, Economic, And Political Approach To Beach Erosion Mitigation And Harbor Development: A Review Of The Beach Communities Of Camp Ellis, Maine, Wells, Maine, And Cape May, New Jersey, Edmund Cervone Aug 2003

An Engineering, Economic, And Political Approach To Beach Erosion Mitigation And Harbor Development: A Review Of The Beach Communities Of Camp Ellis, Maine, Wells, Maine, And Cape May, New Jersey, Edmund Cervone

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The history of coastal engineering projects is fraught with problems. In this thesis I examine the federal navigation project at Wells, Maine. In Wells, an incomplete understanding of the coastal setting led to a faulty engineering design responsible for a poorly functioning inlet and harbor and damage to neighboring beaches and wildlife habitat. Project planners and designers did not account for all unforeseen problems that arose. Reviewing the history of Wells Harbor demonstrates how proper attention to the natural setting, economics, and the political environment is essential to a successful project and enables agencies and stakeholders better to address contingencies …


Ecological Implications Of Rockweed, Ascophyllum Nodosum (L.) Le Jolis, Harvesting, Jill C. Fegley May 2001

Ecological Implications Of Rockweed, Ascophyllum Nodosum (L.) Le Jolis, Harvesting, Jill C. Fegley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Harvesting of natural resources usually entails substantial removal of the target species. Where such species are dominant members of natural communities, their removal can have important consequences for their own regeneration as well as for the species assemblages associated with them. Rockweed is an ecologically and commercially important intertidal alga in the North Atlantic, and is increasingly being harvested in Maine. The effects of harvesting on regrowth are well known but little is known about its effects on the species that use this alga as habitat. This research focused on the ecological implications of A. nodosum harvesting on the associated …