[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 246 (Friday, December 23, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76283-76284]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-7780]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8013-8]


Environmental Economics Research Strategy

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice of availability of a final document.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is today 
announcing the availability of its Environmental Economics Research 
Strategy, EPA/600/R-04/195. The Environmental Economics Research 
Strategy identifies and prioritizes environmental economics and 
decision science research that will be conducted over the next several 
years to improve the scientific foundation for EPA's decision-making 
and policy initiatives.

ADDRESSES: A limited number of copies of the Environmental Economics 
Research Strategy will be available from the National Service Center 
for Environmental Publications. Request a copy by telephoning 1-800-
490-9198 or 513-489-8190 and providing the title and the EPA number for 
the document, EPA/600/R-04/195. Internet users may download a copy from 
the EPA's Office of Research and Development home page at http://www.epa.gov/ord/htm/documents/econresearch.pdf. The strategy is also 
available on EPA's National Center for Environmental Economics home 
page at http://yosemite.epa.gov/ee/epa/eed.nsf/webpages/homepage.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. William Wheeler, National Center 
for Environmental Research (8722F), U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460, telephone: 
202-343-9828; facsimile: 202-233-0678; E-mail: [email protected] 
or Dr. Brian Heninger, National Center for Environmental Economics 
(1809T), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460, telephone: 202-566-2270; facsimile: 
202-566-2338; E-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Environmental Economics Research 
Strategy was developed to guide future environmental economics research 
at the Agency. This research strategy outlines EPA's effort to provide 
the necessary behavioral science foundation for making decisions and 
designing environmental policies at the least cost to American 
businesses and consumers. To be effective the Agency must understand 
how people and firms make decisions about and affect the environment, 
and, in turn, how the environment affects Americans' quality of life. 
The environmental economics research described in this strategy will 
become a cornerstone of the economic analyses that EPA needs to develop 
environmental policy.
    The Environmental Economics Research Strategy was developed by a 
team from the National Center for Environmental Economics (NCEE) and 
the National Center for Environmental

[[Page 76284]]

Research (NCER) working with EPA program offices, the Office of 
Research and Development (ORD) laboratories and centers, and EPA 
regions. NCEE provides research support and economic guidance to EPA 
programs, and NCER manages an economics and decision sciences research 
grants program. The strategy identifies priorities and research gaps, 
evaluates research tools, sets strategic research objectives, and 
suggests responsibilities and sequences for conducting or sponsoring 
research. EPA programs, other Federal agencies, academics, states, 
local governments, and others can consult the strategy to understand 
what EPA has planned and the results the Agency expects.
    The Environmental Economics Research Strategy is in two volumes; 
the first volume is the strategy itself outlined in four chapters, and 
the second volume contains seven appendices. Chapter 1 explains the 
background for developing the strategy. Chapter 2 reports the main 
findings from the needs assessment survey and workshop. Chapter 3 
describes how EPA evaluated the remaining gaps in the research 
literature in priority economic research areas and developed strategic 
research goals to implement. Chapter 4 describes the research tools or 
approaches available to implement the strategy and how EPA plans to use 
these tools to generate and communicate needed research results. The 
appendices provide more detail on the needs assessment process and 
results, discuss the relationship of the strategy to other documents, 
compare the advantages of different research tools available to EPA, 
and present the external peer review comments and responses.
    This Environmental Economics Research Strategy was subjected to 
external peer review by the Environmental Economics Advisory Committee 
of EPA's Science Advisory Board. The final strategy reflects the 
comments of both internal and external review.

    Dated: December 19, 2005.
George Gray,
Assistant Administrator for Research and Development.
 [FR Doc. E5-7780 Filed 12-22-05; 8:45 am]
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