Research Interests: Environmental Economics; Non-market Valuation
Job Market Paper
The Economic Impact of Microbeads Ban on Face Cleansers
with John Crespi and Wendong Zhang
Microbeads are contaminants to the environment which receive emerging concerns around the globe. Actions have been taken to ban microbeads across the US. Leveraging the transaction level Nielsen Retail Scanner data of facial cleanser product sales, we study how the introduction and enactment of microbeads ban on the sales of facial cleanser products from 2013 to 2016. Specifically, we apply a difference-in-differences design to examine the sale changes of facial cleanser products before and after the bill's introduction and enactment relative to sales of facial lotion products. Our results suggest that the microbeads bill introduction led to consumer stockpiling of some facial cleanser products. The bill enactment led to a 6.3% increase in sales volume of facial cleanser products relative to facial lotion products, owing partially to consumer stockpiling behavior after being informed. We also find evidence of a 2.8% increase in sales of facial cleanser products after bill enactment relative to sales of facial lotion products. The price changes seem to be the reason for the increased sales of facial cleanser products over this period.
The Economic Impact of Microbeads Ban on Face Cleansers
with John Crespi and Wendong Zhang
Microbeads are contaminants to the environment which receive emerging concerns around the globe. Actions have been taken to ban microbeads across the US. Leveraging the transaction level Nielsen Retail Scanner data of facial cleanser product sales, we study how the introduction and enactment of microbeads ban on the sales of facial cleanser products from 2013 to 2016. Specifically, we apply a difference-in-differences design to examine the sale changes of facial cleanser products before and after the bill's introduction and enactment relative to sales of facial lotion products. Our results suggest that the microbeads bill introduction led to consumer stockpiling of some facial cleanser products. The bill enactment led to a 6.3% increase in sales volume of facial cleanser products relative to facial lotion products, owing partially to consumer stockpiling behavior after being informed. We also find evidence of a 2.8% increase in sales of facial cleanser products after bill enactment relative to sales of facial lotion products. The price changes seem to be the reason for the increased sales of facial cleanser products over this period.
Working paper
Recreational benefit disparity? Evidence from underrepresented populations in Iowa
with Yongjie Ji and Wendong Zhang
Environmental justice has recently attracted increasing attention among researchers and policymakers. However, most environmental justice research focuses on the disparity in exposure to pollution or environmental hazards, while differences in access to natural amenities across different income or racial groups received less attention. We leverage five rounds of longitudinal household recreation responses to the Iowa Lakes Survey from 2004 to 2019, and examine possible disparity in preference for recreation across households with different socioeconomic statuses. Our results show low-SES (socioeconomic status) households are more responsive to travel costs in their recreational decisions. Our welfare analysis indicates that, on average, both low and high-SES groups are comparably willing to pay for water quality improvements over time. Their MWTP for secchi depth is around $8 per household per year, with the low-SES group offering slightly less. The gap in MWTP between the two groups has been gradually reducing, reaching 7% by 2019. Moreover, we found high-SES households generally benefit more from recreational activities, with this disparity in compensating variation has decreased since its peak in 2004. Furthermore, a scenario analysis suggests that neglecting the declining marginal utility of income would lead to underestimations of recreational benefits. The higher-income groups benefit more from simulated water quality improvement, underscoring the need for further policy considerations.
Recreational benefit disparity? Evidence from underrepresented populations in Iowa
with Yongjie Ji and Wendong Zhang
Environmental justice has recently attracted increasing attention among researchers and policymakers. However, most environmental justice research focuses on the disparity in exposure to pollution or environmental hazards, while differences in access to natural amenities across different income or racial groups received less attention. We leverage five rounds of longitudinal household recreation responses to the Iowa Lakes Survey from 2004 to 2019, and examine possible disparity in preference for recreation across households with different socioeconomic statuses. Our results show low-SES (socioeconomic status) households are more responsive to travel costs in their recreational decisions. Our welfare analysis indicates that, on average, both low and high-SES groups are comparably willing to pay for water quality improvements over time. Their MWTP for secchi depth is around $8 per household per year, with the low-SES group offering slightly less. The gap in MWTP between the two groups has been gradually reducing, reaching 7% by 2019. Moreover, we found high-SES households generally benefit more from recreational activities, with this disparity in compensating variation has decreased since its peak in 2004. Furthermore, a scenario analysis suggests that neglecting the declining marginal utility of income would lead to underestimations of recreational benefits. The higher-income groups benefit more from simulated water quality improvement, underscoring the need for further policy considerations.
Work in progress
Impact of congestion during COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from cell phone mobility data
with Donghyuk Kim, Xibo Wan and Wendong Zhang
Extent of the Market and Its Impacts on Welfare Analysis: Evidence from a Two-decades Long Recreation Household Survey Project
with Yongjie Ji and Wendong Zhang
Impact of congestion during COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from cell phone mobility data
with Donghyuk Kim, Xibo Wan and Wendong Zhang
Extent of the Market and Its Impacts on Welfare Analysis: Evidence from a Two-decades Long Recreation Household Survey Project
with Yongjie Ji and Wendong Zhang
