Environmental Economic is an economic area where it is believed that the environment has an impact on the economy. This is based on the theory that poor management of natural resources will lead to failures in the market, and thus environmental policies need to exist for the market’s benefit.

Environmental economists research economic issues relating to environmental issues. They consider the environmental costs of economic growth such as pollutants and how those factors could influence economics; they may also look into how the environment may offset costs associated with economics.

An example of this could be the costs in removing an ecosystem in a community. An environmental economist would look at the situation and consider what services the ecosystem in question currently provides. The trees in the area would be removing carbon dioxide from the air, and individual species that live in the area may be necessary for preventing pests from entering nearby farm fields. These factors would show that there could be a better benefit to leaving the ecosystem than removing it.

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Other Sources

“Environmental Economics.” Investopedia. http://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/environmental-economics.asp. Accessed August 3, 2016.

“What is an Environmental Economist?” Environmental Science.org. http://www.environmentalscience.org/career/environmental-economist. Accessed August 3, 2016.