No abstract

Contemporary resource management practice and rural development planning increasingly emphasize the integration of resource extractive industries with non-market-based recreational and amenity values. There is a growing empirical literature which suggests that natural amenities impact regional economies through aggregate measures of economic performance such as population, income, and/or employment growth, and housing development. We maintain that assessing the developmental aspects of amenity-led regional change requires a more thorough focus on alternative measures of economic performance such as income distribution and spatial organization. In the applied research presented here we investigate relationships between amenities and regional economic development indicators. Results suggest mixed and generally insignificant amenity-based associations which highlight the need for appropriate regional economic modeling techniques that account for often dramatic spatial autocorrelation of natural amenity attributes. We conclude that with respect to amenity driven economic growth and development "place in space" matters. Copyright 2005 Blackwell Publishing Ltd..

Abstract:Given the concerns about urban mobility, traffic congestion, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, extensive research has explored the relationship between the built environment and transit ridership. However, the nature of aggregation and the cross-sectional approach of the research rarely provide essential clues on the potential of a transit system as a sustainable mobility option. From the perspective of longitudinal sustainability, this paper develops regression models for rail transit stations in the Los Angeles Metro system. These models attempt to identify the socio-demographic characteristics and land use features influencing longitudinal transit ridership changes.Step-wise ordinary least square (OLS) regression models are used to identify factors that contribute to transit ridership changes. Those factors include the number of dwelling units, employment-oriented land uses such as office and commercial land uses, and land use balance. The models suggest a negative relationship between job and population balance with transit ridership change. They also raise a question regarding the 0.4 km radius commonly used in transit analysis. The models indicate that the 0.4 km radius is too small to capture the significant influence of the built environment on transit ridership.

This study presents guidelines for local transportation planners to analyze the patterns of bicyclist crashes in order to improve roadway safety. This research also assists planners in effectively allocating scarce resources as they address issues of bicyclist safety.

The characteristics of forest growing stock and its rate of growth are important determinants of current stand value, silvicultural practice, and future productivity. The level of silvicultural practice, or management intensity, affects the productive potential of timber yield. Among forest ownership groups, the conventional wisdom holds that the forest-products industry manages lands of relatively higher productivity and applies more intensive silvicultural practices to maximize timber production. This appears to be the case throughout the United States, except in the North Central Region. We analyzed forest inventory data to test whether there are differences in potential timber productivity across ownerships and examined the relationships between land ownership and the level of growing stock productivity and net annual growth for 101 counties in the U.S. Lake States of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Results suggest that, in contrast with the rest of the United States, industrial private forest owners of the Lake States operate on sites of inferior quality relative to other forest owners. The most productive sites in the region are in the national forests, which also carry average levels of growing stock that are higher than those of other landowners. Constraints on timber supply from the national forests could limit the potential of regional forest products led economic growth in the Lake States.