The Fifth Goddard Forum on April 5 in Harrisburg will feature a discussion of traditional and nontraditional market-based mechanisms for achieving environmental improvement.

The program is an outreach effort of Penn State’s Maurice K. Goddard Chair in Forestry and Environmental Resources Conservation. The chair is currently held by Robert B. McKinstry, Jr..

Market-based mechanisms have the potential to achieve environmental improvement goals while minimizing costs and conflicts. Mechanisms such as air pollutant trading, limited water pollutant trading, wetlands banking, habitat banking, and use of transfer development rights have already achieved considerable successes in reducing a variety of air pollutants, achieving more effective wetlands mitigation, and encouraging and conservation and "smart growth."

Their use is being expanded to other air pollutants, efforts to control global warming, water pollutants, habitat conservation and enhancement, and multimedia and even cross-media trading.

Despite these successes, there are limitations on the use of these mechanisms and on the areas where their use could be broadened or made more effective. Moreover, although these innovations are often touted as alternatives to "command and control" approaches, more traditional approaches sometimes may use the market more effectively

and are often necessary to support markets.

The Fifth Goddard Forum will examine the current use of market-based mechanisms, the limitations and potential for these mechanisms, and the practical issues involved in implementing these approaches. It will examine specific existing and proposed programs for air, water, habitat, land conservation and multimedia trading.

The keynote luncheon speaker will be DEP Secretary Kathleen McGinty and the Forum is sponsored, in part, by PPL Corporation.

More information on the Forum agenda and registration information is available online. Registration deadline is March 18.

2/11/2005