I have many people to thank at the state agencies, on the advisory panels, and among my research partners in each of the three case studies covered in this study. From them, I have learned a great deal about the various issues involved in water quality and market-based mechanisms.
I owe special thanks to Dave Batchelor of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. Dave began life as a regulator, committed to improving the environment through enforcement of the law. While still maintaining that commitment, he is now working to improve environmental performance by identifying ways to appropriately increase flexibility and reduce costs. Dave has vast practical experience, which I found enormously valuable. In the course of this effort we spent many hours over the phone or a beer, thrashing through the issues, sometimes agreeing, sometimes not, but always working toward a better understanding and hopefully, better results.
Mahesh Podar at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also deserves a special mention. His office not only provided financial support for this project, but Mahesh led EPA’s effort to explore trading in the nation’s watersheds. That work helped to get a lot of people thinking about the possibilities and challenges and informed the analysis presented here.
In each of the three case studies, I worked closely with the lead state regulatory agency. We also formed advisory panels to review the work as it progressed. These panels provided invaluable critiques and helped to bring the analysis down to earth.
In Michigan, various individuals from several groups participated, including the Michigan Agricultural Stewardship Association, the Michigan State University Institute for Water Resources, MSU Extension Service, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, Consumers Energy Company, the Michigan Farm Bureau, the City of Wyoming, and the Huron River Watershed Council.
In Minnesota, lead partner Norman Senjem of the Pollution Control Agency was generous in sharing his insights with me. Our advisory panel in Minnesota included the Minnesota River Joint Powers Board, the Minnesota River Agriculture Team, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Minnesota Farm Bureau, the Metropolitan Council, the University of Minnesota, the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, the Board of Soil and Water Resources, the Land Stewardship Project, and the Friends of the Minnesota River. Our work in Wisconsin was completed in collaboration with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) and the Rock River Watershed Partnership, a group of mostly point- source dischargers interested in cost-effective means of attaining clean water objectives. Sanjay Syal and Danielle Valvassori were the leads for the WDNR; Roger Sherman was the chair of the Rock River Partnership.
Two key partners helped complete the analysis. At the MSU Institute for Water Resources, Jon Bartholic and Da Ouyang provided hydrologic information needed to convert erosion and runoff estimates into loadings. One particularly vexing problem was solved by Mike Doran of Strand Associates, who developed up-to-date cost curves for phosphorus control technologies.
Thanks go to those who participated in the peer review process: Will Anthony, Dave Batchelor, Rob Day, Debbie Farmer, Al Hammond, Tony Janetos, Richard Kashmanian, Jonathan Lash, Mahesh Podar, and Marc Ribaudo. Bob Livernash provided review, editing, and production help. Kim Kusek and Andi Thomas deserve thanks for providing programmatic assistance. Hyacinth Billings, as ever, did a stellar job of seeing the report through production.
No effort can be accomplished without funding, and here a special acknowledgment is reserved for the Joyce Foundation, the Kellogg Foundation, the McKnight Foundation, the Oak Foundation, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
