Profiles of University of Michigan Faculty Experts in State and Local Policy Areas

Professor Gloria Helfand

Associate Professor of Environmental Economics, School of Natural Resources and Environment Years On UM Faculty: 10 Faculty website Contact Info

When asked whether her research has been affected by interactions with the policy world, Professor Helfand responds:

"Both my research and my teaching have been influenced by interactions with those involved in public policy. What is theoretically desirable in an ideal world may be politically or socially unattainable. Research is much more effective when it recognizes those real-world constraints and incorporates them into the project. Teaching too benefits from talking to students about the relationship between theory and reality."

EXPERTISE

Most of Professor Helfand's work is on different regulatory approaches to pollution control. In particular, she has examined the conditions under which market-based approaches to pollution control may be effective as well as situations where they may not be desirable.

CURRENT RESEARCH

"Testing for Efficiency of the SO₂ Allowance Market" with Professor Michael Moore, School of Natural Resources and Environment

Efficiency - whether profit opportunities are fully realized in a market - is a key criterion for evaluating a market mechanism for environmental regulation. Evidence on the efficiency of the sulfur dioxide (SO₂) allowance market is mixed. This research seeks to explain the evolution of SO₂ allowance prices. First, it proposes four novel empirical models of SO₂ market efficiency; second, it will test the alternative models using econometric methods and SO₂ price data from 1994-2003. The empirical models will explore the efficiency of allowance trading as well as the role of other factors in the prices of SO₂ allowances. The addition of several years of new data will both provide for better explanation of SO₂ prices and will also allow us to look for a transition in the SO₂ market from an "immature" to a "mature" state, that is, from inefficiency to efficiency.

OTHER RESEARCH AND PUBLIC POLICY INTERESTS

Professor Helfand is generally interested in environmental policy questions. In any research project, in the back of her mind are two questions: what are the benefits and costs of an action; and who gains and who loses from that action? She believes that these questions can be very useful for understanding the dynamics of just about any policy issue.

NON-UM AFFILIATIONS/EXPERIENCE

• Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, Member of the Board of Directors, January 2006-present
• Environmental Economics Advisory Committee of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Science Advisory Board, Member, 2001-present; Consultant, 1998-2000
• California Environmental Protection Agency, California Comparative Risk Project, Economics Subcommittee and Economic Perspectives Committee, Member, 1992-1993
• California Environmental Protection Agency, California Comparative Risk Project, Social Welfare Committee, Consultant, 1992-1993