Earth Observations Can Enable Cost-Effective Conservation of Eastern North Pacific Blue Whales: A Value of Information Analysis

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dc.contributor.authorBernknopf, Richard
dc.contributor.authorSteinkruger, Andrew
dc.contributor.authorKuwayama, Yusuke
dc.date.accessioned2021-05-21T16:31:19Z
dc.date.available2021-05-21T16:31:19Z
dc.date.issued2021-04-26
dc.description.abstractWe conduct an analysis to estimate the value of information (VOI) of Earth observations for prospective regulation of marine shipping to conserve Eastern North Pacific blue whales in the Exclusive Economic Zone of the United States. Outcomes are driven by differences across two data products that can be used to inform regulations to limit ship strikes. In the reference case, vessel speed limits depend on species distribution data from shipboard surveys. In the counterfactual case, speed limits depend on species distributions predicted by WhaleWatch, a federal data product incorporating information from several remote sensing technologies. The VOI is identified as the difference in costs to marine shipping operators under the reference and counterfactual cases for regulation of vessel speeds. We estimate that the annual VOI of WhaleWatch is US$21–332 million, depending on the conservation goals of the modeled regulation. Conserving more blue whales—averting more ship strikes—increases the VOI.en_US
dc.description.sponsorshipWe wish to thank Jieyi Lu, for excellent research assistance, and Elliott Hazen, whose helpful suggestions improved the manuscript. This research was supported in part through the National Aeronautics and Space Administration cooperative agreement number NNX17AD26A with Resources for the Future to estimate the VOI obtained from satellite-based remote sensing.en_US
dc.description.urihttps://www.rff.org/publications/working-papers/earth-observations-can-enable-cost-effective-conservation-of-eastern-north-pacific-blue-whales/en_US
dc.format.extent39 pagesen_US
dc.genreresearch papersen_US
dc.identifierdoi:10.13016/m29frj-sfde
dc.identifier.citationBernknopf, Richard; Steinkruger, Andrew; Kuwayama, Yusuke; Earth Observations Can Enable Cost-Effective Conservation of Eastern North Pacific Blue Whales: A Value of Information Analysis; Resources for the Future (2021); https://www.rff.org/publications/working-papers/earth-observations-can-enable-cost-effective-conservation-of-eastern-north-pacific-blue-whales/en_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11603/21592
dc.language.isoen_USen_US
dc.publisherResources for the Futureen_US
dc.relation.isAvailableAtThe University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC)
dc.relation.ispartofUMBC School of Public Policy Collection
dc.relation.ispartofUMBC Faculty Collection
dc.rightsThis item is likely protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. Unless on a Creative Commons license, for uses protected by Copyright Law, contact the copyright holder or the author.
dc.subjectvalue of information (VOI) of Earth Observationsen_US
dc.subjectregulation of marine shippingen_US
dc.subjectconservation of Eastern North Pacific blue whalesen_US
dc.titleEarth Observations Can Enable Cost-Effective Conservation of Eastern North Pacific Blue Whales: A Value of Information Analysisen_US
dc.typeTexten_US

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