Editorial Special Issues

Using Choice Experiments to Assess Environmental Impacts of Dams in Portugal

  • Received: 12 July 2015 Accepted: 27 July 2015 Published: 05 August 2015
  • Despite their well-known benefits in electricity production, dams are also responsible for some adverse environmental impacts affecting particularly the wellbeing of residents of the local communities. These environmental damages have not been included in the cost-benefit analysis of hydropower developments mainly because of the difficulty to determine their value. The prime objective of this paper is to measure the economic values of several environmental impacts due to the dams' activity in Portugal, using a discrete choice experiments approach. With the results of this research paper, we expect to contribute to a more efficient and thorough cost-benefit analysis within the complex process of deciding the optimal location of future dams to be built not only in Portugal, but elsewhere. The addition of this stage to the decision-making process allows the integration of economic, social and environmental dimensions, promoting a richer and more informed decision process.

    Citation: Botelho Anabela, Lourenço-Gomes Lina, M.C. Pinto Lígia, Sousa Patrícia, Sousa Sara, Valente Marieta. Using Choice Experiments to Assess Environmental Impacts of Dams in Portugal[J]. AIMS Energy, 2015, 2(3): 316-325. doi: 10.3934/energy.2015.3.316

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  • Despite their well-known benefits in electricity production, dams are also responsible for some adverse environmental impacts affecting particularly the wellbeing of residents of the local communities. These environmental damages have not been included in the cost-benefit analysis of hydropower developments mainly because of the difficulty to determine their value. The prime objective of this paper is to measure the economic values of several environmental impacts due to the dams' activity in Portugal, using a discrete choice experiments approach. With the results of this research paper, we expect to contribute to a more efficient and thorough cost-benefit analysis within the complex process of deciding the optimal location of future dams to be built not only in Portugal, but elsewhere. The addition of this stage to the decision-making process allows the integration of economic, social and environmental dimensions, promoting a richer and more informed decision process.


    Dear Editorial Board Members,

    It is my pleasure to share with you the year-end report for AIMS Environmental Science. The journal went through a challenging year in the fifth year (2018). We have received 57 submissions with 27 published online (Figure 1). The most downloaded and cited papers are listed in Tables 1 and 2. The top read article received more than 4332 downloads.

    Figure 1.  Manuscript statistics.
    Table 1.  The top 10 articles with most pdf download: (By December 31th 2018).
    Title Usages
    Quantifying the local-scale ecosystem services provided by urban treed streetscapes in Bolzano, Italy 4332
    Low temperature selective catalytic reduction of NOover Mn-based catalyst: A review 1417
    Remote sensing of agricultural drought monitoring: A state of art review 1307
    Feasibility study of a solar photovoltaic water pumping system for rural Ethiopia 1278
    Biophilic architecture: a review of the rationale and outcomes 1234
    Nitrate pollution of groundwater by pit latrines in developing countries 1177
    Urban agriculture in the transition to low carbon cities through urban greening 1136
    Climate change and land management impact rangeland condition and sage-grouse habitat in southeastern Oregon 1097
    A state-and-transition simulation modeling approach for estimating the historical range of variability 1080
    Effects of urban green areas on air temperature in a medium-sized Argentinian city 1033

     | Show Table
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    Table 2.  The top 10 articles with most cited: (By December 31th 2018).
    Title Number
    Traffic-related air pollution and brain development 14
    Biophilic architecture: a review of the rationale and outcomes 11
    An integrated approach to modeling changes in land use, land cover, and disturbance and their impact on ecosystem carbon dynamics: a case study in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California 9
    Nitrate pollution of groundwater by pit latrines in developing countries 9
    The mechanism of kaolin clay flocculation by a cation-independent bioflocculant produced by Chryseobacterium daeguense W6 9
    Enhancing water flux of thin-film nanocomposite (TFN) membrane by incorporation of bimodal silica nanoparticles 9
    Linking state-and-transition simulation and timber supply models for forest biomass production scenarios 8
    Climate change and land management impact rangeland condition and sage-grouse habitat in southeastern Oregon 8
    Quantifying the local-scale ecosystem services provided by urban treed streetscapes in Bolzano, Italy 8
    Combining state-and-transition simulations and species distribution models to anticipate the effects of climate change 8

     | Show Table
    DownLoad: CSV

    I would like to thank all the board members for serving on the Editorial Board and their dedication and contribution to the journal AIMS Environmental Science. The goal in 2019 is to solicit more papers and increase paper citations. We will try our best to reduce the processing time and supply with a better experience for publication. To recognize the contribution of the Editorial Board members and authors during the years, we will offer that (1) for authors invited, the article processing charge (APC) is automatically waived; (2) each editorial board member is entitled for some waivers. I am looking forward to continuing working with you to make the AIMS Environmental Science a sustainable and impactful journal. Please don't hesitate to send me e-mails if you have new ideas and suggestions to help us to achieve this goal.

    Yifeng Wang, Ph.D.

    Editor in Chief, AIMS Environmental Science

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