Values for the environment: A guide to economic appraisal. J. T. Winpenny HMSO, London, 1991, 277 pp.
| Author | Christopher Heady |
| Date | 01 December 1992 |
| Published date | 01 December 1992 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1002/pad.4230120509 |
512
Book
Reviews
is actually a thread which is to be found throughout the book. He also provides a useful
account of contract management, an issue of particular relevance as privatization advances
(although it is odd that Smith does not make the latter point). There is also a succinct,
but clear and lively, account of the roles of consultants.
This book has several surprising features which somewhat detract from its value. First,
there is really no coherent account of the context the agriculturahral development manager
faces.
For
example, managing extension services in semi-arid areas surely poses special prob-
lems arising out of the sort of development circumstances such areas face. An approach
more grounded in the conditions under which rural administration is conducted would thus
have been welcome. Second, his literature coverage concerns almost entirely the Western
management science/psychology type. Important work carried out by authors like Chambers,
Lele, Leonard, Moris and Paul, all of whom have tried to analyse rural development issues
in interesting ways with managerial factors in mind, is ignored. Instead we are flung back
to McGregor, Argyris, etc. A more interesting survey might have been written had the work
of some
of
these other authors been considered (both Leonard and Moris are excellent on
extension, for example). Third, it is odd that the political dimension is little discussed except
as an internal dimension of organizations. Managers in developing countries obviously operate
under tremendous political pressures. Smith notes this, but does not really attempt any real
analysis
of
what this means for management strategy. Some insights from political science
might have been of assistance here, if only to show how difficult some
of
the problems being
faced really are. Some thoughts about this sort of issue, even if inconclusive, would have
given
a
more rounded picture of the author’s subject matter.
MALCOLM WALLIS
School
of
Public Policy, University
of
Birmingham
VALUES FOR THE ENVIRONMENT: A GUIDE TO ECONOMIC APPRAISAL
J.
T.
WhpeMy
HMSO, London,
1991,277
pp.
This book is addressed to economists with responsibilities for appraising projects in developing
countries. Its aim is to make them aware of the kind
of
environmental effects that projects
can have and the available techniques for valuing them. It contains a number
of
brief case
studies that illustrate environmental effects and valuation techniques, and which also show
how important environmental factors can be for project appraisal.
The core
of
the book consists
of
four main chapters. Chapter
2
provides a description
of
the major environmental problems. Chapter
3
describes and discusses valuation techniques.
Chapter
4
brings the previous two chapters together by discussing the valuation
of
the main
categories of environmental effects. Chapter
5
then takes a sectoral approach, looking at
the issues and valuation techniques that would apply to projects in particular sectors of the
economy.
One point that comes over very strongly is the large number of environmental issues that
can relate to project appraisal. The book provides a valuable service in setting these out
clearly, making sensible comments on the practicality of alternative valuation techniques and
providing references
for
further reading on each issue. However, this comprehensiveness has
a cost. In order to cover the vast amount of material in one book, large parts of it are
written in note form. This means that arguments are often not fully explained and interesting
avenues are not fully explored. The interested reader must follow up the references
if
their
intellectual curiosity is to be satisfied. This is very much a reference book for the professional,
rather than a textbook for students
or
a guide for the general public.
CHRISTOPHER HEADY
School
of
Social Sciences, University
of
Bath
To continue reading
Request your trial