The opportunity to write both a Capstone and a Thesis has provided me a unique opportunity to supplement what I’ve learned and what I hope to achieve in each discipline with the other. In my ES Capstone, I explore the decision-making processes of stakeholders in a local, risky, and hot topic area: crude oil transport by rail.
In my EC Thesis I address the same issue, but from a different angle. I use Robert Costanza's method of ecosystem valuation to value the ecosystem services in New York State via the benefit transfer method. I then predict the proportion of these services at risk if there were to be a train derailment, thereby placing monetary value on that environmental risk. I end by analyzing the current political status of the issue and making recommendations for future national, statewide, and local policies.
