Laserfiche WebLink
<br />million (1991 $). 19 While positive, these impacts are very small compared to the overall <br />economic activity, consisting of no more than a 0.0003 percent increase over the baseline.20 <br /> <br />In viewing the impacts from both studies, two points should be emphasized. In both studies, the <br />impacts of actions taken on behalf of the endangered fish are extremely small. The designation <br />of critical habitat is not expected to affect economic activity in the study regions at any <br />significant level. However, as the Colorado study has shown, impacts can be unevenly <br />distributed within the study regions. Different areas may be more dependent, both directly and <br />indirectly, on the affected resources. Nevertheless, even when differences in state impacts are <br />accounted for, impacts are quite small. <br /> <br />VII. Colorado Study National Efficiency Effects <br /> <br />The CGE model utilized incorporates explicit accounting of the exchanges between the region <br />and the remainder of the country (and world) through the SOE assumption. The CGE model <br />treats the Colorado River Basin region as an SOE. Through the external trade sector, the <br />implications for the national economy are accounted for in the results. Thus, the impacts are <br />effectively measures of net national efficiency effects of the resource reallocation. <br /> <br />The CGE model reports changes in levels of output by sector, earnings, employment, gross <br />regional product (GRP),21 and government revenues. These measures are reported as deviations <br />from the baseline. In this analysis, labor supply is free to grow within the region. Economic <br />links with the rest of the U.S. (and the world)take place through imports and exports of goods <br /> <br />19 All impacts are computed in constant dollars. The discount is a real rate and the basis for a 3% level is <br />that this is quite close to the long run rate of growth of the economy. <br /> <br />20 Throughout the following discussion it will be apparent that the impacts are extremely small. The <br />percent deviations from the baseline are reported to illustrate this point. Neither the data nor the models are <br />sufficiently precise to allow us to state that these percentage values are statistically different fonn zero. <br /> <br />21 It is important to note that although the results are reported for the regional economy that these <br />incorporate national impacts through imports and exports and labor mobility. <br /> <br />34 <br />