American Economic Journal:
Economic Policy
ISSN 1945-7731 (Print) | ISSN 1945-774X (Online)
Economic Effects of Environmental Crises: Evidence from Flint, Michigan
American Economic Journal: Economic Policy
vol. 15,
no. 1, February 2023
(pp. 196–232)
(Complimentary)
Abstract
In April 2014 Flint, Michigan switched its drinking water supply from the Detroit water system to the Flint River as a temporary means to save $5 million. Over 18 months it was revealed that the switch exposed residents to dangerous levels of lead, culminating in an emergency declaration in October 2015. This paper examines the impact of this crisis on the Flint housing market. The value of Flint's housing stock has fallen by $520 million to $559 million despite over $400 million in remediation spending. Home prices remain depressed through August 2019, 16 months after the water was declared safe for consumption.Citation
Christensen, Peter, David A. Keiser, and Gabriel E. Lade. 2023. "Economic Effects of Environmental Crises: Evidence from Flint, Michigan." American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 15 (1): 196–232. DOI: 10.1257/pol.20190391Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- H12 Crisis Management
- I12 Health Behavior
- Q25 Renewable Resources and Conservation: Water
- Q51 Valuation of Environmental Effects
- Q53 Air Pollution; Water Pollution; Noise; Hazardous Waste; Solid Waste; Recycling
- R31 Housing Supply and Markets
There are no comments for this article.
Login to Comment