Date of Award
August 2020
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
Forestry and Environmental Conservation
Committee Member
Puskar N Khanal
Committee Member
Thomas J Straka
Committee Member
Patrick Hiesl
Abstract
South Carolina is blessed with abundant natural resources that span from the southern edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains, across the Piedmont, and into the coastal plain that borders the Atlantic Ocean. These resources are known to hold tremendous value to the state but are often understudied, leaving little documentation to support the claim of their value. The purpose of this thesis is to identify South Carolina’s coastal natural resources, estimate the economic value of these coastal resources by individual habitat components, and to estimate the effect of timber tax on property inheritance in South Carolina. By doing so, these results will provide valuable information that can be used to influence planners, policy makers, and the general public on these key topics. In-depth geospatial analysis along with current literature was used to identify and measure South Carolina’s coastal habitats and the growing challenges that they face. To estimate these coastal habitats’ value, a value-transfer method was used to analyze the literature regarding prior economic valuations of these resources conducted in South Carolina and surrounding states that share similar habitat composition. This study provides estimates for ecosystem services such as storm buffering and flood protection, carbon sequestration, outdoor recreation, shoreline stabilization, and water quality enhancement. Taxes have a significant effect on the sale of timber at final harvest, specifically capital gains tax given timber’s appreciating nature. Using a stepped-up tax basis, a landowner can delay final harvesting and pass on standing timber to the property’s heirs, avoiding the steep capital gains taxation that is innate to timber growing. The results indicate that final harvest can be delayed between four and ten years given the site index of the stand and the discount rate assumed.
Recommended Citation
Purcell, Andrew Davis, "Assessing the Value of South Carolina’s Coastal and Timber Resources" (2020). All Theses. 3408.
https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_theses/3408