Rural households, natural resources and poverty: Three essays on the economics of extraction in the Lacandona rainforest, Mexico

There is renewed international attention to the links between rural poverty and the use of natural resources. This dissertation analyses these links combining the tools of environmental and development economics. The three essays examine, theoretically and empirically, key aspects of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) extraction using an original data set collected in Mexico.; Essay I explores whether income from natural resource extraction affects poverty and inequality in Mexico and in the community that serves as case study (Frontera Corozal). Then, with information from this community, the short-run poverty effects of changes in the price of specific NTFP (the xate palm) are evaluated. Results show that increases in the price of xate fronds are associated with a decrease in the number of poor individuals.; Essay II analyses the decision of how much labor to allocate to NTFP extraction. The approach followed is to include the opportunity cost of time as an explanatory variable in an econometric model of labor allocation to xate extraction. The results show, among other things, that the opportunity cost of time is negatively related to participation in NTFP extraction. Policies that increase off-forest employment, and thus the opportunity cost of time, are likely to result in a decrease in labor allocated to xate extraction.; Essay III presents a theoretical model that analyzes allocation of labor to NTFP extraction over space, with a view towards obtaining a deeper understanding of the role of extraction in poverty alleviation. The spatial dimension is included in the analysis to highlight the challenge that extraction across space implies in terms of managing the resource. Results show that under unmanaged common property an increase in the price of the natural resource, say due to a 'green product' price premium, does not necessarily help alleviate poverty. On the other hand, in the presence of local labor constraints, price increases can raise extraction income above the opportunity cost of time and help alleviate poverty even under local open access.