I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Virginia Tech. My major area of interest is environmental and resource economics, focusing on policy evaluation and nonmarket valuation on flood risk, land use, renewable energy siting, and fishery issues. I also identify my minor area of interest as applied econometrics.
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Selected Publications
Selected Publications
"Impact of Large-scale Solar on Property Values in the US: Diverse Effects and Causal Mechanisms"
Chenyang Hu, Zhenshan Chen, Pengfei Liu, Wei Zhang, Xi He, and Darrell Bosch. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 122 (24), (2025). Preprint Appendices Publication Link
Abstract As the renewable energy transition continues into less receptive communities, local opposition is expected to intensify, potentially slowing the process. Since the local impacts are neither well quantified nor widely recognized, we lack policies and common practices to mitigate the potential associated welfare loss in affected communities. Based on a nationwide dataset combining property transactions and large-scale solar photovoltaic (LSSPV) sites, we analyze the heterogeneous effects of LSSPV on property prices and the associated causal pathways. Difference-in-differences estimates show that LSSPV significantly increases agricultural or vacant land value by about 19.4% within a 2-mile radius, while simultaneously reducing residential property values within 3 miles by about 4.8%. The estimated average negative impact on home values is primarily driven by site proximity and diminishes with both distance and time. Effect estimates are more robust to alternative specifications when proximity pairs with visibility rather than invisibility, but no evidence suggests visibility significantly amplifies the proximity effect. Heterogeneous effect estimates indicate that high solar lease potential, being in heavily Democratic-leaning counties, and brownfield redevelopment largely mitigate the negative residential value impact. The analysis reveals no significant heterogeneity across a few factors, including varying site visibility, directional orientation of properties relative to the LSSPV site, and different tracking systems. Evidence indicates that the negative impact on residential values might mainly stem from negative perceptions, but channels through physical conditions cannot be entirely dismissed. Our assessment provides benchmark information for local externality mitigation plans, potentially reducing community opposition and expediting the renewable energy transition.
"Heterogeneous Flood Zone Effects on Coastal Housing Prices - Risk Signal and Mandatory Costs"
Zhenshan Chen, Charles Towe, and Xi He. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management (2025): 103153. Paper Appendices Publication Link
Abstract Using a high-quality dataset and addressing various empirical challenges, we estimate the heterogeneous impact of flood zone on single-family housing prices in coastal Connecticut. Causal forest estimates suggest that transactions without a mortgage loan, where flood insurance is voluntary, show an insignificantly positive average flood zone effect. Conversely, with mandatory and upfront insurance costs, with-loan transactions exhibit a statistically significant average discount of $12.2k. To detect the nuanced risk signals associated with the flood zone designation and mandatory costs, we conceptualize and empirically test differences in distributions of heterogeneous flood zone effects between transactions with and without mortgage. Bootstrap tests reveal that, compared with the no-loan counterpart, the with-loan heterogenous effect has a significantly lower average, is first-order stochastically dominated, has a significantly lower dispersion, and is significantly more concentrated below a reference point indicated by the insurance costs. Robust evidence suggests that most transactions feature minimal flood zone discounts, if any, suggesting neither the flood zone designation nor the mandatory flood insurance conveys a sufficiently strong message about rising flood risks. Despite heightened risk perceptions from recent hurricanes and policies, stronger flood risk signaling is needed in coastal Connecticut.
"Revealed Preferences from Voluntary Contributions"
Zhenshan Chen, and Stephen Swallow. Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists 11.4 (2024). Paper Appendices Publication Link
Abstract We propose a method for recovering the compensating variation for a public good based on donation data. People face a take-it-or-leave-it actual donation decision, and the public good is provided if a threshold contribution level is reached. Compensating variation is derived using an expected utility model that accounts for nonparticipation, free riding, and warm glow, and a double-hurdle model is used to recover estimates of structural parameters. Monte Carlo simulations suggest the approach reliably recovers willingness to pay measures with moderate bias, and this bias is reduced when donations are combined with data on the donors’ subjective probabilities that the threshold will be reached. We illustrate the methodology through an empirical application involving the protection of grassland bird habitats.
"Recreational Home Owners’ Impact on Agricultural Land Use"
Charles Towe and Zhenshan Chen. Land Economics 99.1 (2023). Paper Publication Link
Abstract When non-residents purchase agricultural properties, the land use decision can make farmland operate well below potential, still allowing for tax credits. We empirically investigate how non- resident ownership affects the agricultural land-use decisions in upstate New York. A difference-in-difference matching approach shows a causal link between purchases by non-residents and a loss of 11% of acreage to a lower-productivity use. A rough generalization shows this conversion counts for one-seventh of the decreased agricultural land in intensive uses in similar counties. Perhaps a simple opportunistic use of the unbinding tax-credit criteria, this phenomenon contradicts the policy’s objective and might impose other consequences on rural communities.
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