Dr. Albert (Nick) Nichols
Special Consultant
Education
PhD and Master in Public Policy, Harvard University
BA, with Distinction and Honors, in Political Science, Stanford University
Experience
Dr. Nichols is a member of NERA's Environment Group. He directs projects in environmental economics and policy -- including emission trading, benefit-cost analysis, and climate change -- energy policy, and antitrust and competition policy in high-tech industries.
Dr. Nichols's experience in emission trading and other economic incentives for environmental protection dates back to his PhD dissertation, the theoretical portion of which was published as Targeting Economic Incentives for Environmental Protection and the empirical portion of which was published as a case study in Incentives for Environmental Protection. He has directed numerous projects in the area, addressing greenhouse gases, conventional air pollutants (SO2, NOx, and VOCs), and toxic air pollutants. As Director of the Economic Analysis Division of the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), he played a leading role in the development of an innovative banking program for the final phasedown of lead in gasoline.
Dr. Nichols has directed many projects involving the use of benefit-cost and cost-effectiveness analysis to evaluate proposed regulations in the areas of environment, energy, and health and safety regulation. He has evaluated a wide range of types of policies, including ambient air quality attainment plans; proposed standards for various types of pollution sources (including mobile, stationary, and fuels); and issues of both health and natural resource damages associated with hazardous waste.
Dr. Nichols spent several years at LECG, where his work focused on antitrust issues in the software industry and included directing projects in several high-profile cases in the software industry in the US, Europe, and Asia. Dr. Nichols also held the position of Associate Professor of Public Policy at Harvard University.
In addition to the book mentioned above, he is the author of numerous articles in books and professional journals, including The American Economic Review, Antitrust Bulletin, Bell Journal of Economics, Energy Policy, George Mason Law Review, Harvard Environmental Law Review, Management Science, Public Interest, Regulation, Resources and Energy Economics, and Review of Industrial Organization.
