JOURNAL OF LJRBAN ECONOMICS 9, 12% 128 (1981) Mieszkowski and Saper’s Estimate of the Effects of Airport Noise on Property Values: A Comment SANDFORD F.BORINS Faculty of Administratiw Studies, York Universi(v, Downs&w, Ontario M3J 2R6, Canada Received October 2. 1979 This comment demonstrates that Mieszkowski and Saper, in their article recently published in this journal, overestimated the social cost of noise.at Toronto airport because they misinterpreted noise contour data. A substantially lower reestimate is provided. Furthermore, their approach to the policy problem of whether to expand the existing Toronto airport or to build a second one is static. A dynamic analysis of the problem supports their skepticism about the justification for a second Toronto airport. 1. INTRODUCTION In their article published recently in this journal, Mieszkowski and Saper [2], henceforth referred to as M-S, used a hedonic regression estimate of the effect of airport noise on housing prices in Toronto to measure the social benefits of diminishing noise at Toronto’s present airport (Malton) by building a second airport at a more distant and less populated location (Pickering). The noise benefits were then compared to the increased access costs of Pickering. This comment shows that M-S overestimated the cost of noise at Malton and argues that their policy analysis is static, rather than dynamic. 2. THE SOCIAL COST OF AIRPORT NOISE M-S intended to estimate the social cost of airport noise by multiplying their regression coefficients for the noise discount at various distances from Malton by the populations at those distances. In doing this, they used government estimates of the population within given concentric NEF (Noise Exposure Forecast) contours around Malton. In the NEF system of measuring noise, higher values indicate worse noise due to greater proxim- ity to flight paths. M-S claim [2, p. 4331 the Canadian government estimated that in 1980, almost 200,000 people will reside in the noise zone 125 0094-I 190/81/01012544$02.00/0 Copyright 6 1981 by Academic RCLP. Inc. All right.5 of reproduction in my form wserwd.