Trade and the Environment: Theory and Evidence

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http://stuartlhart.com/sites/stuartlhart.com/files/50414.pdf

Innovation From the Inside Out

†China’s ongoing urban economic growth has sharply increased the population’s per capita income, lowered the count of people living below the poverty line, and caused major environmental problems. We survey the growing literature investigating the causes and consequences of China’s urban pollution challenges. We begin by studying how urban population and industrial growth impacts local pollution levels and greenhouse gas production. As the urban population grows richer, its demand for private transportation and electricity sharply increases. Such privately beneficial activity exacerbates urban pollution externalities. Facing these severe environmental challenges, China’s urbanites increasingly demand quality of life progress. We survey the emerging literature investigating the demand for environmental progress in China. Progress in mitigating externalities hinges on whether the powerful central and local governments choose to address these issues. We analyze the political economy of whether government officials have strong incentives to tackle lingering urban externalities. We conclude by discussing future research opportunities at the intersection of environmental and urban economics. (JEL O18, P25, P28, Q53, R23, R41, R58)

Understanding China's Urban Pollution Dynamics

Using input–output analysis, we examine whether India can be regarded as a pollution haven. We calculate the extra CO2, SO2 and NO
 x
 emissions induced by 1 billion rupees of additional exports. This is compared with the reduction of Indian pollution caused by an import increase of equal size. In contrast to what the pollution haven hypothesis states for developing countries, we find that India considerably gains from extra trade. Comparing 1996/1997 with 1991/1992, the gains have only increased, indicating that India has moved␣further away from being a pollution haven. The outcome is robust to changes in the underlying assumptions.

An empirical examination of the pollution haven hypothesis for India : Towards a green leontief paradox?

As the developed world begins efforts to limit its emissions of greenhouse gases, economic growth in developing countries is causing increased emissions from the developing world. Reducing ...

International Technology Transfer, Climate Change, and the Clean Development Mechanism

We track US imports of advanced technology wind and solar power-generation equipment from a panel of countries during 1989-2010, and examine the determining factors including sector-specific US FDI outflow, country size, and domestic wind and solar power generation. Differentiating between the core high-tech and the balance of system equipment, we find US imports of the both categories have grown at significantly higher rate from the relatively poorer countries, particularly China and India. US FDI is found to play a significant positive role in the exports of high-tech equipment from both rich and poor countries, especially for the balance of system equipment. For the core wind and solar equipment, we find domestic renewable power generation played a significant positive role, and the effect is more pronounced for the rich countries as well as China compared to other poor countries.

Understanding Cross-National Trends in High-Tech Renewable Power Equipment Exports to the United States

https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w17217/w17217.pdf

Understanding cross-national trends in high-tech renewable power equipment exports to the United States

This book distinguishes between the different regulatory, economic, structural and social forces that have led to the changes in environmental management, both in urban and rural India. The author analyses the role of each agent of change and the challenges of enhancing long term sustainable economic development in India.

The new face of environmental management in India

As India prepares to emerge as a five trillion-dollar economy, it is critical for the growth to be sustainable. Given the high incidence of energy poverty, one of the greatest challenges for the country is to ensure universal access to clean electricity to its population by 2030. This article outlines the key policies implemented in India for the transition, including the radical legislative changes to restructure the electricity sector for greater use of renewable energy, and ambitious domestic target revisions running parallel to the international commitment to limit global warming. It highlights the progress achieved in renewable energy transition of the power sector during the last 5 years since signing of the Paris Agreement, but also notes that little attention has been devoted to the waste management from the renewable energy sector. There is urgent need for policy consistency across sectors in India to ensure the adoption of the essential principle of a circular economy in the development of “clean” renewable energy.

Aparna Sawhney

Papers

Understanding Cross-National Trends in High-Tech Renewable Power Equipment Exports to the United States

Understanding cross-national trends in high-tech renewable power equipment exports to the United States

The new face of environmental management in India

Striving towards a circular economy: climate policy and renewable energy in India

Examining the regional pattern of renewable energy CDM power projects in India