Last Updated:
February 28, 2007

GCRIO Program Overview

Library 
Our extensive collection of documents.

Privacy Policy

Archives of the
Global Climate Change Digest
A Guide to Information on Greenhouse Gases and Ozone Depletion
Published July 1988 through June 1999

FROM VOLUME 8, NUMBER 12, DECEMBER 1995

PROFESSIONAL PUBLICATIONS...
POLICY

Item #d95dec7

"Incentives for Forty-Five Countries to Join Various Forms of Carbon Reduction Agreements," H. Welsch (Inst. Energy Econ., Univ. Cologne, A. Magnus Pl., 50923 Köln, Ger.), Resour. & Energy Econ., 17(3), 213-237, Nov. 1995.

Combines current economic data and population projections to carbon production functions and damage functions for the 45 largest carbon emitting countries. Uses this information to calculate the costs and benefits for each country under several different approaches to reducing global emissions from the 1987 level by 50% (Toronto target). A major result is that a system of arbitrarily distributed flexible (tradeable) emission quotas may lead to a close approximation of an agreement with optimal quotas.

Item #d95dec8

Letter to the editor in Nature, 377(6550), 570, Oct. 19, 1995, from K.V. Rao (Ctr. for Sci. & Environ., 41 Tughlakabad Institutional Area, New Delhi 110 062, India).

Climate modelers must shift their efforts from global generalities to regional specifics. In this respect South Asia, with its unique characteristics (agro-climatic zones, food security problems, rising population, and economic growth), presents an immense challenge and opportunity for furthering international scientific cooperation. The alternative is to develop policy against the backdrop of an asymmetry of scientific information and political influence.

Item #d95dec9

"A Fiscal Reform for Increasing Employment and Mitigating CO₂ Emissions in Europe," F. Bossier (Federal Planning Off., Ministry Econ. Affairs, Ave. des Arts 47/49, B-1049 Brussels, Belg.), T. Bréchet, Energy Policy, 23(9), 789-798, Sep. 1995.

Evaluates a possible "green" fiscal reform consisting of using a CO₂/energy tax to finance reductions in the social security contributions of employers equivalent to about 1% of the European GDP. Economic simulations for six European countries indicate that modest reductions in emissions and increases in employment would result.

Item #d95dec10

"Energy Taxation as a Policy Instrument to Reduce CO₂ Emissions: A Net Benefit Analysis," R. Boyd, K. Krutilla (Sch. Public & Environ. Affairs [SPEA], Indiana Univ., Bloomington IN 47405), W.K. Viscusi, J. Environ. Econ. & Mgmt., 29(1), 1-24, July 1995.

Combines cost estimates of CO₂ reductions with monetary estimates of environmental damages of increased CO₂. Concludes that optimal CO₂ reductions range from 5% to 38%, depending on different assumptions about energy substitution elasticities and environmental damages. Energy is underpriced given its environmental costs, so reducing energy consumption and emissions soon will yield net economic benefits. Deferring policy action will impose net economic costs.