Bruce A. Larson

Understanding household demand for indoor air pollution control in developing countries.

More than 2 billion people rely on solid fuels and traditional stoves or open fires for cooking, lighting, and/or heating. Exposure to emissions caused by burning these fuels is believed to be responsible for a significant share of the global burden of disease. To achieve widespread health improvements, interventions that reduce exposures to indoor air pollution will need to be adopted and consistently used by large numbers of households in the developing world. Given that such interventions remain to be adopted by large numbers of these households, much remains to be learned about household demand for interventions designed (in part at least) to reduce indoor air pollution. A general household framework is developed that identifies in detail the determinants of household demand for indoor air pollution interventions, where demand for an intervention is expressed in terms of willingness to pay. Household demand is shown to be a combination of three terms: (1) the direct consumption effect; (2) the child health effect; and (3) the adult health effect. While micro-level data are not available to estimate directly this model, existing data and information are used to estimate just the health effects component of household demand. Based on such existing information, it might be concluded that household demand should seemingly be strong given that willingness to pay, based on existing information, is seemingly large compared to costs for common interventions like improved stoves. Given that household demand is not strong for existing interventions, this analysis shows that more clearly focused research on household demand for interventions is needed if such interventions are going to be demanded (i.e. adopted and used) by large numbers of households throughout the developing world. Four priority areas for future research are: (1) improving information on dose-response relationships between indoor air pollution and various health effects (e.g. increased mortality and morbidity risks); (2) improving information on impacts from interventions in terms of air pollution reductions and also cooking times, fuel use, and heat intensities; (3) improving information on household shadow values for improved health, with separate information for adult and child health; and (4) considering more directly household information, and its adequacy, for their ability to evaluate the relationships between fuel use and health.

Avoiding health risks from drinking water in Moscow: An empirical analysis

Casual observation suggests that many households in Moscow boil water, settle water in pans for some periods (e.g., overnight) before consuming, filter water, and buy bottled water. To date, there has been little empirical analysis of such avoidance behavior. Based on a recently completed survey of 615 households in Moscow, this paper investigates the types and amounts of avoidance measures that are used by households in Moscow to adjust drinking water quality. Survey results show that this is clearly the case: over 88 per cent of the sample boil water regularly due to concerns about water quality; 23 per cent filter water regularly; over 30 per cent settle water regularly; and about 13 per cent buy bottled water regularly. On the other hand, residents are generally content with their cold water supply and quality of delivery. Based on a microeconomic model of household avoidance behavior, logit regression results show how avoidance decisions relate to income, opinions of water quality, and location in the city. It is expected that this analysis from Moscow can also be used as a guide for future studies in other cities in Russia to evaluate opinions of quality, avoidance measures, and citizens willingness to support public infrastructure projects designed to improve water supply.

Unravelling the linkages between the millennium development goals for poverty, education, access to water and household water use in developing countries: Evidence from Madagascar

Abstract All members of the United Nations have pledged to meet eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by the year 2015. This study looks at the MDG objectives and linkages between poverty, education, access to water, and household water use based on primary data collected in Madagascar. We find strong links between these MDGs. Better educated and higher income households rely significantly more on private water supplies and use significantly more water. Econometric results show that, for poorer households who rely on public sources, improving access to public water taps (by reducing the distance to such a water source) would not alter dramatically water use patterns. Improved access does free up a significant amount of time that could contribute to poverty reduction. The willingness of households to pay for improved access is very price sensitive, probably because of the liquidity constraints of these households.

The Economics of Air Pollution Health Risks in Russia: A Case Study of Volgograd

Abstract A combined health risk assessment, cost-effectiveness analysis, and benefit-cost analysis is undertaken for direct particulate emissions from 29 stationary source polluters in the city of Volgograd, Russia. Annual particulate-related mortality risks from these stationary sources are estimated to be substantial, with an estimate in the range of 960–2,667 additional deaths per year in this city of one million. The majority of these risks are attributed to two major facilities in the northern part of the city. For several emission reduction projects, the cost-per-life saved was estimated to be quite low. The total net benefits to the city of implementing five of the six identified projects, leading to roughly a 25% reduction in mortality risk, are estimated to be at least

Eco-labels for credence attributes: the case of shade-grown coffee

40 million in present value terms.

The Impact of Environmental Regulations on Exports: Case Study Results from Cyprus, Jordan, Morocco, Syria, Tunisia, and Turkey

Using the case of shade-grown coffee, this paper examines the market impacts of ?eco-labels? for credence attributes. First, the Mattoo and Singh (1994) test is conducted for the case of shade-grown coffee to investigate the market impacts of a shade label. This analysis in Section II shows that a shade label could ?pass? the test, but the market impacts are likely to be minor. Section II also shows how to use estimates of supply, potential demand, and price elasticities of demand and supply to predict eco-label premiums in the post-label equilibrium. And second, given the importance of consumer demands for eco-label impacts, and since the theoretical foundations of demand for eco-labeled items are not well developed in the literature, Section III takes a closer look at the microeconomics of labels and consumer demand. A nested constant-elasticity-of-substitution preference structure is used to derive theoretically consistent Marshallian demands for shade and non-shade coffee. A numerical simulation shows how relative prices and consumer preferences for the credence attribute and variety are both important factors in demand creation of labeled items.

How will the reduction of tariffs and taxes on insecticide- treated bednets affect household purchases?

Abstract Concern about the effects of environmental policies on trade competitiveness continues to grow in the non-EU Mediterranean regions (e.g., North Africa, the Middle East, Turkey, Cyprus). While the impact of environmental regulations on exports is widely discussed in the region, there has been little empirical analysis of how more stringent environmental regulations might affect exports of key sectors in the future. This paper summarizes the results of six case studies that estimate the impact of potential changes in environmental regulations on exports from a key sector in each country. These case studies, which are based on a theoretically consistent yet empirically tractable modeling approach, suggest that a range of outcomes is likely and depends on a fairly small set of specific information. For some of the cases, expected regulatory changes would probably have little impact on exports, while in other cases the impacts could be substantially larger. In some countries, the range of potential outcomes is largely due to the magnitude of the policy change, the importance of various inputs in production, and the lack of information on international market conditions.

Controlling pollution in transition economies. Theories and methods

One of the steps called for in the fight against malaria is the removal of tariffs and taxes on insecticide-treated bednets (ITNs), netting materials, and insecticides, with a view to reducing the retail prices of ITNs and thus increasing utilization. In this paper we develop an approach for analysing the extent to which reform of tariff and tax policy can be expected to increase ITN purchases. We consider the following questions: (1). How much does the retail price of ITNs change if tariffs and taxes are reduced or eliminated? (2). How responsive is consumer demand to changes in the retail price of ITNs? Data on the price elasticity of demand for ITNs are very limited. Nevertheless, they suggest that ITN demand is not highly responsive to lower prices if household preferences are held constant. The reduction in retail prices associated with the removal of tariffs and taxes depends on the structure of the market in individual countries. In Nigeria, reducing the tariff on insecticides from 42% to zero and the tariff on netting materials from 40% to 5% is expected to increase ITN purchases by 9-27%, depending on the elasticity used. Country-specific information about market structure and cost conditions is needed if predictions are to be made as to how a specific policy change will affect ITN purchases.