Marta Escapa

Economic growth and greenhouse gas emissions

Abstract Recent empirical research has examined the relationship between certain indicators of environmental degradation and income, concluding that in some cases an inverted U-shaped relationship, which has been called an environmental Kuznets curve (EKC), exists between these variables. Unfortunately, this inverted U-shaped relationship does not hold for greenhouse gas emissions. One explanation of the absence of EKC-like behavior in greenhouse gas emissions is that greenhouse gases are special pollutants that create global, not local, disutility. But the international nature of global warming is not the only reason that prevents de-linking greenhouse gas emissions from economic growth. The intergenerational nature of the negative impact of greenhouse gas emissions may have also been an important factor preventing the implementation of greenhouse gas abatement measures in the past. In this paper we explore the effect that the presence of intergenerational spillovers has on the emissions–income relationship. We use a numerically calibrated overlapping generations model of climate–economy interactions. We conclude that: (1) the intertemporal responsibility of the regulatory agency, (2) the institutional capacity to make intergenerational transfers and (3) the presence of intergenerationally lagged impact of emissions constitute important determinants of the relationship between economic growth and greenhouse gas emissions.

Fishing Technology and Optimal Distribution of Harvest Rates

This paper examines the problem of the optimal management of a joint-ownership fishing exploitation, where agents use different fishing gears. We consider a model in which the fishing activity may affect resource growth, not only through the harvest function but also through the natural growth rate of the resource. This allows us to capture the fact that some fishing gears alter the natural growth rate of the resource. We find that when the natural growth of the resource is altered by the fishing technology, the optimal stock is not independent of how harvest quotas are distribute among the agents. As a result, a fishing policy that firstly determines the optimum stock and, secondly, decides how to distribute the harvest among the different agents, will not be efficient. We also analyze the joint determination of optimal stock and harvest quotas and show that positive harvest quotas will only be optimal when countries are characterized by certain asymmetries.

Environmental Fiscal Reform and Unemployment in Spain

The theoretical literature relevant to the relationship between environmental taxation and employment creation is centred on the suggestion by Pearce (1991) that environmental taxation could lead to a “double dividend†. In this paper we review the literature on the employment double dividend for Spain and add to it with some new analysis of our own that fills some important gaps in the literature.

Green Energy, Efficiency and Climate Change: An Economic Perspective

The three core objectives of any sensible energy policy nowadays are (1) security of supply, (2) competitiveness, and (3) sustainability. Renewable energy and energy efficiency investments are crucial if we are to make energy supplies more sustainable, competitive and secure. These goals support each other. More sustainable energy sources, such as renewables, help the energy sector to be more competitive, as well as diversifying and securing its energy supply. Yet implementing policies to promote green energy and efficiency is no easy task. This chapter seeks to discuss the difficulties facing the regulation needed in the energy sector and to analyze the key concepts and the main markets failures that characterize the energy markets. It also reviews the main policies undertaken at EU level in order to deal with the relations between the energy sector and the problem of climate change.