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Policy choice for end-of-pipe abatement technology adoption under technological uncertainty

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  • Zeng, Bingxin
  • Zhu, Lei
  • Yao, Xing

Abstract

Regulators have increasingly become concerned about end-of-pipe abatement technologies because they not only play a crucial role in air pollution control but also ensure the achievement of the deep carbon emissions reduction target. This paper investigates the effect of emission taxes and standards on the adoption of end-of-pipe abatement technology when the arrival time and degree of improvement of the new emissions abatement technology are uncertain. We find that the ranking of emission taxes and standards in terms of motivating early adoption depends on the policy stringency. More specifically, for high levels of environmental stringency, standards induce an earlier technology adoption than taxes, while the opposite conclusion holds for low levels of environmental stringency. The sensitivity analysis shows that these findings are robust to various relevant crucial parameters. Finally, the implications for the choice of environmental policy have been provided.

Suggested Citation

  • Zeng, Bingxin & Zhu, Lei & Yao, Xing, 2020. "Policy choice for end-of-pipe abatement technology adoption under technological uncertainty," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 121-130.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecmode:v:87:y:2020:i:c:p:121-130
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econmod.2019.07.012
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    4. Fan, Jing-Li & Shen, Shuo & Wei, Shi-Jie & Xu, Mao & Zhang, Xian, 2020. "Near-term CO2 storage potential for coal-fired power plants in China: A county-level source-sink matching assessment," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 279(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Emission taxes; Emission standards; End-of-pipe abatement technology; Technological uncertainty;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q58 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Government Policy
    • Q55 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Technological Innovation
    • L51 - Industrial Organization - - Regulation and Industrial Policy - - - Economics of Regulation
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes

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