IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/enepol/v55y2013icp3-15.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Do overarching mitigation objectives dominate transport-specific targets in the EU?

Author

Listed:
  • Ghersi, Frédéric
  • McDonnell, Simon
  • Sassi, Olivier

Abstract

This research investigates if the stringent 2020 and 2050 overarching CO2 mitigation objectives set out by the European Union dominate its 2010 to 2020 targets specific to the transportation arena, specifically its biofuel penetration objectives and gram CO2per kilometre emission caps. Using a dynamic recursive general equilibrium model, IMACLIM-R, we demonstrate that these overarching targets do not dominate the interim transportation targets when the carbon policy triggering compliance with the mitigation objectives boils down to the theoretical least-cost option of uniform carbon pricing. Ground transportation is confirmed as quite insensitive to high carbon prices, even when such prices are applied over a long term. It is tempting to conclude that pursuing the mitigation objectives specific to transportation will impose unnecessary costs. However, because of the second best conditions prevailing in actual economies, and of the risk of lock-in in carbon intensive trajectories, we conclude with the urgent need for some ambitious transport-specific policy design research agenda.

Suggested Citation

  • Ghersi, Frédéric & McDonnell, Simon & Sassi, Olivier, 2013. "Do overarching mitigation objectives dominate transport-specific targets in the EU?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 3-15.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:55:y:2013:i:c:p:3-15
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2012.11.048
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301421512010312
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.enpol.2012.11.048?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Espey, Molly, 1998. "Gasoline demand revisited: an international meta-analysis of elasticities," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(3), pages 273-295, June.
    2. repec:bla:scandj:v:83:y:1981:i:2:p:165-79 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Vogt-Schilb, Adrien & Meunier, Guy & Hallegatte, Stephane, 2012. "How inertia and limited potentials affect the timing of sectoral abatements in optimal climate policy," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6154, The World Bank.
    4. Renaud Crassous, Jean-Charles Hourcade, Olivier Sassi, 2006. "Endogenous Structural Change and Climate Targets Modeling Experiments with Imaclim-R," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Special I), pages 259-276.
    5. Robert J. Barro & Xavier Sala-i-Martin, 1991. "Convergence across States and Regions," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 22(1), pages 107-182.
    6. Waisman, Henri & Rozenberg, Julie & Sassi, Olivier & Hourcade, Jean-Charles, 2012. "Peak Oil profiles through the lens of a general equilibrium assessment," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 744-753.
    7. Renaud Crassous & Jean Charles Hourcade & Olivier Sassi, 2006. "Endogenous structural change and climate targets," Post-Print halshs-00009335, HAL.
    8. Francois Gusdorf & Stéphane Hallegatte & Alain Lahellec, 2007. "Time and space matter: how urban transitions create inequality," CIRED Working Papers hal-00522404, HAL.
    9. R. Crassous & Jean Charles Hourcade & O. Sassi, 2006. "Endogenous structural change and climate targets modeling experiments with imaclim-R," Post-Print hal-00719272, HAL.
    10. Hourcade, Jean-Charles, 1993. "Modelling long-run scenarios : Methodology lessons from a prospective study on a low CO2 intensive country," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 21(3), pages 309-326, March.
    11. Berndt, Ernst R & Wood, David O, 1975. "Technology, Prices, and the Derived Demand for Energy," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 57(3), pages 259-268, August.
    12. Céline Guivarch & Stéphane Hallegatte, 2011. "Existing infrastructure and the 2°C target," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 109(3), pages 801-805, December.
    13. Schafer, Andreas & Victor, David G., 2000. "The future mobility of the world population," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 34(3), pages 171-205, April.
    14. Renaud Crassous & Jean Charles Hourcade & Olivier Sassi, 2006. "Endogenous Structural Change and Climate Targets : Modeling experiments with Imaclim-R," Working Papers hal-00866411, HAL.
    15. Quah, Danny T., 1996. "Empirics for economic growth and convergence," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 40(6), pages 1353-1375, June.
    16. Joyce Dargay & Dermot Gately & Martin Sommer, 2007. "Vehicle Ownership and Income Growth, Worldwide: 1960-2030," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 4), pages 143-170.
    17. Barro, Robert J & Sala-i-Martin, Xavier, 1992. "Convergence," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 100(2), pages 223-251, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Fabio Zagonari, 2018. "Coherence, Causality, and Effectiveness of the EU Environmental Policy System: Results of Complementary Statistical and Econometric Analyses," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 70(1), pages 1-29, May.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Guivarch, Céline & Monjon, Stéphanie, 2017. "Identifying the main uncertainty drivers of energy security in a low-carbon world: The case of Europe," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 530-541.
    2. Bibas, Ruben & Méjean, Aurélie & Hamdi-Cherif, Meriem, 2015. "Energy efficiency policies and the timing of action: An assessment of climate mitigation costs," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 90(PA), pages 137-152.
    3. Ruben Bibas & Aurélie Méjean, 2012. "Negative emissions and ambitious climate policies in a second best world: A general equilibrium assessment of technology options in the electricity sector," EcoMod2012 4569, EcoMod.
    4. Gusdorf, Francois & Hallegatte, Stephane, 2007. "Behaviors and housing inertia are key factors in determining the consequences of a shock in transportation costs," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(6), pages 3483-3495, June.
    5. Schafer, Andreas, 2012. "Introducing behavioral change in transportation into energy/economy/environment models," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6234, The World Bank.
    6. Gregory Casey, 2024. "Energy Efficiency and Directed Technical Change: Implications for Climate Change Mitigation," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 91(1), pages 192-228.
    7. William Wills & Emilio Lebre La Rovere & Carolina Grottera & Giovanna Ferrazzo Naspolini & Gaëlle Le Treut & F. Ghersi & Julien Lefèvre & Carolina Burle Schmidt Dubeux, 2022. "Economic and social effectiveness of carbon pricing schemes to meet Brazilian NDC targets," Post-Print hal-03500923, HAL.
    8. Gunnar Luderer & Valentina Bosetti & Michael Jakob & Henri Waisman & Jan Steckel & Ottmar Edenhofer, 2009. "Towards a Better Understanding of Disparities in Scenarios of Decarbonization: Sectorally Explicit Results from the RECIPE Project," Working Papers 2009.117, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    9. Dorothée Charlier & Anna Risch & Claire Salmon, 2016. "Reducing the Energy Burden of the Poor and Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Can We Kill Two Birds with One Stone?," Policy Papers 2016.01, FAERE - French Association of Environmental and Resource Economists.
    10. Kai LESSMANN & Robert MARSCHINSKI & Ottmar EDENHOFER, 2008. "The Effects of Trade Sanctions in International Environmental Agreements," EcoMod2008 23800079, EcoMod.
    11. Gissela Landa Rivera & Paul Malliet & Aurélien Saussay & Frédéric Reynès, 2018. "The State of Applied Environmental Macroeconomics," Revue de l'OFCE, Presses de Sciences-Po, vol. 0(3), pages 133-149.
    12. Céline Guivarch & Renaud Crassous & Olivier Sassi & Stéphane Hallegatte, 2009. "The costs of climate policies in a second best world with labour market," CIRED Working Papers hal-00866429, HAL.
    13. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/3qbhmo3oe19bo8u5dc21qfic27 is not listed on IDEAS
    14. F. Souty & T. Brunelle & P. Dumas & B. Dorin, & P. Ciais & R. Crassous, 2012. "The Nexus Land-Use Model, an Approach Articulating Biophysical Potentials and Economic Dynamics to Model Competition for Land-Uses," Working Papers 2012.16, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    15. Charlier, Dorothée & Risch, Anna & Salmon, Claire, 2018. "Energy Burden Alleviation and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction: Can We Reach Two Objectives With One Policy?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 143(C), pages 294-313.
    16. Lüken, Michael & Edenhofer, Ottmar & Knopf, Brigitte & Leimbach, Marian & Luderer, Gunnar & Bauer, Nico, 2011. "The role of technological availability for the distributive impacts of climate change mitigation policy," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(10), pages 6030-6039, October.
    17. Céline Guivarch & Renaud Crassous & Olivier Sassi & Stéphane Hallegatte, 2011. "The costs of climate policies in a second-best world with labour market imperfections," Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 11(1), pages 768-788, January.
    18. Gusdorf, Francois & Hallegatte, Stephane, 2007. "Compact or spread-out cities: Urban planning, taxation, and the vulnerability to transportation shocks," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(10), pages 4826-4838, October.
    19. Mathy, Sandrine & Fink, Meike & Bibas, Ruben, 2015. "Rethinking the role of scenarios: Participatory scripting of low-carbon scenarios for France," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 176-190.
    20. Monjon, Stéphanie & Quirion, Philippe, 2011. "Addressing leakage in the EU ETS: Border adjustment or output-based allocation?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(11), pages 1957-1971, September.
    21. Kuik, Onno & Brander, Luke & Tol, Richard S.J., 2009. "Marginal abatement costs of greenhouse gas emissions: A meta-analysis," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(4), pages 1395-1403, April.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:55:y:2013:i:c:p:3-15. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/enpol .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.