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The economics of personal carbon trading

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  • MATTHEW LOCKWOOD

Abstract

Proponents of personal carbon trading (PCT) make strong claims for the policy on the basis of environmental effectiveness, efficiency and equity, in comparison with alternative policies such as 'upstream' trading schemes. However, this review of the relevant theory and evidence suggests that these claims are not as strong as they may first appear. Effectiveness is qualified by the strong likelihood of a safety valve on grounds of political risk. The case for efficiency is challenged by the fact that the administrative costs of PCT will inevitably be higher than those of an upstream scheme. The additional effects of PCT would have to be significant in order to offset these costs sufficiently to make it the more efficient option. The case for equity is stronger. However, a PCT scheme in the UK would still create groups of net losers on low incomes who could not be compensated easily, and this would have some impact on its political acceptability.

Suggested Citation

  • Matthew Lockwood, 2010. "The economics of personal carbon trading," Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 10(4), pages 447-461, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:tcpoxx:v:10:y:2010:i:4:p:447-461
    DOI: 10.3763/cpol.2009.0041
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    1. Fan, Jin & Li, Jun & Wu, Yanrui & Wang, Shanyong & Zhao, Dingtao, 2016. "The effects of allowance price on energy demand under a personal carbon trading scheme," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 170(C), pages 242-249.
    2. Anna-Katharina Kothe & Alexander Kuptel & Roman Seidl, 2021. "Simulating Personal Carbon Trading (PCT) with an Agent-Based Model (ABM): Investigating Adaptive Reduction Rates and Path Dependence," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-15, November.
    3. Andersson, David & Löfgren, Åsa & Widerberg, Anna, 2011. "Attitudes to Personal Carbon Allowances," Working Papers in Economics 505, University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics.
    4. Burgess, Martin, 2016. "Personal carbon allowances: A revised model to alleviate distributional issues," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 316-327.
    5. Fan, Jin & Wang, Shanyong & Wu, Yanrui & Li, Jun & Zhao, Dingtao, 2015. "Buffer effect and price effect of a personal carbon trading scheme," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 601-610.
    6. Fabio Bothner, 2021. "Personal Carbon Trading—Lost in the Policy Primeval Soup?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-16, April.
    7. Wadud, Zia & Chintakayala, Phani Kumar, 2019. "Personal Carbon Trading: Trade-off and Complementarity Between In-home and Transport Related Emissions Reduction," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 156(C), pages 397-408.
    8. Martin Burgess & Mark Whitehead, 2020. "Just Transitions , Poverty and Energy Consumption: Personal Carbon Accounts and Households in Poverty," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-24, November.
    9. Edwin Woerdman & Jan Willem Bolderdijk, 2017. "Emissions trading for households? A behavioral law and economics perspective," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 44(3), pages 553-578, December.
    10. Chen, Feiyu & Chen, Qirui & Hou, Jing & Li, Shanshan, 2023. "Effects of China's carbon generalized system of preferences on low-carbon action: A synthetic control analysis based on text mining," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    11. Yong Liu, 2019. "Residents’ Willingness and Influencing Factors on Action Personal Carbon Trading: A Case Study of Metropolitan Areas in Tianjin, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(2), pages 1-13, January.

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