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Environmental Regulation and Investment: Evidence from European Country-Industry Data

Author

Listed:
  • Leiter, Andrea M.

    (Department of Economics and Statistics, University of Innsbruck)

  • Parolini, Arno

    (Department of Economics and Statistics, University of Innsbruck)

  • Winner, Hannes

    (University of Salzburg)

Abstract

This paper contributes to the empirical literature on the relationship between environmental regulation and firm behavior. In particular, we ask whether and how strongly an industry's investment responds to stringency in environmental regulation. Environmental stringency is measured as (i) an industry's total current expenditure on environmental protection, and (ii) a country's revenue from environmental taxes. Focusing on European industry level data between 1995 and 2005, we estimate the di erential impact of environmental stringency on four types of investment: gross investment in tangible goods, in new buildings, in machinery, and in `productive' investment (investment in tangible goods minus investment in abatement technologies). Both environmental variables enter positively, and their quadratic terms exhibit signi cantly negative parameter estimates. This, in turn, indicates a positive but diminishing impact of environmental regulation on investment.

Suggested Citation

  • Leiter, Andrea M. & Parolini, Arno & Winner, Hannes, 2010. "Environmental Regulation and Investment: Evidence from European Country-Industry Data," Working Papers in Economics 2010-1, University of Salzburg, revised 13 Jan 2010.
    • Handle: RePEc:ris:sbgwpe:2010_001
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Investment; environmental regulation; pollution abatement costs; Europe.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D92 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Intertemporal Firm Choice, Investment, Capacity, and Financing
    • H23 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Externalities; Redistributive Effects; Environmental Taxes and Subsidies
    • Q52 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Pollution Control Adoption and Costs; Distributional Effects; Employment Effects

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