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From low emission zone to academic track: Environmental policy effects on educational achievement in elementary school

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  • Brehm, Johannes
  • Pestel, Nico
  • Schaffner, Sandra
  • Schmitz, Laura

Abstract

Low Emission Zones (LEZs) reduce local air pollution by restricting emission-intensive vehicles from accessing designated areas and have been shown to improve population health. Little is known about the effects of driving restriction policies on other areas of life. This paper studies the effects of LEZs on the educational achievements of elementary school students in Germany, measured by secondary-school transition rates. Using school-level data from North-Rhine Westphalia (NRW), Germany's largest federal state, we exploit the staggered adoption of LEZs since 2008 in a difference-indifferences framework. Our results imply that LEZs increased rates of transition to the academic track by 0.9-1.6 percentage points in NRW. Our findings on the district level for all of Germany confirm the external validity of these findings. Using geo-referenced data from the German Socio-Economic Panel, we provide suggestive evidence that a reduction in the prevalence of respiratory infections is a vital channel through which LEZs affect schooling outcomes.

Suggested Citation

  • Brehm, Johannes & Pestel, Nico & Schaffner, Sandra & Schmitz, Laura, 2022. "From low emission zone to academic track: Environmental policy effects on educational achievement in elementary school," Ruhr Economic Papers 980, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:rwirep:980
    DOI: 10.4419/96973145
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    1. Avila-Uribe, Antonio & Roth, Sefi & Shields, Brian, 2024. "Putting Low Emission Zone (LEZ) to the Test: The Effect of London's LEZ on Education," IZA Discussion Papers 17020, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Low emission zone; education; air quality; Germany;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • Q52 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Pollution Control Adoption and Costs; Distributional Effects; Employment Effects
    • Q53 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Air Pollution; Water Pollution; Noise; Hazardous Waste; Solid Waste; Recycling
    • Q58 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Government Policy

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