Economic Analysis of Market-based Environmental Policies: A Structural Estimation Approach

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K13696
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 07040:Economic policy-related
• Research Institution: Waseda University
• Principal Investigator: Toyama Yuta 早稲田大学, 政治経済学術院, 准教授(テニュアトラック) (40834015)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: 排出権取引 / 構造推定

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study takes the structural estimation approach in industrial organization to conduct an economic evaluation of market-based environmental policies. Specifically, I develop an economic evaluation framework that takes into account dynamic behavior in emissions trading schemes and transaction costs in emissions markets, and conducted a policy evaluation of the sulfur dioxide trading program in the US. The results show that an environmental tax with a constant tax rate throughout the period as an alternative policy to emissions trading can be simulated to achieve almost the same level of total production costs as the ideal situation of an "emissions trading system with no transaction costs. Relatedly, we conduct an empirical analysis of energy-enhanced productivity in the manufacturing sector.

Free Research Field

産業組織論

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究における学術的意義は、排出権取引下における企業行動の動学的な側面に着目を当てて実証分析を行った点である。先行研究では静学的モデルにおける分析が中心である一方、本研究の枠組みおいては、排出権の貯蔵や汚染削減技術への投資などの動学的な意思決定について分析を行うことができる。論文においては二酸化硫黄の排出権取引制度に着目した実証分析を行ったものの、枠組み自体は応用範囲が広い。特に、今後重要となるであろう二酸化炭素の排出権取引制度の政策評価にも本研究成果を用いることができ、社会的意義も大きいと考えられる。