IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/enepol/v184y2024ics0301421523004652.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Fossil fuel communities support climate policy coupled with just transition assistance

Author

Listed:
  • Gazmararian, Alexander F.

Abstract

What are fossil fuel communities’ preferences over the design of just transition assistance accompanying climate policy? This study conducted survey experiments at Appalachian county fairs to answer this question, overcoming barriers that have limited previous attempts to measure preferences in these crucial regions. Comparing the responses to a new national survey, there is a divergence in preferences for policies encouraging relocation, but there is convergence behind support for policies that reduce costs to fossil fuel workers. The study also finds that an intervention to provide information about coal’s decline shifted preferences toward supporting the clean energy transition. Rather than public opinion being an immutable barrier to climate action, 66% of fossil fuel community residents would endorse climate policy if it were coupled with just transition assistance. Policy design and informational interventions could help to create climate coalitions, even in the places most affected by the clean energy transition.

Suggested Citation

  • Gazmararian, Alexander F., 2024. "Fossil fuel communities support climate policy coupled with just transition assistance," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:184:y:2024:i:c:s0301421523004652
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2023.113880
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301421523004652
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.enpol.2023.113880?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. Patrick Kline & Enrico Moretti, 2014. "People, Places, and Public Policy: Some Simple Welfare Economics of Local Economic Development Programs," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 6(1), pages 629-662, August.
    2. Blankenship, Brian & Aklin, Michaël & Urpelainen, Johannes & Nandan, Vagisha, 2022. "Jobs for a just transition: Evidence on coal job preferences from India," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 165(C).
    3. Junghyun Lim & Michaël Aklin & Morgan R. Frank, 2023. "Location is a major barrier for transferring US fossil fuel employment to green jobs," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-9, December.
    4. McCauley, Darren & Heffron, Raphael, 2018. "Just transition: Integrating climate, energy and environmental justice," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 119(C), pages 1-7.
    5. Colgan, Jeff D. & Green, Jessica F. & Hale, Thomas N., 2021. "Asset Revaluation and the Existential Politics of Climate Change," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 75(2), pages 586-610, April.
    6. Breetz, Hanna & Mildenberger, Matto & Stokes, Leah, 2018. "The political logics of clean energy transitions," Business and Politics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 20(4), pages 492-522, December.
    7. Fergus Green & Ajay Gambhir, 2020. "Transitional assistance policies for just, equitable and smooth low-carbon transitions: who, what and how?," Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 20(8), pages 902-921, September.
    8. Evans, Geoff & Phelan, Liam, 2016. "Transition to a post-carbon society: Linking environmental justice and just transition discourses," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C), pages 329-339.
    9. Thomas J. Rudolph & Jillian Evans, 2005. "Political Trust, Ideology, and Public Support for Government Spending," American Journal of Political Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 49(3), pages 660-671, July.
    10. Valerie C. Bradley & Shiro Kuriwaki & Michael Isakov & Dino Sejdinovic & Xiao-Li Meng & Seth Flaxman, 2021. "Unrepresentative big surveys significantly overestimated US vaccine uptake," Nature, Nature, vol. 600(7890), pages 695-700, December.
    11. John Coglianese, Todd D. Gerarden, and James H. Stock, 2020. "The Effects of Fuel Prices, Environmental Regulations, and Other Factors on U.S. Coal Production, 2008-2016," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 1).
    12. Oei, Pao-Yu & Brauers, Hanna & Herpich, Philipp, 2020. "Lessons from Germany’s hard coal mining phase-out: policies and transition from 1950 to 2018," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 20(8), pages 963-979.
    13. Gordon H. Hanson, 2023. "Local Labor Market Impacts of the Energy Transition: Prospects and Policies," NBER Working Papers 30871, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    14. Mayfield, Erin & Jenkins, Jesse & Larson, Eric & Greig, Chris, 2023. "Labor pathways to achieve net-zero emissions in the United States by mid-century," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).
    15. Edward L. Glaeser & Joshua D. Gottlieb, 2008. "The Economics of Place-Making Policies," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 39(1 (Spring), pages 155-253.
    16. Sanya Carley & David M. Konisky, 2020. "The justice and equity implications of the clean energy transition," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 5(8), pages 569-577, August.
    17. Pao-Yu Oei & Hanna Brauers & Philipp Herpich, 2020. "Lessons from Germany’s hard coal mining phase-out: policies and transition from 1950 to 2018," Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 20(8), pages 963-979, September.
    18. Raimi, Daniel & Greenspon, Jacob, 2022. "Matching Geographies and Job Skills in the Energy Transition," RFF Working Paper Series 22-25, Resources for the Future.
    19. Haggerty, Julia H. & Haggerty, Mark N. & Roemer, Kelli & Rose, Jackson, 2018. "Planning for the local impacts of coal facility closure: Emerging strategies in the U.S. West," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 69-80.
    20. Davis, Steven J & Lewis, Nathan S. & Shaner, Matthew & Aggarwal, Sonia & Arent, Doug & Azevedo, Inês & Benson, Sally & Bradley, Thomas & Brouwer, Jack & Chiang, Yet-Ming & Clack, Christopher T.M. & Co, 2018. "Net-Zero Emissions Energy Systems," Institute of Transportation Studies, Working Paper Series qt7qv6q35r, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Davis.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Colvin, R.M. & Przybyszewski, E., 2022. "Local residents' policy preferences in an energy contested region – The Upper Hunter, Australia," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 162(C).
    2. Kamila Svobodova & John R. Owen & Deanna Kemp & Vítězslav Moudrý & Éléonore Lèbre & Martin Stringer & Benjamin K. Sovacool, 2022. "Decarbonization, population disruption and resource inventories in the global energy transition," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-16, December.
    3. Ferguson-Cradler, Gregory, 2022. "Corporate strategy in the Anthropocene: German electricity utilities and the nuclear sudden stop," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 195(C).
    4. Jan-Philipp Sasse & Evelina Trutnevyte, 2023. "A low-carbon electricity sector in Europe risks sustaining regional inequalities in benefits and vulnerabilities," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-15, December.
    5. Junghyun Lim & Michaël Aklin & Morgan R. Frank, 2023. "Location is a major barrier for transferring US fossil fuel employment to green jobs," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-9, December.
    6. Andrés Rodríguez-Pose & Michael Storper, 2020. "Housing, urban growth and inequalities: The limits to deregulation and upzoning in reducing economic and spatial inequality," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 57(2), pages 223-248, February.
    7. McCauley, Darren & Pettigrew, Kerry, 2023. "Building a just transition in asia-pacific: Four strategies for reducing fossil fuel dependence and investing in clean energy," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 183(C).
    8. Golinucci, Nicolò & Tonini, Francesco & Rocco, Matteo Vincenzo & Colombo, Emanuela, 2023. "Towards BitCO2, an individual consumption-based carbon emission reduction mechanism," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 183(C).
    9. Nathan, Max, 2022. "Does light touch cluster policy work? Evaluating the tech city programme," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(9).
    10. Blankenship, Brian & Aklin, Michaël & Urpelainen, Johannes & Nandan, Vagisha, 2022. "Jobs for a just transition: Evidence on coal job preferences from India," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 165(C).
    11. Baskaran, Thushyanthan & Lopes da Fonseca, Mariana, 2021. "Appointed public officials and local favoritism: Evidence from the German states," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    12. Gao, Ming & Gu, Qiankun & He, Shijun, 2022. "Place-based policies, administrative hierarchy, and city growth: Evidence from China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    13. Oei, Pao-Yu & Hermann, Hauke & Herpich, Philipp & Holtemöller, Oliver & Lünenbürger, Benjamin & Schult, Christoph, 2020. "Coal phase-out in Germany – Implications and policies for affected regions," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    14. Wenhua Di & Daniel L. Millimet, 2017. "Targeted business incentives and the debt behavior of households," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 52(3), pages 1115-1142, May.
    15. Florian MAYNERIS & Loriane PY, 2013. "The Efficiency Of Enterprise Zone Programs Some Conflicting Results?," Region et Developpement, Region et Developpement, LEAD, Universite du Sud - Toulon Var, vol. 38, pages 209-224.
    16. Zhaoying Lu, 2022. "Human Capital Spillovers from Special Economic Zones: Evidence from Yangtze Delta in China," Economies, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-15, April.
    17. Böhringer, Christoph & Rosendahl, Knut Einar, 2022. "Europe beyond coal – An economic and climate impact assessment," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 113(C).
    18. Thierry Mayer & Florian Mayneris & Loriane Py, 2017. "The impact of Urban Enterprise Zones on establishment location decisions and labor market outcomes: evidence from France," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 17(4), pages 709-752.
    19. Lo, Kevin, 2021. "Authoritarian environmentalism, just transition, and the tension between environmental protection and social justice in China's forestry reform," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    20. Miren Lafourcade & Florian Mayneris, 2017. "En Finir avec les ghettos urbains ?," PSE-Ecole d'économie de Paris (Postprint) halshs-01884340, HAL.

    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:184:y:2024:i:c:s0301421523004652. 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.