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Testing the Porter hypothesis: the effects of environmental investments on efficiency in Swedish industry

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Listed:
  • Thomas Broberg
  • Per-Olov Marklund
  • Eva Samakovlis
  • Henrik Hammar

Abstract

The main objective of this paper is to test the Porter hypothesis by assessing static and dynamic effects of environmental policy on productivity. According to the hypothesis, stringent environmental regulations have dynamic effects on firm performance, and these effects eventually generate profits that offset the adaptation costs. We extend previous analyses by using unique data on environmental protection investments in the Swedish manufacturing industry as a proxy for environmental stringency. These data enable us to separate environmental protection investments into pollution prevention and pollution control. This distinction is crucial since the hypothesis claims that it is investments in prevention that have positive dynamic effects on firm performance. To test the hypothesis, a stochastic production frontier model is estimated where firm inefficiency is a function of investments in environmental protection. In general, we find no support for the Porter hypothesis within the time frame of our study, indicating that environmental regulations lead to efficiency losses. This result is even stronger in the harshly regulated pulp and paper industry. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013

Suggested Citation

  • Thomas Broberg & Per-Olov Marklund & Eva Samakovlis & Henrik Hammar, 2013. "Testing the Porter hypothesis: the effects of environmental investments on efficiency in Swedish industry," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 40(1), pages 43-56, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jproda:v:40:y:2013:i:1:p:43-56
    DOI: 10.1007/s11123-012-0335-6
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Chiara Franco & Giovanni Marin, 2017. "The Effect of Within-Sector, Upstream and Downstream Environmental Taxes on Innovation and Productivity," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 66(2), pages 261-291, February.
    2. Jean Pierre Huiban & Camilla Mastromarco & Antonio Musolesi & Michel Simioni, 2018. "Reconciling the Porter hypothesis with the traditional paradigm about environmental regulation: a nonparametric approach," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 50(3), pages 85-100, December.
    3. Smirnova, Olga & Strumsky, Deborah & Qualls, Ashley C., 2021. "Do federal regulations beget innovation? Legislative policy and the role of executive orders," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    4. Wen, Shiyan & Jia, Zhijie, 2022. "The energy, environment and economy impact of coal resource tax, renewable investment, and total factor productivity growth," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    5. Lundgren, Tommy & Marklund, Per-Olov & Samakovlis, Eva & Zhou, Wenchao, 2013. "Carbon Prices and Incentives for Technological Development," CERE Working Papers 2013:4, CERE - the Center for Environmental and Resource Economics.
    6. Peng, Jiaying & Xie, Rui & Ma, Chunbo & Fu, Yang, 2021. "Market-based environmental regulation and total factor productivity: Evidence from Chinese enterprises," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 394-407.
    7. Yang, Shengyi, 2023. "Carbon emission trading policy and firm's environmental investment," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    8. Ruiqian Li & Ramakrishnan Ramanathan, 2020. "Can environmental investments benefit environmental performance? The moderating roles of institutional environment and foreign direct investment," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(8), pages 3385-3398, December.
    9. Dechezleprêtre, Antoine & Kozluk, Tomasz & Kruse, Tobias & Nachtigall, Daniel & de Serres, Alain, 2019. "Do Environmental and Economic Performance Go Together? A Review of Micro-level Empirical Evidence from the Past Decade or So," International Review of Environmental and Resource Economics, now publishers, vol. 13(1-2), pages 1-118, April.
    10. Ruiqian Li & Guanghua Xu & Ramakrishnan Ramanathan, 2022. "The impact of environmental investments on green innovation: An integration of factors that increase or decrease uncertainty," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(7), pages 3388-3405, November.
    11. Siedschlag, Iulia & Meneto, Stefano, 2020. "Green innovations and export performance," Papers WP674, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).
    12. Antonio Musolesi & Jean Pierre Huiban & Camilla Mastromarco & Michel Simioni, 2015. "The impact of pollution abatement investments on technology: Porter hypothesis revisited," Working Papers 2015084, University of Ferrara, Department of Economics.
    13. Wang, Shuo & An, Henry, 2019. "Technical change and productivity growth in the Alberta logging industry," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 130-137.
    14. Teemu Makkonen & Sari Repka, 2016. "The innovation inducement impact of environmental regulations on maritime transport: a literature review," International Journal of Innovation and Sustainable Development, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 10(1), pages 69-86.
    15. Moriah Bostian & Rolf Färe & Shawna Grosskopf & Tommy Lundgren & William L. Weber, 2018. "Time substitution for environmental performance: The case of Swedish manufacturing," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 54(1), pages 129-152, February.
    16. Philipp R. Steinbrunner, 2022. "Boon or bane? On productivity and environmental regulation," Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Springer;Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - SEEPS, vol. 24(3), pages 365-396, July.
    17. Bostian, Moriah & Färe, Rolf & Grosskopf, Shawna & Lundgren, Tommy & Weber, William L., 2016. "Time substitution for environmental performance: The case of Sweden manufacturing," CERE Working Papers 2016:3, CERE - the Center for Environmental and Resource Economics.
    18. Siedschlag, Iulia & Yan, Weijie, 2020. "Green investments and firm performance," Papers WP672, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).
    19. Jean Pierre Huiban & Camilla Mastromarco & Antonio Musolesi & Michel Simioni, 2018. "The impact of pollution abatement investments on production technology: a nonparametric approach," SEEDS Working Papers 0918, SEEDS, Sustainability Environmental Economics and Dynamics Studies, revised Sep 2018.
    20. Johan Brolund & Robert Lundmark, 2017. "Effect of Environmental Regulation Stringency on the Pulp and Paper Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(12), pages 1-16, December.
    21. Jurate Jaraite & Andrius Kazukauskas & Tommy Lundgren, 2014. "The effects of climate policy on environmental expenditure and investment: evidence from Sweden," Journal of Environmental Economics and Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 3(2), pages 148-166, July.
    22. Hana Nielsen & Astrid Kander, 2020. "Trade in the Carbon-Constrained Future: Exploiting the Comparative Carbon Advantage of Swedish Trade," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-25, July.
    23. Zhou, Di & Qiu, Yuan & Wang, Mingzhe, 2021. "Does environmental regulation promote enterprise profitability? Evidence from the implementation of China's newly revised Environmental Protection Law," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    24. Lorena D’Agostino, 2015. "How MNEs respond to environmental regulation: integrating the Porter hypothesis and the pollution haven hypothesis," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 32(2), pages 245-269, August.
    25. Siedschlag, Iulia & Yan, Weijie, 2023. "Do green investments improve firm performance? Empirical evidence from Ireland," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 186(PB).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Environmental protection investments; Industry efficiency; Porter hypothesis; Stochastic production frontier; C61; D21; D24; Q50; Q58;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C61 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Mathematical Methods; Programming Models; Mathematical and Simulation Modeling - - - Optimization Techniques; Programming Models; Dynamic Analysis
    • D21 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Firm Behavior: Theory
    • D24 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Production; Cost; Capital; Capital, Total Factor, and Multifactor Productivity; Capacity
    • Q50 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - General
    • Q58 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Government Policy

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