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Strategic Environmental Policy under Free Trade with Transboundary Pollution

Author

Listed:
  • Harvey E. Lapan
  • Shiva Sikdar

Abstract

We analyze the eff ects of trade liberalization on environmental policies in a strategic setting when there is transboundary pollution. Trade liberalization can result in a race to the bottom in environmental taxes, which makes both countries worse o ff. This is not due to the terms of trade motive, but rather the incentive, in a strategic setting, to reduce the incidence of transboundary pollution. With command and control policies (emission quotas), countries are unable to influence foreign emissions by strategic choice of domestic policy; hence, there is no race to the bottom. However, with internationally tradable quotas, unless pollution is a pure global public bad, there is a race to the bottom in environmental policy. Under free trade, internationally nontradable quotas result in the lowest pollution level and strictly welfare-dominate taxes. The ordering of internationally tradable quotas and pollution taxes depends, among other things, on the degree of international pollution spillovers.
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Suggested Citation

  • Harvey E. Lapan & Shiva Sikdar, 2011. "Strategic Environmental Policy under Free Trade with Transboundary Pollution," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(1), pages 1-18, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:rdevec:v:15:y:2011:i:1:p:1-18
    DOI: j.1467-9361.2010.00589.x
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Hwang, Sanghyun, 2022. "Is There an Environmental Race to the Bottom in an Endogenous Growth Model of Interjurisdictional Competition?," Hitotsubashi Journal of Economics, Hitotsubashi University, vol. 63(1), pages 24-50, June.
    2. E. Kwan Choi, 2011. "Genetic Contamination of Traditional Products," CESifo Working Paper Series 3624, CESifo.
    3. Ornella Tarola & Emmanuelle Taugourdeau, 2024. "Does leadership in policy setting reduce pollution and make countries better off?," Working Papers hal-04765513, HAL.
    4. Nikos Tsakiris & Panos Hatzipanayotou & Michael S. Michael, 2017. "Welfare Ranking of Environmental Policies in the Presence of Capital Mobility and Cross‐Border Pollution," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 84(1), pages 317-336, July.
    5. Thomas Eichner & Rüdiger Pethig, 2012. "Stable Climate Coalitions (Nash) and International Trade," CESifo Working Paper Series 3915, CESifo.
    6. Choi, E. Kwan, 2013. "Genetic contamination of traditional products," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 291-297.
    7. Chen, Xudong & Huang, Bihong, 2016. "Club membership and transboundary pollution: Evidence from the European Union enlargement," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 230-237.
    8. Rui Wan & Jean-François Wen, 2017. "The Environmental Conundrum of Rare Earth Elements," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 67(1), pages 157-180, May.
    9. E. Kwan Choi, 2011. "Genetic Contamination of Traditional Products," DEGIT Conference Papers c016_002, DEGIT, Dynamics, Economic Growth, and International Trade.
    10. Michael S. Michael & Panos Hatzipanayotou, 2013. "Cooperative and Non-Cooperative Equilibrium Consumption Taxes in the Presence of Cross-Border Pollution," CESifo Working Paper Series 4501, CESifo.
    11. Harvey E. Lapan & Shiva Sikdar, 2019. "Is Trade in Permits Good for the Environment?," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 72(2), pages 501-510, February.
    12. repec:aue:wpaper:1509 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Soham Baksi, 2014. "Regional versus Multilateral Trade Liberalization, Environmental Taxation, and Welfare," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 47(1), pages 232-249, February.
    14. Lai, Yu-Bong, 2024. "International emissions trading and the distribution of capital," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    15. Harvey E. Lapan & Shiva Sikdar, 2017. "Can Trade Be Good for the Environment?," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 19(2), pages 267-288, April.
    16. repec:isu:genstf:2008010108000016832 is not listed on IDEAS
    17. Thomas Eichner & Rüdiger Pethig, 2015. "Is trade liberalization conducive to the formation of climate coalitions?," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 22(6), pages 932-955, December.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D62 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Externalities
    • F18 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade and Environment
    • H23 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Externalities; Redistributive Effects; Environmental Taxes and Subsidies
    • Q56 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environment and Development; Environment and Trade; Sustainability; Environmental Accounts and Accounting; Environmental Equity; Population Growth

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