IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/inm/ormnsc/v70y2024i7p4593-4603.html

Carbon Emissions Trading and Environmental Protection: International Evidence

Author

Listed:
  • Jennie Bai

    (Georgetown University and NBER, Washington, District of Columbia 20057)

  • Hong Ru

    (Nanyang Business School, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore 639798)

Abstract

We study how the implementation of emissions trading systems (ETSs) impacts emissions reductions and the usage of renewable energy using a panel sample of the largest 100 countries worldwide. Exploiting cross-country variations in ETS implementations, we show that ETS adoption materially reduced greenhouse gas (carbon dioxide) emissions by 12.1% (18.1%). Moreover, ETSs reduced overall emissions by cutting the usage of fossil fuels such as coal by 23.70% while boosting the usage of renewable energy by 61.59%, on average. In contrast, introducing carbon taxes has a less effective impact on emissions reduction. It fails to boost the usage of renewable energy, though elevating tax rates and expanding tax coverage may help enhance the efficacy of carbon taxes.

Suggested Citation

  • Jennie Bai & Hong Ru, 2024. "Carbon Emissions Trading and Environmental Protection: International Evidence," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 70(7), pages 4593-4603, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:ormnsc:v:70:y:2024:i:7:p:4593-4603
    DOI: 10.1287/mnsc.2023.03143
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2023.03143
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1287/mnsc.2023.03143?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
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Regina Betz & Misato Sato, 2006. "Emissions trading: lessons learnt from the 1st phase of the EU ETS and prospects for the 2nd phase," Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 6(4), pages 351-359, July.
    2. Jung, Chulho & Krutilla, Kerry & Boyd, Roy, 1996. "Incentives for Advanced Pollution Abatement Technology at the Industry Level: An Evaluation of Policy Alternatives," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 30(1), pages 95-111, January.
    3. Meredith Fowlie & Stephen P. Holland & Erin T. Mansur, 2012. "What Do Emissions Markets Deliver and to Whom? Evidence from Southern California's NOx Trading Program," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 102(2), pages 965-993, April.
    4. James B. Bushnell & Howard Chong & Erin T. Mansur, 2013. "Profiting from Regulation: Evidence from the European Carbon Market," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 5(4), pages 78-106, November.
    5. Martin, Ralf & de Preux, Laure B. & Wagner, Ulrich J., 2014. "The impact of a carbon tax on manufacturing: Evidence from microdata," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 1-14.
    6. Chen Lin & Thomas Schmid & Michael S. Weisbach, 2019. "Climate Change, Operating Flexibility and Corporate Investment Decisions," NBER Working Papers 26441, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    7. Herweg, Fabian, 2020. "Overlapping efforts in the EU Emissions Trading System," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    8. Richard Schmalensee & Robert N. Stavins, 2025. "Lessons Learned from Three Decades of Experience with Cap and Trade," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Economics of Environment, Climate Change, and Wine Selected Papers of Robert N Stavins Volume 3 (2011–2023), chapter 9, pages 235-264, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    9. Koch, Nicolas & Basse Mama, Houdou, 2019. "Does the EU Emissions Trading System induce investment leakage? Evidence from German multinational firms," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 479-492.
    10. Itzhak Ben-David & Yeejin Jang & Stefanie Kleimeier & Michael Viehs, 2021. "Exporting pollution: where do multinational firms emit CO2? [Effects of air quality regulations on polluting industries]," Economic Policy, CEPR, CESifo, Sciences Po;CES;MSH, vol. 36(107), pages 377-437.
    11. repec:dau:papers:123456789/10174 is not listed on IDEAS
    12. Nathaniel O. Keohane, 2009. "Cap and Trade, Rehabilitated: Using Tradable Permits to Control U.S. Greenhouse Gases," Review of Environmental Economics and Policy, Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 3(1), pages 42-62, Winter.
    13. Bartram, Söhnke M. & Hou, Kewei & Kim, Sehoon, 2022. "Real effects of climate policy: Financial constraints and spillovers," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 143(2), pages 668-696.
    14. Julius J. Andersson, 2019. "Carbon Taxes and CO2 Emissions: Sweden as a Case Study," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 11(4), pages 1-30, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Chen, Haodong & Wang, Shuo & Zhu, Chenliang & Ren, Quanwei & Long, Zewei, 2025. "Assembly supply chain decision-making: Manufacturers' emission reduction strategies under mixed carbon policies," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    2. Li Fangyuan & Zhang Weiming & Zhang Yaojia, 2026. "Green Human Capital and Carbon Emissions of Asian Firms," Asian Economic Policy Review, Japan Center for Economic Research, vol. 21(1), pages 87-97, January.
    3. Adbi, Arzi & Agarwal, Sumit & Natarajan, Siddharth, 2025. "Global heterogeneity in ETS rollouts and subsequent decarbonization outcomes," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 151(C).
    4. Zhang, Jinlong & Qi, Fengyu & Wu, Mingyue, 2025. "Market-oriented environmental regulation and ESG rating divergence," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    5. Barroso, Raúl & Duan, Tinghua & Guo, Siyue (Sarina) & Kowalewski, Oskar, 2024. "Board gender diversity reform and corporate carbon emissions," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    6. Chang, Lulu & Fang, Senhui, 2025. "Bringing carbon emission reduction to fruition: Insights from city’s low-carbon policy intensity," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    7. Xiao, Chengzhang & Xiao, Huihai, 2026. "Development of the green financial market, carbon emission trading, and corporate environmental responsibility," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    8. Zhang, Yuanyuan & Ma, Mingze, 2025. "Decarbonization through artificial intelligence innovation: Firm-level evidence from China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 86(PD).
    9. Lu, Hengzhen & Wang, Xinran, 2025. "Stranded asset risk and corporate capital structure: Evidence from China’s low-carbon transition," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    10. Xu, Xiaoping & Chen, Xinru & Cheng, T.C.E. & Choi, Tsan-Ming & Yang, Yuanyuan, 2025. "Should blockchain be used to eliminate greenwashing for green and live-streaming platform operations under carbon trading systems?," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 324(3), pages 1017-1034.
    11. Glenk, Gunther & Maier, Rebecca & Reichelstein, Stefan, 2024. "Assessing the costs of industrial decarbonization," ZEW Discussion Papers 24-061, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    12. Zhou, Sijie & Shi, Ye & Yu, Yugang & Liu, Jie, 2025. "Design of platform-labeling standards and competition strategy for retail platforms," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    13. Liu, Zhiwei & Lin, Boqiang, 2026. "Corrigendum to ‘Optimal flexible power deployment strategies in China considering the emission trading system’ [Energy Economics, 153, (2026), 109099]," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    14. Glenk, Gunther & Gschwind, Katrin & Reichelstein, Stefan, 2026. "Decarbonizing a portfolio of operating assets: Cost estimates for vehicle fleets," ZEW Discussion Papers 26-011, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    15. Zhang, Jintao & Lei, Xinghui & Su, Taoyong & Li, Ziyao, 2025. "Credit availability of energy-intensive industries in emerging economies: Do financially established firms have better access to credit?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    16. Liu, Maotao & Fang, Xubing, 2025. "How does green investor entry affect corporate carbon performance? Evidence from China," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 244(C).
    17. Lu Shen & Shi Chen, 2026. "Does ETS reshape corporate green strategic behaviors? Evidence from innovation and merger & acquisition," Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 13(1), pages 1-16, December.
    18. Zhao, Yang & Wang, Jianzhou & Wang, Shuai & Zheng, Jingwei & Lv, Mengzheng, 2025. "Using explainable deep learning to improve decision quality: Evidence from carbon trading market," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    19. Tan, Zhijia & Wang, Ming & Zheng, Zhengfei & Yang, Hai, 2025. "Routing and adopting of green technology in road freight transportation under the carbon cap-and-trade scheme," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 203(C).
    20. Li, Donghui & Zhang, Zhanxiang & Gao, Xin, 2025. "The impact of carbon emission trading system on the implied cost of equity capital," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    21. Jia, Xiaojing & Yu, Changjiang & Mou, Shandong, 2025. "Sustainable livestock and poultry manure management considering carbon trading," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 326(C).
    22. Li, Jiangyuan & Ding, Tao & Tan, Ruipeng & Liang, Liang, 2026. "Trading characteristics of emissions trading scheme and carbon emission reduction efficiency: Evidence from China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).
    23. Wang, Tieshan & Zhang, Yuxuan & Wang, Tieyan & Yuan, Haoxin & Hu, Yibo & Zhang, Xuepeng, 2025. "Exploring the role of green finance in advancing the shift to green energy: Insights from industrial enterprises in China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 341(C).
    24. Jia, Fu & Hu, Shoufeng & Chen, Lujie, 2025. "Impact of carbon border adjustment mechanism on the stock market value of high-polluting firms in China: The role of supply chain risk management and internationalization capabilities," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 197(C).
    25. Deng, Saiying & Duan, Tinghua & Li, Frank Weikai & Pu, Xiaoling, 2025. "Major customers and carbon footprints along the supply chain," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).

    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. Stavins, Robert N., 2019. "The Future of U.S. Carbon-Pricing Policy: Normative Assessment and Positive Prognosis," Working Paper Series rwp19-017, Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government.
    2. Trinks, Arjan & Hille, Erik, 2026. "Carbon costs and industrial firm performance: Evidence from international microdata," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).
    3. Ohlendorf, Nils & Flachsland, Christian & Nemet, Gregory F. & Steckel, Jan Christoph, 2022. "Carbon price floors and low-carbon investment: A survey of German firms," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).
    4. Jonathan Colmer & Ralf Martin & Mirabelle Muûls & Ulrich J. Wagner, 2020. "Does Pricing Carbon Mitigate Climate Change? Firm-Level Evidence From the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme," CRC TR 224 Discussion Paper Series crctr224_2020_232, University of Bonn and University of Mannheim, Germany.
    5. Mao, Jie & Wang, Chunhua & Yin, Haitao, 2023. "Corporate responses to air quality regulation: Evidence from a regional environmental policy in China," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    6. Laeven, Luc & Popov, Alexander, 2023. "Carbon taxes and the geography of fossil lending," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    7. Wang, Wenjun, 2025. "Roll with the punches: Climate change regulation and short-term financing," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 206(C).
    8. Marit Klemetsen & Knut Einar Rosendahl & Anja Lund Jakobsen, 2020. "The Impacts Of The Eu Ets On Norwegian Plants’ Environmental And Economic Performance," Climate Change Economics (CCE), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 11(01), pages 1-32, February.
    9. Stavins, Robert, 2019. "The Future of United States Carbon-Pricing Policy," RFF Working Paper Series 19-11, Resources for the Future.
    10. Kasper Vrolijk & Misato Sato, 2023. "Quasi-Experimental Evidence on Carbon Pricing," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 38(2), pages 213-248.
    11. Viet Anh Dang & Ning Gao & Tiancheng Yu, 2023. "Climate Policy Risk and Corporate Financial Decisions: Evidence from the NO x Budget Trading Program," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 69(12), pages 7517-7539, December.
    12. Anderson, Heather M. & Gao, Jiti & Turnip, Guido & Vahid, Farshid & Wei, Wei, 2023. "Estimating the effect of an EU-ETS type scheme in Australia using a synthetic treatment approach," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    13. Fabio Antoniou & Manthos D. Delis & Steven Ongena & Chris Tsoumas, 2026. "Pollution Permits and Financing Costs," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 58(3), pages 637-679, April.
    14. Lester, Rebecca & Olbert, Marcel, 2025. "Firms’ real and reporting responses to taxation: A review," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(2).
    15. Li, Jiangyuan & Ding, Tao & Tan, Ruipeng & Liang, Liang, 2026. "Trading characteristics of emissions trading scheme and carbon emission reduction efficiency: Evidence from China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).
    16. Kasper Vrolijk & Misato Sato, 2023. "Quasi-Experimental Evidence on Carbon Pricing," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 38(2), pages 213-248.
    17. Ambec, Stefan & Esposito, Federico & Pacelli, Antonia, 2024. "The economics of carbon leakage mitigation policies," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    18. Misch, Florian & Wingender, Philippe, 2024. "Revisiting carbon leakage," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    19. Xu, Qi & Liu, Kui, 2024. "Hero or Devil: A comparison of different carbon tax policies for China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 306(C).
    20. Heider, Florian & Inderst, Roman, 2021. "A Corporate Finance Perspective on Environmental Policy," EconStor Preprints 253669, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:inm:ormnsc:v:70:y:2024:i:7:p:4593-4603. 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: Chris Asher (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/inforea.html .

    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.