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Brown Growth, Green Growth, and the Efficiency of Urbanization

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  • Martin F. Quaas

    (University of Kiel)

  • Sjak Smulders

    (Tilburg University)

Abstract

We analyze the efficiency of urbanization patterns in a stylized dynamic model of urban growth with three sectors of production. Pollution, as a force that discourages agglomeration, is caused by domestic production. We show that cities are too large and too few in number in uncoordinated equilibrium if economic growth implies increasing pollution (‘brown growth’). If, however, production becomes cleaner over time (‘green growth’) the equilibrium urbanization path reaches the efficient urbanization path after finite time without need of a coordinating mechanism. We also generalize these results by taking other forms of congestion and urban land markets into account.

Suggested Citation

  • Martin F. Quaas & Sjak Smulders, 2018. "Brown Growth, Green Growth, and the Efficiency of Urbanization," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 71(2), pages 529-549, October.
  • Handle: RePEc:kap:enreec:v:71:y:2018:i:2:d:10.1007_s10640-017-0172-1
    DOI: 10.1007/s10640-017-0172-1
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    5. Tong, Chao & Ding, Shuai & Wang, Bin & Yang, Shanlin, 2020. "Assessing the target-availability of China’s investments for green growth using time series prediction," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 537(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Urbanization; Green growth; Migration; Pollution; Congestion;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • 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
    • R12 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Size and Spatial Distributions of Regional Economic Activity; Interregional Trade (economic geography)

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