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Using public procurement to implement environmental policy: an empirical analysis

Author

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  • Sofia Lundberg
  • Per-Olov Marklund
  • Elon Strömbäck
  • David Sundström

Abstract

Politicians expect green public procurement (GPP) to serve as an environmental policy instrument. However, in order for GPP to work as an effective policy instrument, it is important to take into consideration potential suppliers’ decisions to participate in the procurement process, the total number of bidders, and the screening of bidders with respect to mandatory green criteria. The aim of this paper is to empirically study GPP in this respect. The analysis presented here is based on data from Swedish cleaning service procurements that are unique in that they contain very detailed information on various environmental standards set by the contracting authorities. We find at best only a weak effect on supplier behavior, and this suggests that the use of GPP in this situation does not live up to its political expectations. Copyright The Author(s) 2015

Suggested Citation

  • Sofia Lundberg & Per-Olov Marklund & Elon Strömbäck & David Sundström, 2015. "Using public procurement to implement environmental policy: an empirical analysis," Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Springer;Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - SEEPS, vol. 17(4), pages 487-520, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:envpol:v:17:y:2015:i:4:p:487-520
    DOI: 10.1007/s10018-015-0102-9
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    1. Ari Hyytinen & Sofia Lundberg & Otto Toivanen, 2018. "Design of public procurement auctions: evidence from cleaning contracts," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 49(2), pages 398-426, June.
    2. Chunling Yu & Toru Morotomi & Haiping Yu, 2020. "What Influences Adoption of Green Award Criteria in a Public Contract? An Empirical Analysis of 2018 European Public Procurement Contract Award Notices," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-20, February.
    3. Pelša Inese, 2019. "Green Public Procurement: Case Study of Latvian Municipalities," Economics and Business, Sciendo, vol. 33(1), pages 207-221, January.
    4. Sofia Lundberg & Per-Olov Marklund & Elon Strömbäck, 2016. "Is Environmental Policy by Public Procurement Effective?," Public Finance Review, , vol. 44(4), pages 478-499, July.
    5. Ionela Corina Chersan & Valentin Florentin Dumitru & Cãtãlina Gorgan & Vasile Gorgan, 2020. "Green Public Procurement in the Academic Literature," The AMFITEATRU ECONOMIC journal, Academy of Economic Studies - Bucharest, Romania, vol. 22(53), pages 1-82, February.
    6. Jörgensen, Christian, 2021. "Stimulating green production through the public procurement of final products – the case of organic food," AgriFood-WP 2021:2, Lund University, AgriFood Economics Centre.
    7. Vigren, Andreas, 2020. "The Distance Factor in Swedish Bus Contracts How far are operators willing to go?," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 188-204.
    8. Sundström, David, 2016. "A Comparison of Techniques to Evaluate Policies in Public Procurement," Umeå Economic Studies 928, Umeå University, Department of Economics, revised 17 Jun 2016.
    9. Krieger, Bastian & Zipperer, Vera, 2022. "Does green public procurement trigger environmental innovations?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(6).
    10. Peter Džupka & Matúš Kubák & Peter Nemec, 2020. "Sustainable Public Procurement in Central European Countries. Can It Also Bring Savings?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-13, November.
    11. Lindström, Hanna & Lundberg, Sofia & Marklund, Per-Olov, 2021. "Green Public Procurement: An empirical analysis of the uptake of organic food policy," Umeå Economic Studies 997, Umeå University, Department of Economics.
    12. Sofia Lundberg & Per-Olov Marklund, 2018. "Green public procurement and multiple environmental objectives," Economia e Politica Industriale: Journal of Industrial and Business Economics, Springer;Associazione Amici di Economia e Politica Industriale, vol. 45(1), pages 37-53, March.
    13. Vigren, Andreas, 2018. "How many want to drive the bus? Analyzing the number of bids for public transport bus contracts," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 138-147.
    14. Sundström, David, 2016. "The Competition Effect in a Public Procurement Model: An error-in-variables approach," Umeå Economic Studies 920, Umeå University, Department of Economics, revised 17 Jun 2016.
    15. Olga Chiappinelli & Gyula Seres, 2021. "Optimal Discounts in Green Public Procurement," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 1983, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    16. James Adu Peprah & Samuel Brako & Noah Boakye Akosah, 2018. "The Awareness Level of Green Procurement at the District Assemblies in Western Region in Ghana," Journal of Management and Sustainability, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 8(1), pages 46-58, March.
    17. Ni Putu Wiwin Setyari & Wayan Gita Ayu Kusuma, 2021. "Economics and Environmental Development: Testing the Environmental Kuznets Curve Hypothesis," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 11(4), pages 51-58.
    18. I. Gåvertsson & L. Milios & C. Dalhammar, 2020. "Quality Labelling for Re-used ICT Equipment to Support Consumer Choice in the Circular Economy," Journal of Consumer Policy, Springer, vol. 43(2), pages 353-377, June.
    19. Plaček, Michal & Valentinov, Vladislav & del Campo, Cristina & Vaceková, Gabriela & Ochrana, František & Šumpíková, Markéta, 2021. "Stewardship and administrative capacity in green public procurement in the Czech Republic: Evidence from a large-N survey," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 33.
    20. Yanlin Ma & Yuting Liu & Andrea Appolloni & Junqi Liu, 2021. "Does green public procurement encourage firm's environmental certification practice? The mediation role of top management support," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(3), pages 1002-1017, May.
    21. Lindström, Hanna & Lundberg, Sofia & Marklund, Per-Olov, 2020. "How Green Public Procurement can drive conversion of farmland: An empirical analysis of an organic food policy," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Auctions; Compliance cost; Degree of competition; Endogenous entry; Objective effectiveness; D44; H57; Q01; Q28;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D44 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Auctions
    • H57 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Procurement
    • Q01 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - General - - - Sustainable Development
    • Q28 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Renewable Resources and Conservation - - - Government Policy

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