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Are friends electric? Valuing the social costs of power lines using house prices

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  • Tang, Cheng Keat
  • Gibbons, Steve

Abstract

Overhead electrical power lines and pylons have long raised concerns regarding the effects of electromagnetic fields on health, noise pollution and the visual impact on rural landscapes. These issues are once again salient because of the need for new lines to connect sources of renewable energy to the grid. In this study we provide new evidence on the cost implied by these externalities, as revealed in house prices. We use a spatial difference-in-difference approach that compares price changes in neighbourhoods that are close to overhead power lines, before and after they are constructed, with price changes in comparable neighbourhoods further away. Our findings suggest that the construction of new overhead pylons reduces prices by 3.6% for properties up to 1200 meters away, suggesting the impacts extend further than previously estimated.

Suggested Citation

  • Tang, Cheng Keat & Gibbons, Steve, 2023. "Are friends electric? Valuing the social costs of power lines using house prices," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 121288, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    • Handle: RePEc:ehl:lserod:121288
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    File URL: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/121288/
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Charles J. Delaney & Douglas Timmons, 1992. "High Voltage Power Lines: Do They Affect Residential Property Value?," Journal of Real Estate Research, American Real Estate Society, vol. 7(3), pages 315-330.
    2. Stanley W. Hamilton & Gregory M. Schwann, 1995. "Do High Voltage Electric Transmission Lines Affect Property Value?," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 71(4), pages 436-444.
    3. Francois Des Rosiers, 2002. "Power Lines, Visual Encumbrance and House Values: A Microspatial Approach to Impact Measurement," Journal of Real Estate Research, American Real Estate Society, vol. 23(3), pages 275-302.
    4. Lucas W. Davis, 2004. "The Effect of Health Risk on Housing Values: Evidence from a Cancer Cluster," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(5), pages 1693-1704, December.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    externalities; overhead power lines; pylons; house prices; revealed preferences;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • R32 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location - - - Other Spatial Production and Pricing Analysis
    • Q48 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Government Policy
    • Q51 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Valuation of Environmental Effects

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