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Who Should Bear the Cost of China’s Carbon Emissions Embodied in Goods for Exports?

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  • ZhongXiang Zhang

    (East-West Center)

Abstract

China’s capital-intensive, export-oriented, spectacular economic growth since launching its open-door policy and economic reforms in late 1978 not only has created jobs and has lifted millions of the Chinese people out of poverty, but also has given rise to unprecedented environmental pollution and CO2 emissions. While estimates of the embedded CO2 emissions in China’s trade differ, both single country studies for China and global studies show a hefty chunk of China’s CO2 emissions embedded in trade. This portion of CO2 emissions had helped to turn China into the world’s largest carbon emitter, and is further widening its gap with the second largest emitter. This raises the issue of who should be responsible for this portion of emissions and bearing the carbon cost of exports. China certainly wants importers to cover some, if not all, of those costs. While China’s stance is understandable, this paper has argued from a broad and balanced perspective that if this is pushed too far, it will not help to find solutions to this issue. On the contrary it can be to China’s disadvantage for a number of reasons. However, aligning this responsibility with China does not necessarily suggest the sole reliance on domestic actions. In that context, the paper recommends specific actions that need to be taken internationally as well as domestically in order to effectively control the embedded CO2 emissions in China’s trade.

Suggested Citation

  • ZhongXiang Zhang, 2011. "Who Should Bear the Cost of China’s Carbon Emissions Embodied in Goods for Exports?," Working Papers 2011.71, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
  • Handle: RePEc:fem:femwpa:2011.71
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. New CCEP Working Papers
      by David Stern in Stochastic Trend on 2011-09-28 14:49:00

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    Cited by:

    1. Zhang, Zhong Xiang, 2012. "Competitiveness and Leakage Concerns and Border Carbon Adjustments," International Review of Environmental and Resource Economics, now publishers, vol. 6(3), pages 225-287, December.
    2. Richard Green & Yacob Mulugetta & Zhong Xiang Zhang, 2014. "Sustainable energy policy," Chapters, in: Giles Atkinson & Simon Dietz & Eric Neumayer & Matthew Agarwala (ed.), Handbook of Sustainable Development, chapter 33, pages 532-550, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    3. ZhongXiang Zhang, 2013. "Energy and Environmental Issues and Policy in China," Working Papers 2013.92, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    4. Arto, I. & Rueda-Cantuche, J.M. & Andreoni, V. & Mongelli, I. & Genty, A., 2014. "The game of trading jobs for emissions," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 517-525.
      • Arto, I. & Rueda-Cantuche, José M. & Dietzenbacher, E. & Andreoni, V. & Mongelli, I. & Genty, A. & Villanueva, A., 2012. "The Game of Trading Jobs for Emissions," Conference papers 332231, Purdue University, Center for Global Trade Analysis, Global Trade Analysis Project.
    5. ZhongXiang Zhang, 2017. "Are China's climate commitments in a post‐Paris agreement sufficiently ambitious?," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 8(2), March.
    6. Zhang, ZhongXiang, 2018. "Trade and Climate Change: Focus on Carbon Leakage, Border Carbon Adjustments and WTO Consistency," Foundations and Trends(R) in Microeconomics, now publishers, vol. 12(1), pages 1-108, August.
    7. Zhang, Zengkai & Zhang, ZhongXiang & Zhu, Kunfu, 2020. "Allocating carbon responsibility: The role of spatial production fragmentation," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    8. Bao, Qin & Tang, Ling & Zhang, ZhongXiang & Wang, Shouyang, 2013. "Impacts of border carbon adjustments on China's sectoral emissions: Simulations with a dynamic computable general equilibrium model," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 24(C), pages 77-94.
    9. Yang, Yuan & Cai, Wenjia & Wang, Can, 2014. "Industrial CO2 intensity, indigenous innovation and R&D spillovers in China’s provinces," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 117-127.
    10. Xiang Liu & Jia Liu, 2016. "Measurement of Low Carbon Economy Efficiency with a Three-Stage Data Envelopment Analysis: A Comparison of the Largest Twenty CO 2 Emitting Countries," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-14, November.
    11. Bao, Qin & Tang, Ling & Zhang, ZhingXiang & Qiao, Han & Wang, Shouyang, 2012. "Impact of Border Carbon Adjustments on China’s Sectoral Emissions: Simulations with a Dynamic Computable General Equilibirum Model," Working Papers 249391, Australian National University, Centre for Climate Economics & Policy.
    12. Xu Tang & Benjamin C. McLellan & Simon Snowden & Baosheng Zhang & Mikael Höök, 2015. "Dilemmas for China: Energy, Economy and Environment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(5), pages 1-13, May.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Emissions Embodied In Trade; Consumption-Based Accounting; Production-Based Accounting; Processing Trade; Carbon Tariffs; Energy Policy;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F18 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade and Environment
    • P28 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist and Transition Economies - - - Natural Resources; Environment
    • Q42 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Alternative Energy Sources
    • Q43 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Energy and the Macroeconomy
    • Q48 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Government Policy
    • Q53 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Air Pollution; Water Pollution; Noise; Hazardous Waste; Solid Waste; Recycling
    • Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters and their Management; Global Warming
    • 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
    • Q58 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Government Policy

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