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The Impact of the Clean Air Act on Particulate Matter in the 1970s

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  • Maureen L. Cropper
  • Nicholas Z. Muller
  • Yongjoon Park
  • Victoria Perez-Zetune

Abstract

We examine whether counties designated as out of attainment with the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) under the 1970 CAA experienced larger reductions in Total Suspended Particulates (TSP) during the 1970s than attainment counties. We answer this question using the official designation of nonattainment status which, between 1972 and 1978, was by Air Quality Control Region (AQCR). Data from balanced panels of TSP monitors in operation from 1969-78 and from 1971-78 are used to examine the impact of nonattainment status on TSP. We also examine the impact of nonattainment on TSP using the definition in the literature, which designates a county as out of attainment if any of its monitors violated the NAAQS. Using the official (AQCR) nonattainment designation, TSP, on average, fell by 10.2 μg/m3 using the 1969 panel and 9.1 μg/m3 using the 1971 panel. Using the definition of nonattainment in the literature yields smaller reductions: 6.0 μg/m3 using the 1969-78 panel and 7.7 μg/m3 using the 1971-78 panel. Using the correct definition of nonattainment in difference-in-differences (DID) models calls into question whether these results can be interpreted as causal. When counties are characterized using the official nonattainment designation, the parallel trends assumption, crucial to causal inference in the DID context, is violated.

Suggested Citation

  • Maureen L. Cropper & Nicholas Z. Muller & Yongjoon Park & Victoria Perez-Zetune, 2022. "The Impact of the Clean Air Act on Particulate Matter in the 1970s," NBER Working Papers 30312, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
  • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:30312
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Chay, Kenneth & Dobkin, Carlos & Greenstone, Michael, 2003. "The Clean Air Act of 1970 and Adult Mortality," Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Springer, vol. 27(3), pages 279-300, December.
    2. Auffhammer, Maximilian & Bento, Antonio M. & Lowe, Scott E., 2009. "Measuring the effects of the Clean Air Act Amendments on ambient PM10 concentrations: The critical importance of a spatially disaggregated analysis," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 58(1), pages 15-26, July.
    3. Adam Isen & Maya Rossin-Slater & W. Reed Walker, 2017. "Every Breath You Take—Every Dollar You’ll Make: The Long-Term Consequences of the Clean Air Act of 1970," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 125(3), pages 848-902.
    4. Kenneth Y. Chay & Michael Greenstone, 2003. "Air Quality, Infant Mortality, and the Clean Air Act of 1970," Working Papers 0406, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research.
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    Cited by:

    1. Cécile Couharde & Rémi Generoso, 2024. "Assessing the Impact of National Air Quality Standards on Agricultural Land Values: Insights from Corn and Soybean Regions," Working Papers hal-04503777, HAL.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • Q53 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Air Pollution; Water Pollution; Noise; Hazardous Waste; Solid Waste; Recycling
    • Q58 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Government Policy

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