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Environmental Tax on Products and Services Based on Their Carbon Footprint: A Case Study of the Pulp and Paper Sector

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  • Gemechu, Eskinder D.
  • Butnar, Isabela
  • Llop Llop, Maria
  • Castells i Piqué, Francesc

Abstract

The main aim of this work is to define an environmental tax on products and services based on their carbon footprint. We examine the relevance of conventional life cycle analysis (LCA) and environmentally extended input-output analysis (EIO) as methodological tools to identify emission intensities of products and services on which the tax is based. The short-term price effects of the tax and the policy implications of considering non-GHG are also analyzed. The results from the specific case study on pulp production show that the environmental tax rate based on the LCA approach (1,8%) is higher than both EIO approaches (0,8% for product and 1,4% for industry approach), but they are comparable. Even though LCA is more product specific and provides detailed analysis, EIO would be the more relevant approach to apply economy wide environmental tax. When the environmental tax considers non-GHG emissions instead of only CO2, sectors such as agriculture, mining of coal and extraction of peat, and food exhibit higher environmental tax and price effects. Therefore, it is worthwhile for policy makers to pay attention on the implication of considering only CO2 tax or GHG emissions tax in order for such a policy measure to be effective and meaningful. Keywords: Environmental tax; Life cycle analysis; Environmental input-output analysis.

Suggested Citation

  • Gemechu, Eskinder D. & Butnar, Isabela & Llop Llop, Maria & Castells i Piqué, Francesc, 2012. "Environmental Tax on Products and Services Based on Their Carbon Footprint: A Case Study of the Pulp and Paper Sector," Working Papers 2072/182644, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:urv:wpaper:2072/182644
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    2. Rocco, Matteo V. & Forcada Ferrer, Rafael J. & Colombo, Emanuela, 2018. "Understanding the energy metabolism of World economies through the joint use of Production- and Consumption-based energy accountings," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 211(C), pages 590-603.
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    5. Yu, Min & Cruz, Jose M. & Li, Dong Michelle, 2019. "The sustainable supply chain network competition with environmental tax policies," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 217(C), pages 218-231.
    6. Chia-Wei Hsu & Tsai-Chi Kuo & Guey-Shin Shyu & Pi-Shen Chen, 2014. "Low Carbon Supplier Selection in the Hotel Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 6(5), pages 1-27, May.
    7. Choi, Tsan-Ming, 2015. "Sustainable management of mining operations with accidents: A mean-variance optimization model," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(P1), pages 116-122.
    8. Yu, Min & Cruz, Jose M. & Li, Dong & Masoumi, Amir H., 2022. "A multiperiod competitive supply chain framework with environmental policies and investments in sustainable operations," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 300(1), pages 112-123.
    9. Tobias Pröll & Christina Sichtmann, 2025. "Steering toward net zero—a plea for a consumer-level carbon footprint tax," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 30(5), pages 1-8, June.
    10. Yu, Yugang & Zhou, Sijie & Shi, Ye, 2020. "Information sharing or not across the supply chain: The role of carbon emission reduction," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 137(C).
    11. Josef Gotvald, 2024. "The role of environmental taxes and other political instruments on the road to climate neutrality [Role environmentálních daní a dalších politických nástrojů na cestě za klimatickou neutralitou]," Český finanční a účetní časopis, Prague University of Economics and Business, vol. 2024(1), pages 47-76.
    12. He, Pinglin & Zhang, Shuhao & Wang, Lei & Ning, Jing, 2023. "Will environmental taxes help to mitigate climate change? A comparative study based on OECD countries," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 1440-1464.
    13. Zhou, Xiaoyong & Zhou, Dequn & Wang, Qunwei & Su, Bin, 2019. "How information and communication technology drives carbon emissions: A sector-level analysis for China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 380-392.

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