In this paper we argue that energy efficiency and environmental efficiency are two aspects of the same problem. To show this, we assess the analytical utility of the well-known IPACT and ImPACT models, presenting here a new developed identity named Augmented ImPACT. For Italy, our findings...

European Union addresses environmental and climatic issues through different instruments (research and innovation programs, various categories of structural funds, etc. Among them, LIFE (L'Instrument Financier pour l'Environnement) is the EU’s financial instrument supporting environmental,...

LEZs (Low Emission Zones),is a defined area in many cities where access by certain polluting vehicles is restricted or deterred with the aim of improving the air quality. In many LEZs local governments introduces road pricing schemes in order to reduce social and environmental negative...

The modernization of the solid waste management sector prompted by the Ronchi decree of 1997 has proceeded slowly and is far from being completed. Regional differentials in the effectiveness of local policies and in the efficiency of waste collection and disposal firms are still large. Southern...

Recent regulation on waste fees establishes the change from tax to tariff to cover the total management cost of the collection and selection services. It does not consider the external costs (externalities). This causes a distortion in the system of relative prices. In this paper, we focus on...

This paper supplies elements for assessing the costs and benefits of electronuclear energy in order to pursue three objectives: security of supply, cost reduction, and environmental sustainability. The study reached the following conclusions: 1) the use of nuclear energy increases the...

Italian Abstract: Il lavoro fornisce un contributo di ordine metodologico alla misura dell’adeguatezza delle infrastrutture presenti in una data area. Rispetto ad altre analisi basate su indicatori fisici o di spesa pubblica – che offrono una visione unidimensionale, talvolta fuorviante,...

Italian Abstract: Gli sviluppi tecnologici hanno consentito di sfruttare risorse di idrocarburi prima inesplorate. Il fenomeno ha finora innescato rapidi mutamenti del mercato energetico solo negli Stati Uniti, grazie all'abbondanza delle riserve ma anche all'esenzione dalle normative ambientali...

This paper evaluates the economic effects of Structural Funds in Italy. After presenting the distribution of Funds across Italian Regions over the period 1996-2007 and documenting how the Regions manage the financial resources recevied by EU, the paper assesses the impact of Structural Funds on...

This empirical paper investigates two important and controversial economic relationship: the link between underground employment and unemployment, and the connection among underground economy and local factors. The key results of this analysis are two. The first: the causality relationship...