This paper examines the interdependence between imperfect competition and emis-sions trading in a two-sector (clean and dirty) economy. We compare the welfare implica-tions of an absolute cap-and-trade scheme (permit trading) with a relative intensity-basedscheme (credit trading). We nd...

Emissions trading can be organized in several ways. In particular, private emissions trading can be organized as permit trading, or as credit trading. The schemes have a different impact on output with credit trading leading to a higher output level than permit trading. This paper analyzes what...

This paper presents a model of imperfect international competition. Within this framework, the optimal choice of national environmental policy instrument and international emissions trading scheme is discussed. The choice of national instrument is restricted to absolute and relative standards,...

Cap-and-trade programs have become widely accepted for the control of conventional air pollution in the United States. However, there is still no political consensus to use these programs to address greenhouse gases. Meanwhile, in the wake of the success of the U.S. SO2 and NOx trading programs,...

Rate-based emissions policies (like tradable performance standards) fix average emissions intensity, while cap-and-trade policies fix total emissions. This paper shows that unfettered trade between rate-based and cap-and-trade programs always raises combined emissions, except when product...

The choice of mechanism for allocating tradable emissions permits has important efficiency and distributional effects when tax and trade distortions are considered. We present different rules for allocating carbon allowances within sectors (lump-sum grandfathering, output-based allocation [OBA],...

Cap-and-trade programs for air emissions have become the widely accepted, preferred approach to cost-effective pollution reduction. One of the important design questions in a trading program is how to initially distribute the emissions allowances. Under the Acid Rain program created by Title IV...

We look at the effects of restructuring on three issues: (a) economic surplus and environmental quality, (b) the cost of NOx control policies and who bears the costs, and (c) the cost-effectiveness of a seasonal and an annual NOx cap in the SIP Call region. We find that without the NOx cap,...

The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) is an effort by nine Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states to develop a regional, mandatory, market-based cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the electricity sector. The initiative is expected to lead to an increase in the...

Approximately 136,000 refuse trucks were in operation in the United States in 2007. These trucks burn approximately 1.2 billion gallons of diesel fuel a year, releasing almost 27 billion pounds of greenhouse gases. In addition to contributing to global climate change, diesel-fueled refuse trucks...