日本的环境责任保险

随着社会环境意识的提高和法制的健全,企业承担的环境污染责任将不断加重,实行环境责任保险是企业转移环境风险的有效方式。目前我国的环境责任保险制度尚未成形,而美国、日本、德国等工业发达国家的环境责任保险已成功实施多年,本文介绍了日本环境责任保险的现状及现有的环境责任保险产品,希望能为我国正在试点建立的环境责任保险制度提供些许借鉴。     

Use of system dynamics modelling in design of an environmental restoration banking institution

This paper describes a system dynamics model developed to inform design of a proposed environmental restoration banking system. The purpose of the proposed system is to facilitate restoration of extensive areas of mangrove forests that have been cleared or damaged in large part by expansion of the commercial shrimp farming industry. A case study is developed for mangrove restoration in Thailand; however, the model is seen as applicable to a number of countries which have experienced severe mangrove loss. The scheme is based on environmental mitigation banking principles, in which users of an environmental resource are required to purchase from a mitigation bank credits representing restorations undertaken to compensate for environmental damage, thereby achieving “no net loss” of the environmental asset. The scheme proposed in this paper differs from usual mitigation banking practise in that the objective is to restore large degraded areas over and above present rates of consumption. Model simulations show that the restoration banking system may be effective in restoring coastal mangroves and in rehabilitating the coastal shrimp farming industry that is dependent on environmental services provided by the mangrove stock.     

Cost-effective design of agri-environmental payment programs: U.S. experience in theory and practice

Key features of U.S. agri-environmental programs are reviewed and analyzed using literature review and program data. We focus, in particular, on several key questions: Has benefit-cost targeting increased the environmental benefit obtained from program budgets? Has competitive bidding reduced program costs? To what extent have these program designs resulted in additional gain (that would not have otherwise been obtained)? Previous research illustrates how benefit-cost targeting using environmental indices (such as the Environmental Benefits Index in the Conservation Reserve Program) can increase environmental cost-effectiveness. Previous research and data from two U.S. programs suggests that bidding has reduced costs, but that the full potential of bidding may not have been realized. Finally, most U.S. programs are intended to yield environmental gains that would not have otherwise been obtained, but sometimes fall short of this goal.     

Designing, testing and implementing a trial dryland salinity credit trade scheme

This article describes implementation and outcomes of a credit trading trial focussed on dryland salinity in Victoria, Australia. In lieu of extant specified property rights, participants were invited to agree to obligations to provide groundwater recharge credits in exchange for pecuniary compensation. Participants were able to meet their obligations to supply groundwater recharge credits through land management actions resulting in monitored outcomes consistent with contractual obligations to reduce recharge. Alternatively, those in deficit were provided the option to obtain sufficient credits through market exchange. Surplus transferable recharge credits were produced by those participants who exceeded their own contractual obligations through improved land management. The paper describes the process of contract design and implementation. The trial involved a design and testing phase and an on-ground implementation phase. We describe composite methodologies deployed in the design and testing of alternative policy instruments and institutional arrangements, conducted prior to implementation. These involved community consultation, an attitudinal and behavioural survey, experimental economics and the development of a transparent and credible monitoring protocol. The conclusions drawn as a result of this analysis provided an empirical basis to implement the on-ground trial phase. Results of on-ground implementation are described. Finally, the methods and results of a Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA) of the on-ground trial implementation are outlined. The BCA accounted for salinity damage reduction, forgone river flow, carbon sequestration, production benefits and costs. The result of BCA was an estimated net benefit.     

Efficiency losses from overlapping regulation of EU carbon emissions

In order to achieve their climate policy targets EU member states apply various regulatory instruments. We investigate the potential efficiency losses arising from the imposition of emission taxes on sectors that are covered by the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS). Our analysis indicates the possibility of substantial excess cost through overlapping regulation. We show that unilateral emission taxes on sectors subject to the EU ETS are environmentally ineffective and increase overall compliance cost of the EU ETS.      

Environmental Policy with Endogenous Technology from a Game Theoretic Perspective: The Case of the US Pulp and Paper Industry

The merits of different types of regulatory tools in eliminating pollution and at the same time inducing innovation have long been an interest of researchers in both environmental economics and industrial organization. Although there is a substantial theoretical literature investigating the potential for various environmental policies to attain these dual goals, this is a challenging empirical problem because every industry has its own inherent characteristics that play an important role in determining the performance of different regulatory tools. The majority of the work to date focuses on pollution abatement while leaving pollution prevention understudied. In most of the literature firms are also assumed to be symmetric. Asymmetries among firms add another degree and level of complexity to their strategic interactions, and affect the performance of different regulatory tools. This paper investigates the performance of two alternative regulatory tools, an emissions performance standard and an emissions tax, in reducing pollution and inducing pollution prevention and abatement R&D in the US pulp and paper industry. We construct a model representing the industry in an asymmetric Cournot duopoly framework, calibrate the model to disaggregated industry data, and run scenarios to replicate the behavior of the firms in an imperfectly competitive output market. Our results suggest that pollution prevention R&D can respond quite differently than abatement R&D to different policy instruments. The results indicate that R&D spillovers among firms play crucial role in technology development and strategies of the firms. Our results also suggest that strategic interactions between firms in an imperfectly competitive industry can have significant impacts of the levels of both types of R&D.      

江苏苏南地区环境库茨涅茨曲线实证研究

EKC假说是指在经济发展早期环境质量逐渐恶化,经济发展到一定水平后,环境质量会逐渐改善,即环境压力和经济增长之间呈倒U形关系。文章以苏南地区1986—2004年经济发展和环境面板数据为基础,建立了苏南地区经济发展和工业污染排放的计量模型,以此来分析苏南地区经济增长与环境污染的演替轨迹。结果表明苏南地区环境污染与经济增长之间呈现N型波动EKC特征,工业污染排放量随着人均GDP的快速提高而波浪式地不断恶化,而不同于以往的经典理论中倒U型的形状。苏南地区依然处于污染排放量的增长期,如何抓住机遇,调整产业结构,加大环保投入,转变经济增长方式,平稳地实现转折,实现环境和经济的双赢是苏南地区可持续发展和率先实现全面小康的首要问题。     

国外绿色贸易措施动向及我国的对策研究

20年来传统的环境壁垒概念已无法概括今天带"绿化"趋向的贸易措施之种种。在世界经济、政治的角逐和对未来霸权的抗衡中,绿色贸易措施与经济民族主义的结合,将成为各国限制进口、保护本国产业,特别是可持续发展的重要手段。对此我国宏观上欠缺预测与应变,微观上有关措施显得零碎、乏力。目前需要系统建立基于严格法律和经济标准的全国性绿色措施,以彻底改造我国的国内环境。     

权变视角下知识搜索平衡与企业创新绩效关系研究

基于组织双元性理论,探讨知识搜索平衡与企业创新绩效的关系,并进一步考察环境动态性和环境竞争性的调节作用。基于苏南地区158家企业问卷调查数据展开实证研究,结果表明：知识搜索联合平衡正向影响企业创新绩效,环境动态性在其中起负向调节作用;知识搜索匹配平衡正向影响企业创新绩效,环境竞争性在其中起正向调节作用。     

环境规制对中国制造业结构优化的影响

采用2005-2016年中国内地30个省市面板数据,综合运用系统GMM模型和固定效应模型,探讨正式、非正式环境规制对制造业结构优化的影响。从直接影响看,正式环境规制能促进制造业结构高级化但未促进合理化,而非正式环境规制对制造业结构合理化和高级化均产生促进作用。进一步以技术创新为中介变量的分析发现,两种环境规制均能通过技术创新的中介效应对制造业结构合理化和高级化产生正向影响,但对制造业结构高级化的影响存在区域差异性：正式环境规制对东部地区制造业结构高级化产生显著正向影响,对中部、东北地区无显著影响,对西部地区产生显著负向影响;非正式环境规制对中部、西部地区制造业结构高级化产生显著正向影响,对东部、东北地区无显著影响。最后,基于实证结果,从两种环境规制互补、环境规制与技术创新互动、区域差异化环境规制等角度,就如何实施环境规制、倒逼制造业结构优化提出若干建议。