Progress along the path: evolving issues in the measurement of genuine saving |
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Authors: | Giles Atkinson Kirk Hamilton |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Geography and Environment and Centre for Environmental Policy and Governance (CEPG), London School of Economics and Political Science, Houghton Street, London, WC2A 2AE, UK;(2) Environment Department, The World Bank, 1818 H-Street, N.W. Washington, DC 20433, USA |
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Abstract: | More than 10 years since a practical linkage between sustainable development and a measure of national wealth—expanded to
include natural and environmental resources—was first posited, the empirical estimation of adjusted net savings, dubbed ‘genuine’
saving, has evolved considerably. In this paper we take stock of both progress achieved and the challenges that remain. We
begin by recalling the key points made in Pearce and Atkinson (1993, Ecol Econ 8, 103), which presented the first cross-country estimates of savings rates adjusted to reflect depletion and degradation of
the environment. We then briefly summarise the evolution of the theoretical argument linking savings and sustainability. However,
the main focus of this paper is an aspect that concerned David Pearce greatly, namely the evolution of the measurement of
genuine savings. We identify and consider the empirical evidence with regard to two particular measurement issues: the valuation
of exhaustible resources and environmental degradation. Common to the both issues are concerns about measuring changes in
national wealth in real world economies.
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Keywords: | Genuine saving Sustainability Subsoil assets User cost Environmental degradation |
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