Carbon Taxes and CO2 Emissions: Sweden as a Case Study
- (pp. 1-30)
(Complimentary)
Abstract
This quasi-experimental study is the first to find a significant causal effect of carbon taxes on emissions, empirically analyzing the implementation of a carbon tax and a value-added tax on transport fuel in Sweden. After implementation, carbon dioxide emissions from transport declined almost 11 percent, with the largest share due to the carbon tax alone, relative to a synthetic control unit constructed from a comparable group of OECD countries. Furthermore, the carbon tax elasticity of demand for gasoline is three times larger than the price elasticity. Policy evaluations of carbon taxes, using price elasticities to simulate emission reductions, may thus significantly underestimate their true effect.Citation
Andersson, Julius J. 2019. "Carbon Taxes and CO2 Emissions: Sweden as a Case Study." American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 11 (4): 1-30. DOI: 10.1257/pol.20170144Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- H23 Taxation and Subsidies: Externalities; Redistributive Effects; Environmental Taxes and Subsidies
- L91 Transportation: General
- Q54 Climate; Natural Disasters and Their Management; Global Warming
- Q58 Environmental Economics: Government Policy
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