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Income and expenditure elasticity of household carbon footprints. Some methodological considerations

Author

Listed:
  • Petra Zsuzsa Lévay;
  • Tim Goedemé
  • Gerlinde Verbist;
Abstract
The income and expenditure elasticity of household carbon footprints (HCF) is a recurrent summary measure of the social stratification of greenhouse gas emissions. In top-downestimates, when microdata are lacking, it is also used to estimate the inequality in emissions between households across the income or expenditure distribution. In this article, we point to several key methodological considerations when computing the elasticity of HCFs, and demonstrate their practical and empirical implications by making use of Belgian survey data. We find that the choice between income and expenditure as the main variable is most consequential for the estimated elasticity of HCFs, while the income elasticity of household emissions is more sensitive to a broader range of methodological choices. This has implications for top-down estimates of emissions along the income distribution, and related indicators of the inequality in household emissions by income groups.

Suggested Citation

  • Petra Zsuzsa Lévay; & Tim Goedemé & Gerlinde Verbist;, 2022. "Income and expenditure elasticity of household carbon footprints. Some methodological considerations," Working Papers 2202, Herman Deleeck Centre for Social Policy, University of Antwerp.
    • Handle: RePEc:hdl:wpaper:2202
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    14. Lucas Chancel, 2022. "Global carbon inequality over 1990–2019," Post-Print halshs-04157767, HAL.
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