[go: up one dir, main page]
IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/iza/izadps/dp9104.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Green Cities? Urbanization, Trade and the Environment

Author

Listed:
  • Borck, Rainald

    (University of Potsdam)

  • Pflüger, Michael P.

    (University of Würzburg)

Abstract
This paper establishes a simple theoretical framework which comprises key forces that shape the structure and interrelation of cities to study the interdependencies between urban evolution and the environment. We focus on the potential of the unfettered market forces to economize on emissions. A key finding is that these forces alone may suffice to generate an urban Environmental Kuznets Curve. In particular, reducing trade costs increases per capita incomes and generates a U-shaped evolution of emissions in the process of agglomeration and redispersion. Another key result is that agglomeration per se is typically not a boon for the environment, as total emissions in the total city system are likely to rise.

Suggested Citation

  • Borck, Rainald & Pflüger, Michael P., 2015. "Green Cities? Urbanization, Trade and the Environment," IZA Discussion Papers 9104, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp9104
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://docs.iza.org/dp9104.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Glaeser, Edward L. & Kahn, Matthew E., 2010. "The greenness of cities: Carbon dioxide emissions and urban development," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(3), pages 404-418, May.
    2. Head, Keith & Mayer, Thierry, 2004. "The empirics of agglomeration and trade," Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, in: J. V. Henderson & J. F. Thisse (ed.), Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 59, pages 2609-2669, Elsevier.
    3. Gaigné, Carl & Riou, Stéphane & Thisse, Jacques-François, 2012. "Are compact cities environmentally friendly?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(2), pages 123-136.
    4. Fujita,Masahisa, 1991. "Urban Economic Theory," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521396455.
    5. Desmet, Klaus & Rossi-Hansberg, Esteban, 2015. "On the spatial economic impact of global warming," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 16-37.
    6. repec:hal:wpspec:info:hdl:2441/10191 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. Murata, Yasusada & Thisse, Jacques-Francois, 2005. "A simple model of economic geography a la Helpman-Tabuchi," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1), pages 137-155, July.
    8. Larson, William & Yezer, Anthony, 2015. "The energy implications of city size and density," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 35-49.
    9. Gene M. Grossman & Alan B. Krueger, 1995. "Economic Growth and the Environment," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 110(2), pages 353-377.
    10. Borck, Rainald, 2016. "Will skyscrapers save the planet? Building height limits and urban greenhouse gas emissions," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 13-25.
    11. Susmita Dasgupta & Benoit Laplante & Hua Wang & David Wheeler, 2002. "Confronting the Environmental Kuznets Curve," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 16(1), pages 147-168, Winter.
    12. Gaigné, Carl & Riou, Stéphane & Thisse, Jacques-François, 2012. "Are compact cities environmentally friendly?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(2), pages 123-136.
    13. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/10191 is not listed on IDEAS
    14. Tabuchi, Takatoshi & Thisse, Jacques-Francois, 2002. "Taste heterogeneity, labor mobility and economic geography," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(1), pages 155-177, October.
    15. Kahn, Matthew E. & Walsh, Randall, 2015. "Cities and the Environment," Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, in: Gilles Duranton & J. V. Henderson & William C. Strange (ed.), Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, edition 1, volume 5, chapter 0, pages 405-465, Elsevier.
    16. Katsuyuki Shibayama & Iain Fraser, 2014. "Nonhomothetic Growth Models For The Environmental Kuznets Curve," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 55, pages 919-942, August.
    17. Aichele, Rahel & Felbermayr, Gabriel, 2012. "Kyoto and the carbon footprint of nations," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 63(3), pages 336-354.
    18. Carl Gaigné & Stéphane Riou & Jacques-François Thisse, 2012. "Are Compact Cities Environmentally (and Socially) Desirable ?," Cahiers de recherche CREATE 2012-4, CREATE.
    19. Brueckner, Jan K., 1987. "The structure of urban equilibria: A unified treatment of the muth-mills model," Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, in: E. S. Mills (ed.), Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 20, pages 821-845, Elsevier.
    20. M. Scott Taylor & Juan Moreno Cruz, "undated". "A Spatial Approach to Energy Economics," Working Papers 2014-68, Department of Economics, University of Calgary, revised 29 Sep 2014.
    21. Borck, Rainald, 2014. "Will skyscrapers save the planet?," VfS Annual Conference 2014 (Hamburg): Evidence-based Economic Policy 100566, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    22. Duranton, Gilles & Puga, Diego, 2014. "The Growth of Cities," Handbook of Economic Growth, in: Philippe Aghion & Steven Durlauf (ed.), Handbook of Economic Growth, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 5, pages 781-853, Elsevier.
    23. repec:clg:wpaper:2013-18 is not listed on IDEAS
    24. Murata, Yasusada, 2003. "Product diversity, taste heterogeneity, and geographic distribution of economic activities:: market vs. non-market interactions," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 126-144, January.
    25. Tscharaktschiew, Stefan & Hirte, Georg, 2010. "The drawbacks and opportunities of carbon charges in metropolitan areas -- A spatial general equilibrium approach," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(2), pages 339-357, December.
    26. Larson, William & Liu, Feng & Yezer, Anthony, 2012. "Energy footprint of the city: Effects of urban land use and transportation policies," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(2), pages 147-159.
    27. Katsuyuki Shibayama & Iain Fraser, 2014. "Nonhomothetic Growth Models For The Environmental Kuznets Curve," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 55(3), pages 919-942, August.
    28. repec:clg:wpaper:2013-12 is not listed on IDEAS
    29. Lange Andreas & Quaas Martin F, 2007. "Economic Geography and the Effect of Environmental Pollution on Agglomeration," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 7(1), pages 1-33, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Rainald Borck & Takatoshi Tabuchi, 2019. "Pollution and city size: can cities be too small?," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 19(5), pages 995-1020.
    2. Rainald Borck, 2014. "Will skyscrapers save the planet?," ERSA conference papers ersa14p1342, European Regional Science Association.
    3. Carozzi, Felipe & Roth, Sefi, 2023. "Dirty density: Air quality and the density of American cities," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    4. Borck, Rainald & Schrauth, Philipp, 2024. "Urban pollution: A global perspective," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    5. Rainald Borck & Jan K. Brueckner, 2018. "Optimal Energy Taxation in Cities," Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, University of Chicago Press, vol. 5(2), pages 481-516.
    6. Rainald Borck, 2019. "Bevölkerungsdichte, Stadtstruktur und Umweltverschmutzung [Population density, urban structure and air pollution]," Zeitschrift für Immobilienökonomie (German Journal of Real Estate Research), Springer;Gesellschaft für Immobilienwirtschaftliche Forschung e. V., vol. 5(1), pages 161-171, November.
    7. Blaudin de Thé, Camille & Carantino, Benjamin & Lafourcade, Miren, 2021. "The carbon ‘carprint’ of urbanization: New evidence from French cities," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    8. Tao Zhang & Lin Li, 2021. "Research on temporal and spatial variations in the degree of coupling coordination of tourism–urbanization–ecological environment: a case study of Heilongjiang, China," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(6), pages 8474-8491, June.
    9. Kurita, Kenichi & Managi, Shunsuke, 2023. "New economic geography model with natural capital and migration congestion effect," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 635-641.
    10. Borck, Rainald & Schrauth, Philipp, 2021. "Population density and urban air quality," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    11. Wu, JunJie & Segerson, Kathleen & Wang, Chunhua, 2023. "Is environmental regulation the answer to pollution problems in urbanizing economies?," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    12. Lafourcade, Miren & Blaudin de Thé, Camille & Carantino, Benjamin, 2018. "The Carbon `Carprint' of Suburbanization: New Evidence from French Cities," CEPR Discussion Papers 13086, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    13. Borck, Rainald & Mulder, Peter, 2024. "Energy policies and pollution in two developing country cities: A quantitative model," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    14. Yohanes Boni & Wa Ode Rachmasari Ariani & Hasddin Hasddin, 2023. "Study of Environmental Economic Performance According to Energy Use and CO2 Emissions, Air Quality, and Government Policies to Achieve SDGs in Baubau City," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 13(6), pages 452-462, November.
    15. Pflüger, Michael, 2021. "City size, pollution and emission policies," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    16. Borck, Rainald, 2016. "Will skyscrapers save the planet? Building height limits and urban greenhouse gas emissions," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 13-25.
    17. Carozzi, Felipe & Roth, Sefi, 2023. "Dirty density: air quality and the density of American cities," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 117385, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    18. Adou, Niango Sika Antoine Brice, 2020. "Trade Openness and Employment, Implications on Urbanisation in Sub-Saharan Africa," MPRA Paper 104317, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Michael Pflüger, 2020. "City Size, Pollution and Emission Policies," CESifo Working Paper Series 8448, CESifo.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Pflüger, Michael, 2021. "City size, pollution and emission policies," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    2. Michael Pflüger, 2020. "City Size, Pollution and Emission Policies," CESifo Working Paper Series 8448, CESifo.
    3. Rainald Borck & Jan K. Brueckner, 2018. "Optimal Energy Taxation in Cities," Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, University of Chicago Press, vol. 5(2), pages 481-516.
    4. Rainald Borck & Takatoshi Tabuchi, 2019. "Pollution and city size: can cities be too small?," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 19(5), pages 995-1020.
    5. Larson, William & Yezer, Anthony, 2015. "The energy implications of city size and density," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 35-49.
    6. Dascher, Kristof, 2013. "City Silhouette, World Climate," MPRA Paper 48375, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    7. Rémy Le Boennec & Sterenn Lucas, 2020. "Does a positive density perception increase the probability of living in the ideal housing type? Evidence from the Loire-Atlantique Département in France," Working Papers hal-02441513, HAL.
    8. Borck, Rainald, 2016. "Will skyscrapers save the planet? Building height limits and urban greenhouse gas emissions," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 13-25.
    9. Denant-Boemont, Laurent & Gaigné, Carl & Gaté, Romain, 2018. "Urban spatial structure, transport-related emissions and welfare," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 89(C), pages 29-45.
    10. Borck, Rainald, 2014. "Will skyscrapers save the planet?," VfS Annual Conference 2014 (Hamburg): Evidence-based Economic Policy 100566, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    11. Rainald Borck, 2019. "Bevölkerungsdichte, Stadtstruktur und Umweltverschmutzung [Population density, urban structure and air pollution]," Zeitschrift für Immobilienökonomie (German Journal of Real Estate Research), Springer;Gesellschaft für Immobilienwirtschaftliche Forschung e. V., vol. 5(1), pages 161-171, November.
    12. Carl Gaigné & Jacques-François Thisse, 2013. "New Economic Geography and the City," Working Papers SMART 13-02, INRAE UMR SMART.
    13. Castells-Quintana, David & Dienesch, Elisa & Krause, Melanie, 2021. "Air pollution in an urban world: A global view on density, cities and emissions," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    14. Kim, Jinwon, 2016. "Vehicle fuel-efficiency choices, emission externalities, and urban sprawl," Economics of Transportation, Elsevier, vol. 5(C), pages 24-36.
    15. Blaudin de Thé, Camille & Carantino, Benjamin & Lafourcade, Miren, 2021. "The carbon ‘carprint’ of urbanization: New evidence from French cities," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    16. Proque, Andressa Lemes & dos Santos, Gervásio Ferreira & Betarelli Junior, Admir Antonio & Larson, William D., 2020. "Effects of land use and transportation policies on the spatial distribution of urban energy consumption in Brazil," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    17. Dascher, Kristof, 2013. "City Silhouette, World Climate," MPRA Paper 48375, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    18. Pflüger, Michael P., 2018. "City Size, Pollution and Emission Policies," IZA Discussion Papers 11354, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    19. Leibowicz, Benjamin D., 2020. "Urban land use and transportation planning for climate change mitigation: A theoretical framework," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 284(2), pages 604-616.
    20. Mark Colas & John M. Morehouse, 2022. "The environmental cost of land‐use restrictions," Quantitative Economics, Econometric Society, vol. 13(1), pages 179-223, January.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    city structure; city systems; environmental pollution; global warming; Environmental Kuznets Curve; trade costs; commuting costs; housing;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F18 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade and Environment
    • Q50 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - General
    • R11 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes
    • R12 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Size and Spatial Distributions of Regional Economic Activity; Interregional Trade (economic geography)

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp9104. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Holger Hinte (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/izaaade.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.