When countries *do* tax carbon, it’s usually $15/ton or less @GreenCatherine @RusselNorman @Greenpeacenz
30 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in energy economics, environmental economics, global warming Tags: carbon price, carbon tax, carbon trading, expressive voting
The renewable energy curse – does corruption turn clean energy into dirty? @GarethMP
30 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in comparative institutional analysis, constitutional political economy, energy economics, environmental economics, global warming, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags: European Union, expressive voting, green rent seeking, Italy, renewable energy, solar power, wind power
Massimo Tavoni and Caterina Gennaioli published a nice paper showing that corruption and violence was higher in the high wind provinces of Italy after the installation of wind generators. They built on earlier work about countries with abundant renewable resources and weak institutions. The main question in their paper
… is whether an increase in the expected returns of investments in wind energy, following the introduction of the new policy regime based on a green certificate system, has driven economic agents, namely bureaucrats and entrepreneurs, to engage more in rent seeking activities.
As they studied Italy, there is no surprise about the answer which was yes. High winds ensure high returns of the wind farm investment, but whether this translates into more bribery depends on institutional quality. There was more corruption, and so especially in high-wind provinces of Italy.
Source: Green policy and corruption | VOX, CEPR’s Policy Portal.
The construction of an average wind park is associated with an increase of criminal association activity of 6%. Italy will have more corruption than elsewhere in the old European Union.
The wider problem is renewable energy is a celebrity technology. In the context of expressive politics, so many cheer for solar and wind power that standards drop in terms of who qualifies for subsidies and who should lose support when their investments do not turn out as promised.
https://twitter.com/CountCarbon/status/715136022414299138
Wind power is not new, it is intermittent, is unsuitable for modern work, and is land constrained but it is still subsidised. Green rent seeking is a real risk even in countries with the best political institutions.
Environmentalists are the biggest science deniers of all #EarthDay
24 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in economics of regulation, energy economics, environmental economics, global warming, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags: antimarket bias, antiscience left, green rent seeking, Greenpeace, nuclear power, pessimism bias, rational irrationality, wind power
Fossil Fuels: The Greenest Energy #earthday @Oxfam
23 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in economics of media and culture, energy economics, environmental economics, global warming Tags: Fossil Fuels
Why environmentalists are adverse to real solutions #earthday
22 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, applied welfare economics, comparative institutional analysis, constitutional political economy, economics of media and culture, economics of regulation, energy economics, entrepreneurship, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming, politics - USA Tags: anti-market bias, Earth Day, expressive voting, rational ignorance, rational rationality
Source: Quotation of the day for Earth Day on the ‘science of economics versus the religion of environmentalism’ … – AEI | Carpe Diem Blog » AEIdeas from Steven E. Landsburg’s book “The Armchair Economist: Economics and Everyday Life,” in his chapter titled “Why I Am Not an Environmentalist: The Science of Economics versus the Religion of Ecology“.
How much of global low carbon energy is wind and solar?
21 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in economic history, energy economics, environmental economics, resource economics Tags: geothermal power, hydroelectric power, nuclear power, renewable energy, solar power, wind power
Left-wing Biases, Too, May Block Progress on Climate Change @GarethMP @JulieAnneGenter
20 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, applied welfare economics, economics of media and culture, energy economics, environmental economics, global warming, Public Choice Tags: antimarket bias, carbon emissions, climate alarmists, expressive voting, greenhouse gases, nuclear power, rational irrationality
Source: Liberal Biases, Too, May Block Progress on Climate Change – The New York Times.
Source: Mr. Sanders’s war on clean energy – The Washington Post.
Nuclear power plants can withstand the impact of the jet aircraft
18 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in economics, energy economics Tags: atomic energy
The future should sue today’s climate activists for slowing The Great Escape
16 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in development economics, economic history, economics of media and culture, energy economics, environmental economics, global warming, growth miracles, law and economics Tags: climate activists, climate alarmism, extreme poverty, The Great Enrichment, The Great Escape, vexatious litigation
The sources of low carbon energy since 1965
14 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in economic history, energy economics, environmental economics Tags: atomic energy, hydroelectric power, nuclear power, solar power, wind power
@CFigueres seriously mistaken on carbon emissions and global poverty
13 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in applied welfare economics, development economics, economic history, energy economics, environmental economics, global warming, growth disasters, growth miracles, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags: climate alarmism, extreme poverty, global poverty, The Great Escape
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