UVM Theses and Dissertations
Format:
Print
Author:
Kirk, Daniel J.
Title:
Dept./Program:
Community Development and Applied Economics
Year:
2010
Degree:
MS
Abstract:
Climate scientists believe that global atmospheric carbon levels must be stabilized to 350 PPM CO₂ in order to avoid unacceptable risks of catastrophic climate change, yet our current dependence on fossil fuels to meet our basic needs necessitates emissions above that threshold. The need to develop effective mechanisms for safely reducing emissions is therefore urgent. Carbon cap-and-auction schemes have garnered increasing attention in recent years to mitigate carbon emissions and have been proposed in both the Vermont and United States Senates; however, the issues remain: Should auction revenue be allocated as dividends to eacl) citizen or as investment into public goods? Which approach would have the best chance of achieving the necessary reductions without imposing unacceptable economic costs?
This paper seeks to assess how an atmospheric pay to pollute instrument within a Vermont Common Assets Trust (VCAT) would impact scale, distribution, and efficiency in Vermont and globally. New energy technologies are necessary to bridge the gap between current energy demands and ecological carbon limits, but they must be developed and adopted quickly and widely. Relying on market competition to develop such technologies will slow information dissemination, as competitors are unlikely to share developing information due to patents and price rationing. To circumvent such a barrier, this paper recommends that a VCAT fund collaborative development of open source clean energy technology to expedite knowledge advancement and dissemination-it is the only way a VCAT can address the scale of the climate change problem using a state-level mechanism.
Moreover, investing in and deNeloping such technologies could provide an effective transition from our current energy sources while staying within the ecological limits, whereas dividend expenditure-although a progressive redistribution of wealth-would negate almost a quarter of a carbon cap due to resulting private carbon energy consumption. Maximizing well being by increasing human, natural, social, and built capitals is also likely to be more efficiently achieved by investing in public goods rather than private consumption.
Preferences of Vermonters regarding atmospheric pollution and ownership, pay-to-pollute and revenue allocation from a pay-to-pollute instrument options have not been quantified until now. This paper will recommend the most supportive demographic and political climate for support for payment for polluting as well as the best way to allocate revenue from a carbon pay-to-pollute instrument as influenced by the preferences of Vermonters collected in the 2010 Vermonter Poll. The Poll revealed that over 80% of Vermonters believe that individuals and companies should pay to pollute, and that almost 65% support the allocation of revenue collected from polluters into investments in the preservation of natural resources such as clean air and water. Across all incomes and political parties, the percentage of Vermonters who support pay-to-pollute outweighed those lacking support. A binary logistic regression showed that, in Vermont, non-Republican females who believe the atmosphere is threatened by pollution, that Vermonters own Vermont's share of the atmosphere equally and that revenues should be allocated as investments rather than as dividends are the most likely demographic to support pay-to-pollute. These results signify that the approach best suited for allocating revenue to meet ecological targets may also be the most politically viable in Vermont.
This paper seeks to assess how an atmospheric pay to pollute instrument within a Vermont Common Assets Trust (VCAT) would impact scale, distribution, and efficiency in Vermont and globally. New energy technologies are necessary to bridge the gap between current energy demands and ecological carbon limits, but they must be developed and adopted quickly and widely. Relying on market competition to develop such technologies will slow information dissemination, as competitors are unlikely to share developing information due to patents and price rationing. To circumvent such a barrier, this paper recommends that a VCAT fund collaborative development of open source clean energy technology to expedite knowledge advancement and dissemination-it is the only way a VCAT can address the scale of the climate change problem using a state-level mechanism.
Moreover, investing in and deNeloping such technologies could provide an effective transition from our current energy sources while staying within the ecological limits, whereas dividend expenditure-although a progressive redistribution of wealth-would negate almost a quarter of a carbon cap due to resulting private carbon energy consumption. Maximizing well being by increasing human, natural, social, and built capitals is also likely to be more efficiently achieved by investing in public goods rather than private consumption.
Preferences of Vermonters regarding atmospheric pollution and ownership, pay-to-pollute and revenue allocation from a pay-to-pollute instrument options have not been quantified until now. This paper will recommend the most supportive demographic and political climate for support for payment for polluting as well as the best way to allocate revenue from a carbon pay-to-pollute instrument as influenced by the preferences of Vermonters collected in the 2010 Vermonter Poll. The Poll revealed that over 80% of Vermonters believe that individuals and companies should pay to pollute, and that almost 65% support the allocation of revenue collected from polluters into investments in the preservation of natural resources such as clean air and water. Across all incomes and political parties, the percentage of Vermonters who support pay-to-pollute outweighed those lacking support. A binary logistic regression showed that, in Vermont, non-Republican females who believe the atmosphere is threatened by pollution, that Vermonters own Vermont's share of the atmosphere equally and that revenues should be allocated as investments rather than as dividends are the most likely demographic to support pay-to-pollute. These results signify that the approach best suited for allocating revenue to meet ecological targets may also be the most politically viable in Vermont.