The world is facing many environmental problems. These include climate change, biodiversity loss, poor air quality and more. To tackle these issues, we need to use various eco-friendly technologies.
Economic tools like contingent valuation help us determine the value people place on unpolluted air, scenic nature views and other ecological goods. The value of these goods often transcends national borders, so solving environmental problems requires global cooperation.
Ecofriendly Technologies
The generation of energy from waste, or Waste-to-Energy technology (W2E), can reduce the need for fossil fuels and reduce pollution levels. Many different technologies are available to achieve this.
Environmental economics also seeks to understand the effects of climate change on countries, particularly developing nations. This would involve understanding how policies that promote the development of ecofriendly technologies can help to alleviate poverty and enhance ecological sustainability.
The conventional wisdom is that environmental regulations impose significant costs on private industry and slow productivity growth, and thus make it difficult for companies to compete in international markets. However, studies indicate that reducing pollution through innovation can provide significant business advantages. For example, a study of industrial air quality in the United States found that innovative firms were twice as productive as their competitors. The authors suggest that this is due to positive spillovers from innovative products. Further, they argue that a policy that encourages the production and trade of green technologies can benefit all parties.
Biofuels
Environmental economics addresses the issue of natural resources, such as clean air, fisheries, water and fossil fuels. These resources are often a form of “environmental goods,” meaning that they are valuable to society and enhance human welfare, but they’re difficult or impossible to put a price on. This makes them vulnerable to market failures like pollution and other negative externalities.
In order to avoid these externalities, governments may impose regulatory measures. These can be prescriptive, dictating specific limits on certain polluting activities. Alternatively, they can employ market-based policies that use economic incentives to encourage desired behaviors. A good example is permitting companies to trade emissions allowances, which is a policy that has been effective at reducing pollution.
In addition, environmental economists can analyze the cost-benefit of various alternatives for addressing environmental problems. They can also run models to evaluate the effects of different environmental policies on society, including the effect of reducing pollution on the economy and the health of people.
Electric Vehicles
Our dependence on fossil fuels exacts a price in terms of environmental damage and human suffering. Scores of workers on oil rigs, in refineries and gas fields are hurt or killed each year, while air pollution damages the environment and causes diseases. Electric vehicles (EVs) eliminate the need for fossil fuels and thus reduce these costs and impacts.
EVs use electricity stored in batteries to power their motors, so they emit no tailpipe emissions when driving in all-electric mode. However, their life cycle emissions depend on the energy source for generating that electricity, and can be low when using zero carbon sources, or high when utilizing fossil fuels.
Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) are a popular segment of the EV market and combine the benefits of conventional cars with those of EVs. However, these cars require hydrogen refueling stations, which aren’t yet widely available.
Solar Energy
Solar energy is one of the fastest ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which cause climate change. This is one of the major causes of environmental and public health issues like extreme weather events, rising sea levels, respiratory diseases, and so on. Switching to clean, renewable solar energy can help reduce these effects and make the Earth a better place for everyone.
Solar electricity is a renewable resource that can be produced without harmful emissions and can be stored for use when the sun isn’t shining. The amount of solar electricity generated can be adjusted to meet local energy needs, and there are a variety of technologies available for harnessing the power of the sun.
The societal value of solar energy can be evaluated through life-cycle assessment studies, which look at upstream and downstream impacts. These studies compare the cost of generating power using a given fuel, such as fossil fuels or solar PV, against the avoided greenhouse gas emissions, air pollutants, and other benefits that society receives from switching to solar.