Document Type
Working Paper
Publication Date
3-19-2018
Document Number
Working Paper Number 2018-04
Abstract
The interest in this paper lies in the environmental costs of the European Union (EU). EU membership requires a series of economic and political changes that should impact the country’s production and consumption structures and its trade relationships. These, in turn, will affect CO2 emissions sources and levels. This is especially true for the former Soviet Union countries that recently joined the EU, given the difference in their levels of development and production structure. Using a structural decomposition analysis we are able to quantify the main drivers of changes in emissions differentiating six components, namely: emissions intensity, industrial structure and sourcing, consumer preferences, final d emand s ourcing a nd c onsumption level. Grouping the countries into five clubs, New European Union countries, Old European Union countries, the United States of America, China, and the Rest of the World, we measure trading pattern changes and their impact on CO2 emission levels.
Digital Commons Citation
Araúgo, Inácio; Jackson, Randall; Ferreira Neto, Amir Borges; and Perobelli, Fernando, "Environmental Costs of European Union Membership: A Structural Decomposition Analysis" (2018). Regional Research Institute Working Papers. 38.
https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/rri_pubs/38