Pollution Haven Hypothesis of Global CO2, SO2, NOx-Evidence from 43 Economies and 56 Sectors.

Ke Zhang,Xingwei Wang

doi:10.3390/ijerph18126552

Abstract

With the development of trade liberalization, the pollutants emissions embodied in global trade are increasing. The pollution haven hypothesis caused by trade has aroused wide attention. The fragmentation of international production has reshaped trade patterns. The proportion of intermediate product trade in global trade is increasing. However, little has been done to study the pollution haven of different pollutants under different trade patterns. In this paper, major environmental pollutants CO2 (carbon dioxide), SO2 (sulfur dioxide), and NOx (nitrogen oxides) are selected as the research objects. This study investigated the global pollution haven phenomenon in 43 countries and 56 major industries from 2000 to 2014. Based on the MRIO model, the trade mode is divided into three specific patterns: final product trade, intermediate product trade in the last stage of production, and the trade related to the global value chain. The results show that trade liberalization could reduce global CO2, SO2, and NOx emissions, and intermediate product trade has a more significant emission reduction effect than final product trade. Trade’s impacts on each country are various, and the main drivers are also different. For example, the European Union avoids becoming a pollution haven mainly through the trade related to the global value chain. The suppressed emissions under this trade pattern are 71.8 Mt CO2, 2.2 Mt SO2, 2.2 Mt NOx. India avoids most pollutants emissions through intermediate product trade. China has become the most serious pollution haven through final product trade. The trade pattern could increase China 829.4 Mt CO2, 4.5 Mt SO2, 2.6 Mt NOx emissions in 2014.

Highlights

In the past few decades, global trade has grown rapidly [1], and trade has an increasing impact on resource flows and pollutant transfers among countries [2]
In order to reveal the impact of international production fragmentation on the environment, this paper divides trade into three patterns: final product trade, intermediate product trade in the last stage of production, and the trade related to the global value chain, so as to study the pollution haven phenomenon under the three patterns
Zhang et al distinguished three specific trade patterns in the international trade production division: final product trade, intermediate product trade in the last stage of production, and the trade related to the global value chain, and they studied the carbon pollution haven in three trade patterns [5]

Summary

Introduction

In the past few decades, global trade has grown rapidly [1], and trade has an increasing impact on resource flows and pollutant transfers among countries [2]. The pollutants embodied in international trade are increasing [3], which has raised people’s concerns about the environmental problems caused by trade. In order to promote economic growth, some countries may lower environmental standards to attract pollution-intensive industries, which will lead to the transfer of pollutants emissions [6]. If this hypothesis is true, high-standard countries’ environment may be improved, but from a global perspective, the world’s total pollutants emissions may increase

Methods

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Discussion

Conclusion