published_or_final_version / Urban Planning and Environmental Management / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

My dissertation examines theoretically the effects of environmental taxation on welfare in various cases. Using a general equilibrium model, the first chapter shows that a Pigouvian tax provides a larger welfare gain than an output tax, since it induces substitution among inputs as well as reduction in output of the dirty good, while an output tax induces only the output reduction. Using data for China and the U.S., numerical simulation results show that the potential welfare loss from not being able to use a Pigouvian tax is much larger in developing countries than in developed countries. The second chapter focuses on the fact that recycled material needs reprocessing to be substitutable for virgin material. Reprocessing uses resources and, in the process, generates pollution. Incorporating these 'imperfect' characteristics into a simple general equilibrium model, I examine how these realistic factors affect the structure of taxsubsidy schemes when the Pigouvian taxes are not available. A generalized Deposit-Refund system can achieve the optimum if illegal dumping is not taxable. Without a Pigouvian tax on illegal dumping, recycling is subsidized for its role in diverting illegal disposal into proper disposal. If Pigouvian taxes on neither illegal disposal nor waste from imperfect reprocessing are available, a combination of output tax on reprocessed material and subsidies for clean inputs can be used to restore the optimum. In the process, another reason to subsidize recycling emerges: recycling is a clean input for imperfect reprocessing. The third chapter focuses on the validity of the results obtained in the first chapter in the case of two vertically-separated oligopolies where the upstream industry is polluting. Using an analytical partial equilibrium model, I show that a tax on pollution is potentially superior to a tax on intermediate good, since the former can utilize both the upstream firms' input substitutability and the downstream firms' input substitutability, while a tax on intermediate good only utilizes the downstream firms' input substitutability. I also derive the conditions that government can improve social welfare through various revenue-neutral tax reforms.

published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Geography / Master / Master of Philosophy

This study was designed to inform the third party Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) required for the Quitchupah Creek Road, UTU-57907, Fishlake National Forest and Bureau of Land Management, Richfield District, Sevier and Emery Counties, Utah. The road proposal involved upgrading a jeep trail located in Quitchupah Canyon. Modifications of this four-wheel drive dirt road would involve extensive environmental engineering, bridges culverts for side canyon intermittent streams and paving of approximately 9.2 miles. A team of ethnographers from the University of Arizona interviewed members of the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah (PITU) to understand cultural meaning, traditional use, and potential impacts to Native American resources in the study area.

These presentations were designed to provide orientation information for the Solar Energy Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement.

The main focus of this report is to establish a comparative study of traditional and biodegradable vest-plastic bag production through the utilization of a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach. The measurements were made for the Ukrainian limited liability company “Polymer”, as a representative manufacturer, in order to calculate the environmental impact of plastic bag manufacturing, and identify the more environmental friendly item. This research is based on a literature review of the special characteristics of life cycle assessment and its methods and methodologies, a field study, which included two semi-structure interviews, and measurements and comparison of the harmfulness of traditional and biodegradable bag production. The software SimaPro 7.3.2 and IMACT 2002+ method were chosen in order to accomplish the research purpose. The results of the study show that traditional vest-bags produced by the researched enterprise are less environmentally friendly. Their production process has a bigger impact on environment and human health than that of the biodegradable bags. Moreover, a list of recommendations for possible improvements was developed based on the results of the research. It was sent to the directors of LLC “Polymer” as a suggestion for creating a “green strategy” of further development.

No description available.

Thesis (M. Environmental Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2009.

Thesis (M. Environmental Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2009.