Resumen de Economic Activity and Atmospheric Pollution in Spain: An Input-Output Approach
In this study we analyse some aspects of the interdependences between the economy and the environment by applying the input-output approach. Although economic activity affects the environment in many ways, in this study we only focus on one: the atmospheric pollution.Concretely, we consider nine different gases. On one hand, the six greenhouse gases regulated by Kyoto protocol: carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), sulphur hexafluoride (SF6), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), and perfluorocarbons (PFCs). And, on the other hand, three gases related to local environmental problems such as acidification and eutrophication: sulphur oxides (SOx), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and ammonia (NH3).The study is structured in four self-contained essays that examine the relation between the economic activity and emissions in Spain from different perspectives. After an introductory chapter, in Chapter 2 we describe the methodology and the database used in other chapters. First, we present the basis of the input-output analysis emphasising those characteristics that make it a suitable approach to study the interdependences between the economy and the environment. Then, we describe the database and the procedure required to obtain an environmentally extended input-output table for Spain. We apply the environmentally extended input-output model presented in this chapter to describe the Spanish situation regarding atmospheric pollution in 1995 and 2000. In Chapter 3, we examine the contribution of the driving forces of the evolution of emissions in Spain from 1995 to 2000. For doing so, we decompose the change in emissions into the three main 'sources'. First, shifts in total intensity emission matrix (the eco-technological effect); second, changes in the composition of final uses (the structure effect); and third, changes in the level of final uses (the level effect). We quantify the effects of these three determinants performing a structural decomposition analysis. Chapter 4 shows the capacity of input-output analysis to study the relationship between the economic activity and the environment at a micro level.The purpose of this chapter is to analyse the different impact on atmospheric pollution of different households with different 'economic position'. We calculate total (direct and indirect) emissions generated by private consumption of Spanish households classified by quintiles of expenditure in the year 2000. In Chapter 5 we estimate the emissions embodied in Spanish international trade. By applying a multiregional input-output model we define and compare two approaches: the responsibility emission balance and the trade emission balance. We evaluate the international responsibility of Spain in 1995 and 2000. Finally, Chapter 6 summarises the conclusions of this study.
