This paper examines the relationship between the environmental and economic performance of firms in the European paper manufacturing industry. It initially discusses possible functional relationships between environmental and economic performance rooted in different theoretical frameworks and links these to recent empirical and theoretical analyses of the Porter hypothesis. Following this, it reports the results of an empirical study carried out in the European paper industry. Findings fit better with ‘traditionalist’ reasoning about the relationship between environmental and economic performance, which predicts the relationship to be uniformly negative. In particular they confirm the necessity for a more differentiated view of the Porter hypothesis. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. and ERP Environment.

Die Discussion Papers dienen einer möglichst schnellen Verbreitung von neueren Forschungsarbeiten des ZEW. Die Beiträge liegen in alleiniger Verantwortung der Autoren und stellen nicht notwendigerweise die Meinung des ZEW dar.Discussion Papers are intended to make results of ZEW research promptly available to other economists in order to encourage discussion and suggestions for revisions. The authors are solely responsible for the contents which do not necessarily represent the opinion of the ZEW.Download this ZEW Discussion Paper from our ftp server:ftp://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/dp/dp0556.pdf Non technical summaryThe relationship between economic development and environmental quality has been extensively explored in recent years. The shape of this relationship has implications for the definition of an appropriate joint economic and environmental policy. In the literature, this animated debate revolves around the existence of an Environmental Kuznets Curve, which implies that, starting from low levels of income per capita, environmental degradation increases, but after a certain level of income (turning point) it diminishes.This study investigates the question of the existence of an EKC using a nonparametric approach. In this framework, no a priori parametric functional form is assumed for modelling the relationship between carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions and GDP per capita. The main reason for studying CO 2 emissions is that they play a focal role in the current debate on environmental protection and sustainable development. CO 2 has been recognized by most scientists as a major source of global warming through its greenhouse effects. Another reason is that CO 2 emissions are directly related to the use of energy, which is an essential factor in the world economy, both for production and consumption. Therefore, the relationship between CO 2 emissions and economic growth has important implications for environmental and economic policies.To estimate this relationship, we use information drawn from several data sets. CO 2 emissions measured in metric tons are obtained from the data base of the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center, Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Real GDP per capita series, measured in thousand constant dollars at 1985 prices, are drawn from the Penn World Table 5.6. The resulting data set, a balanced panel of 100 countries, covers the period 1960-1996.We first consider the issue of structural stability of the relationship between CO 2 emissions and GDP per capita, and we find evidence of structural stability of the relationship over the period . Based on this result, the panel nature of the data allows us to specify a nonparametric model that accounts for heterogeneity across countries. We find that the relationship between CO 2 emissions and GDP per capita is upward sloping, and that the usually adopted polynomial functional form which leads to the environmental Kuznets curve in several studies is rejected against our nonparametric model. Moreover, by comparing different estimation methods ...

Die Discussion Papers dienen einer möglichst schnellen Verbreitung von neueren Forschungsarbeiten des ZEW. Die Beiträge liegen in alleiniger Verantwortung der Autoren und stellen nicht notwendigerweise die Meinung des ZEW dar.Discussion Papers are intended to make results of ZEW research promptly available to other economists in order to encourage discussion and suggestions for revisions. The authors are solely responsible for the contents which do not necessarily represent the opinion of the ZEW.Download this ZEW Discussion Paper from our ftp server:ftp://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/dp/dp0556.pdf Non technical summaryThe relationship between economic development and environmental quality has been extensively explored in recent years. The shape of this relationship has implications for the definition of an appropriate joint economic and environmental policy. In the literature, this animated debate revolves around the existence of an Environmental Kuznets Curve, which implies that, starting from low levels of income per capita, environmental degradation increases, but after a certain level of income (turning point) it diminishes.This study investigates the question of the existence of an EKC using a nonparametric approach. In this framework, no a priori parametric functional form is assumed for modelling the relationship between carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions and GDP per capita. The main reason for studying CO 2 emissions is that they play a focal role in the current debate on environmental protection and sustainable development. CO 2 has been recognized by most scientists as a major source of global warming through its greenhouse effects. Another reason is that CO 2 emissions are directly related to the use of energy, which is an essential factor in the world economy, both for production and consumption. Therefore, the relationship between CO 2 emissions and economic growth has important implications for environmental and economic policies.To estimate this relationship, we use information drawn from several data sets. CO 2 emissions measured in metric tons are obtained from the data base of the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center, Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Real GDP per capita series, measured in thousand constant dollars at 1985 prices, are drawn from the Penn World Table 5.6. The resulting data set, a balanced panel of 100 countries, covers the period 1960-1996.We first consider the issue of structural stability of the relationship between CO 2 emissions and GDP per capita, and we find evidence of structural stability of the relationship over the period . Based on this result, the panel nature of the data allows us to specify a nonparametric model that accounts for heterogeneity across countries. We find that the relationship between CO 2 emissions and GDP per capita is upward sloping, and that the usually adopted polynomial functional form which leads to the environmental Kuznets curve in several studies is rejected against our nonparametric model. Moreover, by comparing different estimation methods ...

This survey of economic growth theory applied to epidemiology highlights that Blanchard-Yaari structures involving a Lucas human capital accumulation are appropriate to study an AIDS-like crisis. Physical capital accumulation, schooling, health expenditures and supply effects are put together within a Blanchard two-sector economy to capture life-cycle effects of AIDS-like epidemics.AIDS, epidemics, growth theory, health, human capital, life expectancy,

The Policy Research Working Paper Series disseminates the findings of work in progress to encourage the exchange of ideas about development issues. An objective of the series is to get the findings out quickly, even if the presentations are less than fully polished. The papers carry the names of the authors and should be cited accordingly. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper are entirely those of the authors. They do not necessarily represent the views of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/World Bank and its affiliated organizations, or those of the Executive Directors of the World Bank or the governments they represent.