Applying Benefit-Cost Analysis to Air Pollution Control in the Indian Power Sector

Cropper, Maureen; Guttikunda, Sarath; Jawahar, Puja; Lazri, Zachary; Malik, Kabir; Song, Xiao-Peng; Yao, Xinlu

doi:10.1017/bca.2018.27

Cited by 26 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 31 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…One question that arises in this context is whether future life years should be discounted at the same rate as money values. The logic for discounting monetary values is that one can shift money through time via saving or borrowing at a positive 27 For example, in Cropper et al (2019), the authors consider the mortality risk reductions associated with reducing air pollution emissions from electrical power plants in various locations in India. They apply a wide range of VSL estimates, and find that benefits exceed costs in some areas under all scenarios.…”

Section: Adjustments For Age and Life Expectancymentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Valuing Mortality Risk Reductions in Global Benefit-Cost Analysis

Robinson¹,

Hammitt

O’Keeffe³

2019

J. Benefit Cost Anal.

150

193

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The estimates used to value mortality risk reductions are a major determinant of the benefits of many public health and environmental policies. These estimates (typically expressed as the value per statistical life, VSL) describe the willingness of those affected by a policy to exchange their own income for the risk reductions they experience. While these values are relatively well studied in high-income countries, less is known about the values held by lower-income populations. We identify 26 studies conducted in the 172 countries considered low- or middle-income in any of the past 20 years; several have significant limitations. Thus there are few or no direct estimates of VSL for most such countries. Instead, analysts typically extrapolate values from wealthier countries, adjusting only for income differences. This extrapolation requires selecting a base value and an income elasticity that summarizes the rate at which VSL changes with income. Because any such approach depends on assumptions of uncertain validity, we recommend that analysts conduct a standardized sensitivity analysis to assess the extent to which their conclusions change depending on these estimates. In the longer term, more research on the value of mortality risk reductions in low- and middle-income countries is essential.

show abstract

Section: Adjustments For Age and Life Expectancymentioning

confidence: 99%

“… 27 For example, in Cropper et al ( 2019 ), the authors consider the mortality risk reductions associated with reducing air pollution emissions from electrical power plants in various locations in India. They apply a wide range of VSL estimates, and find that benefits exceed costs in some areas under all scenarios.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Valuing Mortality Risk Reductions in Global Benefit-Cost Analysis

Robinson¹,

Hammitt

O’Keeffe³

2019

J. Benefit Cost Anal.

150

193

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…20,21 Furthermore, the welfare benefits of reduced air pollution far exceed control costs. [22][23][24][25] In any case, our study provides a new insight on the relative merits of clean cook stoves versus other emission controls: indirect PM emissions represent more of a public health and environmental justice concern, by imposing disproportionate harm on lower income communities.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Who pollutes and who suffers from air pollution in India

Rao¹,

Kiesewetter²,

Min³

et al. 2020

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Airborne fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is the most important environmental risk factor for premature mortality worldwide, and the likely cause of several hundred thousand premature deaths every year in India. Indian households also contribute to ambient PM2.5 to different extents from a number of sources, including biomass-burning cook stoves, transport and industrial manufacturing triggered by household consumption. In this study, we quantify the PM2.5 contributions by source from, as well as the mortality burden suffered by, individual urban and rural income deciles. We find that the impacts are distributed differently from contributions. Indirect emissions associated with household consumption contribute almost twice as much to ambient PM2.5 concentrations as direct emissions from biomass cook stoves. We show that the mortality risk from these indirect sources fall disproportionately on lower-income households, exacerbating the mortality risks they already face from using biomass-burning cook stoves. As a result, economy-wide end-of-pipe controls can reduce inequity in contributions to ambient air pollution. However, due to the overwhelming role of household indoor air pollution in premature deaths among the low-income population, clean cook stoves reduce overall inequality in terms of mortality risks to a far greater extent.

show abstract

“…Further context is provided by Cropper et al [33], who analyse the net benefit or cost on human mortality of air pollution controls (i.e., flue-gas desulfurisation or FGD) on a theoretical 500MW coal-fired power plant in eight locations across India. At each location they consider four scenarios of Value per Statistical Life (VSL) (US$84,000-$256,000) and discount value (3%, 8% and 12%).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Marginal Benefit to South Asian Economies from SO2 Emissions Mitigation and Subsequent Increase in Monsoon Rainfall

Glensor

Harris

2019

Atmosphere

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Sulphate aerosols are dominated by SO2 emissions from coal-burning for the Indian electricity sector and they are thought to have a short term but significant, negative impact on South Asian Summer Monsoon rainfall. This reduction in precipitation in turn can lead to reduced economic outputs, primarily through smaller agricultural yields. By bringing together estimates of (a) the impact of sulphate aerosols on precipitation and (b) the observed relationship between monsoon rainfall and GDP, we present a methodology to estimate the possible financial cost of this effect on the Indian economy and on its agricultural sector. Our preliminary estimate is that the derived benefits could be large enough that around 50% of India’s SO2 emissions could be economically mitigated at no cost or net benefit, although it should be noted that the large uncertainties in the underlying relationships mean that the overall uncertainty is also large. Comparison of the 1952–1981 and 1982–2011 periods indicates that the Indian economy may now be more resilient to variability of the monsoon rainfall. As such, a case could be made for action to reduce SO2 emissions, particularly in the crucial monsoon period. This would have a significant, positive effect on a crucial and large sector in India’s economy and the effects would be visible almost instantly. The recent growth in renewable energy sources in India and the consequent, reduced increase in coal burning means that further financial costs have already been avoided. This impact should be further investigated so that it can be included in cost-benefit analyses of different fuel types in the region. The significant uncertainties associated with these calculations are discussed.

show abstract

Applying Benefit-Cost Analysis to Air Pollution Control in the Indian Power Sector

Cited by 26 publications

References 31 publications

Valuing Mortality Risk Reductions in Global Benefit-Cost Analysis

Valuing Mortality Risk Reductions in Global Benefit-Cost Analysis

Who pollutes and who suffers from air pollution in India

Marginal Benefit to South Asian Economies from SO2 Emissions Mitigation and Subsequent Increase in Monsoon Rainfall

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About