The local economic impact of climate change mitigation in agriculture

Abstract

Greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation measures are currently being implemented in the agricultural sector across the globe. Questions have been raised about the distributional and spatial impacts of agricultural emissions mitigation policies, especially at the local level. This study examines the local impact of a low-income farming sector, beef farming, in a typical Irish beef farming county, County Clare. Input-output analysis reveals that Clare beef farmers purchase the vast majority of farm inputs within the county, with intra-county suppliers providing 90% of their inputs and overheads. We examine the impact of reducing the size of the beef herd in Co. Clare as a direct consequence of meeting national GHG emissions targets by 2030. Taking direct, indirect, and induced effects together, there is an €18.4 million reduction in economic activity in 2030 following the decrease in the beef herd with €14.72 million of that reduction taking place within the Mid-West region.

A Business Case for Climate Neutrality in Pasture-Based Dairy Production Systems in Ireland: Evidence from Farm Zero C

“…Farmers are likely to adopt innovations which they perceive to have economic returns [24]; for instance, those arising from increased efficiencies, economies of scale and financial incentives [23]. Various economic-oriented studies have been published focusing on the costs of climate change mitigation in Ireland; however, most of these either used input-output models or policy analysis to provide a broad perspective on the economic impacts of climate change mitigation at the national or regional level [25,26]. For instance, The Irish Marginal Abatement Cost Curve (MACC) study provides a detailed cost analysis of the climate mitigation strategies across all farming systems with the absolute emission reduction pathways at the national level [26].…”