Mitigating agricultural fires with carrot or stick? Evidence from China

Jing Cao and Rong Ma

Journal of Development Economics, 2023, vol. 165, issue C

Abstract: This paper examines the effects of biomass power plants (BPPs) on farmers’ use of agricultural fires for land clearance in China from 2001 to 2019. We show that the entry of BPPs leads to a significant reduction of agricultural fires by 14%. Farmers near BPPs display stronger responses, leading to a more significant reduction in straw burning, especially during high agricultural fire seasons. The notable decline in agricultural fires is likely driven by economic incentives provided by BPPs to farmers for collecting crop straw from their land. Additionally, straw-burning bans have limited effectiveness in reducing total agricultural fires, but they appear to reduce straw burning during nighttime, when the monitoring of agricultural fires is easier. We also provide evidence that local air quality has markedly improved, resulting in substantial health benefits that surpass the social benefits of reducing carbon emissions.

Keywords: Agricultural fire; Environmental externality; Straw burning; Biomass power plant (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: H23 Q12 Q52 Q53 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:deveco:v:165:y:2023:i:c:s0304387823001293

DOI: 10.1016/j.jdeveco.2023.103173

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