Optimal Abatement of Carbon Emission Flows

Michel Moreaux and Cees Withagen

No 2014.01, Working Papers from FAERE - French Association of Environmental and Resource Economists

Abstract: We study optimal carbon capture and storage (CCS) from point sources, taking into account damages incurred from the accumulation of carbon in the atmosphere and exhaustibility of fossil fuel reserves. High carbon concentrations call for full CCS, meaning zero net emissions. We identify conditions under which partial or no CCS is optimal. In the absence of CCS the CO2 stock might be inverted U-shaped. With CCS more complicated behavior may arise. It can be optimal to have full capture initially, yielding a decreasing stock, then partial capture while keeping the CO2 stock constant, and a final phase without capture but with an inverted U-shaped CO2 stock. We also introduce the option of adaptation and provide a unified theory regarding the optimal use of CCS and adaptation.

Keywords: Climate change; carbon capture and storage; non-renewable resources (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q32 Q43 Q54 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 39 pages
Date: 2014-05, Revised 2015-06
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ene and nep-env
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (17)

Published in Journal of Environmental and Economics Management, 74, 55-70.

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.faere.fr/pub/WorkingPapers/Moreaux_Withagen_FAERE_WP2014.01.pdf First version, May 2014 (application/pdf)
http://faere.fr/pub/WorkingPapers/Moreaux_Withagen_FAERE_WP2014.01R2.pdf Revised version, June 2015 (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: Optimal abatement of carbon emission flows (2015)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:fae:wpaper:2014.01

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