How does air pollution affect household energy expenditure: A micro-empirical study based on avoidance behavior
Xiahai Wei1, Jiawei Xu2, Yunming Kuang3
1Institute of Economic Development and Reform, Huaqiao University, Xiamen, Fujian, 361021, PR China.
Journal of Environmental Management
|April 26, 2023
Summary
Air pollution significantly increases household energy spending in China. This study uses satellite and survey data to identify the causal link, revealing stay-home behaviors as a key driver. Findings inform environmental policy and clean energy promotion.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Economics
- Public Health
- Energy Policy
Background:
- China faces severe haze pollution, impacting economic factors.
- Understanding air pollution's effect on household energy expenditure is crucial but faces endogeneity challenges.
- Household energy consumption patterns can exacerbate air pollution.
Purpose of the Study:
- To accurately identify the causal effect of air pollution on household energy expenditure in China.
- To address the endogeneity issue in estimating pollution's economic impact.
- To explore the mechanisms linking air pollution and household energy use.
Main Methods:
- Utilized global satellite monitoring data and unique micro-household survey data.
- Constructed an instrumental variable approach to overcome estimation endogeneity.
- Performed robust checks to validate the findings.
Main Results:
- Increased air pollution significantly raises household energy expenditure.
- Stay-home-avoidance behavior is identified as a key mechanism.
- Higher-educated, high-income, and urban households in southern China exhibit this behavior more.
Conclusions:
- Air pollution has a direct, positive economic impact on household energy costs.
- Behavioral responses like staying home mediate the relationship between pollution and energy expenditure.
- Findings offer policy insights for environmental regulation and clean energy initiatives.
Related Concept Videos
01:19Factors Affecting Pulmonary Ventilation
1.5K
Besides the pressure difference between the external environment and the lungs, the airflow rate and ease of pulmonary ventilation are also influenced by three other factors: surface tension of the fluid in the alveoli, compliance of the lungs, and airway resistance.
Alveolar Surface Tension
The alveolar fluid lines the luminal surface of the alveoli and exerts a force called surface tension. This force is caused by the polar water molecules in the liquid being more strongly attracted to each...
Alveolar Surface Tension
The alveolar fluid lines the luminal surface of the alveoli and exerts a force called surface tension. This force is caused by the polar water molecules in the liquid being more strongly attracted to each...
1.5K
00:51Energy Budgets
9.5K
Organisms must balance energy intake with the energy required for growth, maintenance and reproduction. These trade-offs result in a variety of survivorship and reproductive strategies, including semelparity and iteroparity. Semelparous species, like annual plants, have only one reproductive episode in their lifetimes and consequently have short lifespans. Iteroparous species, by contrast, have many reproductive events during their lifetimes but have relatively few offspring. These two...
9.5K
01:08The Availability Heuristic
6.0K
A heuristic is a general problem-solving framework (Tversky & Kahneman, 1974). You can think of these as mental shortcuts that are used to solve problems. Different types of heuristics are used in different types of situations, and the impulse to use a heuristic occurs when one of five conditions is met (Pratkanis, 1989):
6.0K
01:29Asthma-I: Introduction
2.7K
Asthma is a chronic respiratory ailment that requires careful management due to its varying symptoms and influencing factors. It is characterized by airway inflammation, bronchial hyperresponsiveness, and reversible airflow obstruction, leading to symptoms like wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, and coughing. The symptom frequency and intensity may vary considerably over time. It is also linked to immune system responses to allergens and irritants, highlighting the complex...
2.7K
01:16Energy Conservation and Bernoulli's Equation
9.0K
Applying the conservation of energy principle or the work-energy theorem to an incompressible, inviscid fluid in laminar, steady, irrotational flow leads to Bernoulli's equation. It states that the sum of the fluid pressure, potential, and kinetic energy per unit volume is constant along a streamline.
All the terms in the equation have the dimension of energy per unit volume. The kinetic energy per unit volume is called the kinetic energy density, and the potential energy per unit volume is...
All the terms in the equation have the dimension of energy per unit volume. The kinetic energy per unit volume is called the kinetic energy density, and the potential energy per unit volume is...
9.0K
01:17Other Factors Affecting Respiration Centers
927
Breathing is primarily an involuntary activity regulated by the brainstem respiratory centers. However, it can also be consciously controlled, allowing us to hold our breath or take deeper breaths when needed. This voluntary control is facilitated by the cerebral motor cortex, which bypasses the medullary centers to stimulate the respiratory muscles directly.
However, the ability to hold one's breath voluntarily is not limitless. When the CO2 concentration in the blood reaches a critical...
However, the ability to hold one's breath voluntarily is not limitless. When the CO2 concentration in the blood reaches a critical...
927