CUTTING CARBON EMISSIONS AT A PROFIT (PART II): IMPACTS ON U.S. COMPETITIVENESS AND JOBS

This article examines how an integrated least-cost implementation of the Kyoto Protocol in the United States would affect U.S. competitiveness and jobs. Drawing on previous work, the authors analyze integrated emission reduction strategies based on a $50/ton carbon tax (including border tax adjustments), a payroll tax cut, energy-productivity-oriented market reforms, and international flexibility mechanisms. This policy portfolios is compared to conventional approaches that omit market and fiscal reforms. Copyright 2003 Western Economic Association International.

Border Adjustments on Energy Taxes: A Possible Tool for European Policymakers in Implementing the Kyoto Protocol?

This article analyses whether the European Union could lawfully enact border adjustments for energy taxes vis-à-vis other industrialised countries that are not party to the 1997 Kyoto Protocol to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change without violating world trade law, in particular the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM Agreement). We outline the rationale for border adjustments for energy taxes and conclude that despite remaining ambiguity in both the legal provisions and the pertinent case law, energy-related border tax adjustments are under certain circumstances compatible with world trade law. Zusammenfassung In diesem Artikel wird untersucht, ob die Europäische Union bestehende und künftig drohende Wettbewerbsnachteile infolge nationaler Energiesteuern mit Hilfe von Grenzausgleichssteuern (Border Tax Adjustments, BTA) gegenüber Nichtunterstützerstaaten des Kyoto-Protokolls von 1997 neutralisieren kann, ohne in Konflikt mit dem geltenden Welthandelsrecht zu geraten, insbesondere mit dem Allgemeinen Zoll- und Handelsabkommen (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, GATT) und dem Subventionsabkommen (Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, SCM Agreement). Unsere Analyse kommt zu dem Ergebnis, dass trotz verbleibender Unklarheiten im Vertragsrecht und der Rechtsprechung der Grenzausgleich von Energiesteuern unter bestimmten Voraussetzungen im Einklang mit dem Welthandelsrecht steht

Analysis of GPS trajectories to assess spatio-temporal differences in grazing patterns and land use preferences of domestic livestock in southwestern Madagascar

In order to investigate spatial and temporal characteristics of the purely grazing-based livestock husbandry system in southwestern Madagascar, individual animals from 12 cattle and 12 goat herds that were equally distributed across four villages were fitted with GPS tracking collars and their behaviour during pasturing was directly observed to identify seasonal variations in land use and movement patterns along the regional altitude and vegetation gradient. Monitoring occurred at regular intervals of two months over a two-year period to capture inter-annual variability. Herds of both species from the inland limestone plateau covered longer distances and were found further away from their home corrals than those from the coastal plain. Patterns of feeding behaviour and utilization of grazing areas mostly reflected the spatial occurrence of specific land cover classes around the villages and differed significantly between seasons and sites. Seasonal water shortage was one of the key factors affecting dry season livestock movements on the plateau but played a minor role in the coastal plain where livestock keeping proved to be more limited by feed availability. While on transhumance, mobile cattle herds were vulnerable to disadvantages such as limited access to pastureland and water sources nearby their temporary homesteads. The recent problem of armed cattle raids along with emerging land use conflicts compel livestock owners to utilize fewer grazing areas, which threatens to destabilize the region’s animal husbandry system