A Spatial Dynamic Model for Export Intensity of Hazardous Industrial Waste: The Incentive Effect of Regional Environmental Policies

This paper analyses, in the context of the Environmental Kuznet Curve, the determinants of export intensity of hazardous industrial waste among Spanish regions, with particular attention to the influence of waste taxes and of environmental policies. This study is carried out for the first time in the literature with a spatial dynamic model, fixed effects and panel data for the 17 regions (Comunidades Autónomas) of Spain during the period 2007–2017. The results suggest there is a spatial-dynamic component to export intensity, and that both regional taxes on waste disposal and environmental policy stringency appear to encourage, albeit modestly, the rate of exported waste to other regions. The model also shows that the more regions recycle, and the greater the economies of scale arising from industrial agglomeration, the lower is the region’s waste export intensity, although increasing restrictions on the international trade in hazardous waste have intensified trading inside the country. Finally, the results suggest a non-linear relationship between growth and export intensity, although apparently we are still far from the absolute decoupling of the Environmental Kuznet Curve. © 2021, The Author(s)

The interdependence of investment by different levels of government in a federal context

We use the Stochastic Frontier Approach to analyse for the first time the regions’ investment response to the central and local governments’ capital expenditure. The Spanish context is very interesting for this analysis because responsibilities are distributed between the three levels of government in a very interesting dual way: the distribution of spending responsibilities between central and regional governments corresponds to an exclusionary attribution of functions, while between regional and local levels, governments opt for cooperation. Results show that capital expenditure undertaken by the central government in the regions acts as substitute for regional investment, while capital expenditure by local governments appears to complement it. These results should be taken into account by public administrations when designing the distribution of responsibilities between different levels of government and their economic policy aims

Tax effort of local governments and its determinants: The Spanish case

We have implemented frontier techniques to analyse the local tax effort and its determinants. The results show that municipalities have been quite responsible on average (tax efforts between 72-85 percent), although most municipalities can increase their tax efforts both making a more intensive use of their tax authority and improving the efficiency of their tax collection. To respond to the financing problems of municipalities near the tax frontier, it would be desirable to reform the legal framework to allow a greater tax capacity while leaving the decision on how to use this potential in hands of each unit of government

Catalytic effect of capital transfers in a federal context: The case of spanish regions

There is a broad theoretical consensus on the effects of transfers (desired incentive impacts and induced adverse effects). But, as the literature review shows, there is not an accepted methodology for the empirical evaluation of these effects. The authors suggest a simple but rigorous empirical approach to quantify the catalytic effect of conditioned transfers for investment and their asymmetric impact across regions in Spain. To identify this behaviour, they have applied different empirical approaches with frontier techniques that let them consider the frontier as a proxy for potential investment. The results show that the conditioned transfers received by the regions from higher levels of government have a stimulus effect for investments, especially in the poor regions. The authors identify several factors explaining this unbalanced catalytic effect: the political cost of tax collection, political factors, inadequate management of debt, and other variables such as the level of economic development, population density, and the economic cycle

Personal Income Tax Compliance at the Regional Level: The Role of Persistence, Neighborhood, and Decentralization

This article quantifies personal income tax compliance by regions for the first time in Spain and identifies the factors explaining differences in tax compliance between regions, an aspect that has scarcely been analyzed in the literature. To this end, and in addition to the dynamic and spatial components considered by Alm and Yunus, this article considers the variables included in the classical tax evasion model of Allingham and Sandmo, as well as tax morale and political-institutional variables, including those linked to the country’s fiscal decentralization. The results obtained confirm, on one hand, those reached in the very extensive literature studying tax evasion from the individual perspective (including the importance of the dynamic element) and, on the other, the relevance of the spatial component in explaining tax compliance, so that greater or lesser tax compliance is partly explained by factors such as the tax behavior of neighbors or how those neighbors are treated by the public sector

Cumplimiento fiscal en el IRPF a nivel regional: medición y estimación de sus factores explicativos

El trabajo cuantifica por primera vez en España el cumplimiento fiscal por regiones en el IRPF, y contribuye a identificar los factores explicativos de las diferencias de cumplimiento fiscal entre jurisdicciones, aspecto que apenas ha sido analizado en la literatura. Para ello, hemos considerado, además de los componentes dinámico y espacial considerados por Alm y Yunus (2009), las variables incluidas en el modelo de evasión fiscal de Allingham y Sandmo (1972), las relacionadas con la moral fiscal y las de índole político-institucional, incluidas las vinculadas con la descentralización fiscal del país. Los resultados obtenidos confirman, por una parte, los alcanzados por la muy extensa literatura que estudia el fraude fiscal desde la perspectiva de los individuos (incluida la importancia del elemento dinámico), pero también la relevancia del componente espacial para explicar el cumplimiento fiscal, de suerte que el mayor o menor fraude fiscal viene explicado, en parte, por factores tales como el comportamiento fiscal de los vecinos o la forma en que estos son tratados por el sector público

Self-assembly of Clicked Star-Shaped Triazines into Functional Nanostructures

Two non-amphiphilic star-shaped 2, 4, 6-tris(1, 2, 3-triazol-4-yl)-1, 3, 5-triazines showing different behavior in terms of self-assembly and luminescent properties are described. They aggregate in the liquid phase to form low-dimensional nanostructures with a variety of morphologies, such as spherical particles, one-hole hollow spheres, toroids, twisted fibers or helical nanotubes, just by varying the conditions of a straightforward reprecipitation method. Aggregation has an opposite effect concerning the fluorescent properties of the proposed compounds, either causing the enhancement or the quenching of the emission after the self-assembly. Quantum chemical calculations have been also performed to assist in the structural and electronic characterization of the two star-shaped compounds

Evaluación de la capacidad de producción de líneas CRISPR/Cas9 doblehaploides del cultivar de trigo panadero Bobwhite

Trabajo presentado en la XIII Reunión de la Sociedad Española de Cultivo In Vitro de Tejidos Vegetales (SECIVTV 2019, Retos del cultivo de tejidos vegetales en la era de la bioeconomía), celebrada en Vitoria-Gasteiz del 11 al 13 de septiembre 2019.La obtención de plantas doblehaploides (DH) cobra una especial importancia cuando se usa en combinación con las técnicas de edición génica como CRISPR/Cas9 ya que nos permite obtener líneas homocigóticas en una sola generación. Bobwhite es el cultivar modelo utilizado para obtener plantas editadas de trigo panadero con bajo contenido en gluten (Sánchez-León y col 2018). La eficiencia de Bobwhite para la producción de plantas DH mediante cultivo de anteras es baja. En este estudio se ha aplicado el protocolo descrito por Castillo et al. (2015) para la obtención de plantas DH de 9 cruzamientos F1, en los que intervienen al menos una línea CRISPR/Cas9 de Bobwhite. Los resultados obtenidos en este estudio confirman que la capacidad de este cultivar para el cultivo de anteras es baja. Uno de los factores más limitantes es el bajo porcentaje de regeneración, debido a una mala calidad de los embriones. Además, los bajos porcentajes de duplicación cromosómica espontánea, con valores inferiores al 25% en la mitad de los cruzamientos, han hecho necesario la aplicación de colchicina para inducir la duplicación cromosómica. El albinismo no fue un factor limitante ya que en ninguno de los cruzamientos se obtuvieron más de un 25% de plantas albinas. Se observó una gran variabilidad para la respuesta al cultivo de anteras entre todos los cruzamientos. El menor número de plantas verdes/100 anteras (1,38) se obtuvo a partir de un cruzamiento entre dos líneas de Bobwhite, siendo todas haploides. El cruzamiento de Bobwhite x Arthur Nick produjo el mayor número de plantas verdes/100 anteras (10) y un 50 % de autoduplicación. Sin embargo, en el cruzamiento de Bobwhite por el otro cultivar de interés agronómico, Anza, se obtuvieron valores similares al resto de los cruzamientos.Este trabajo ha sido financiado por el proyecto AGL2016-80566-P (MINECO-FEDER).Peer reviewe

Sono-electrodeposition transfer of micro-scale copper patterns on to A7 substrates using a mask-less method

The EnFACE technology has been demonstrated as a successful mask-less electrodeposition method to transfer millimetre and micrometre-scale copper patterns on to A7-sized rectangular plates. This is the first successful demonstration of this technique using large substrates. A patterned anode tool was used to transfer electrodepositedpatterns onto anun-patterned cathode by maintaining very narrow separation (300 µm) between the two electrodes and agitating the fluid in the inter-electrode gap by ultrasonic means. A non-acidic copper solution with a low content of metal ions and additives was used.Limiting current experiments were initially performed to demonstrate that improved and uniform agitation could be maintained within the inter-electrode gap at relatively low ultrasonic powers of 5 to 30 W L-1. The best pattern definition was obtained at a US power of 5 W L-1and a current density of 20 mA cm-2. Importantly, the resultsobtained were comparable to those obtained by conventional through-mask plating. A single anode tool could be used to pattern up to five substrates, substantially minimising the amount of lithographic processingrequired. These results suggest that the EnFACE techniqueis a usefulmask-less microfabrication process for pattern transfer on to large substrates