Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Review

The impact of trade liberalization on the environment is a matter of debate. Two conflicting hypotheses have emerged from the debate. One, the pollution haven hypothesis, suggests that the developed countries impose tougher environmental policies than do the developing countries, which results in distortion of existing patterns of comparative advantage. Thus, the polluting industries shift operations from the developed to the developing countries; developing countries therefore become "pollution havens." The second hypothesis, the factor endowment hypothesis, predicts that trade liberalization will result in trade patterns consistent with the Heckscher-Phlin-Vanek theory of comparative advantage based on factor endowment differentials. Rich countries are well endowed with capital. Since capital-intensive goods are often also pollution-intensive, factor-endowment theories of international trade predict that rich countries specialize in polluting goods. Thus, the manifestation of the pollution haven hypothesis is in direct conflict with the factor endowment hypothesis. This debate is of great concern among economists, environmentalists and the World Trade Organization.Thailand, FDI, environment, pollution, international trade, WTO, OECD

Estimation of Marginal Abatement Cost of Air Pollution in Durgapur City of West Bengal

Air pollution in industrial cities with emissions from firms is a growing problem in India. Durgapur, one of the growing industrial cities in eastern India, covering a host of industries, suffers from similar problems. The paper estimates the marginal abatement cost of air pollution of industries in Durgapur, West Bengal. We model the technology of a firm with output-distance function. Here the linear programming approach is adopted to estimate the shadow prices and distance values. Results reveal that there is a wide variation in shadow prices of Suspended Particulate Matter and distance values between firms under particular category of industries thus indicating the variability in the degree of compliance, use of resources and the vintages of capital. In this context the paper suggests policies for air quality management in urban industrial areas of West Bengal which will help to achieve sustainable industrial development.Output Distance Function, Shadow Prices, Distance Values

Air pollution and income distribution in India

Concern over the environmental effects of fossil fuels in India has been growing as domestic consumption levels increase. Along with industry, households are major consumers of commercial energy and, consequently, major contributors to the total energy use in India. Emission levels in the country are gradually increasing. The present study estimates emissions related to fossil fuel combustion in India and also identifies the factors responsible for changes in those emissions during the 1980s and 1990s. Results show that the factor relating to changes in final demand, which reflect increased economic growth, had the greatest influence on emission levels. The study disaggregates households into three income groups, examining the contribution each makes to fossil-fuel-based pollution in India with respect to the various factors identified. Analysis indicates that higher- and middle-income groups generated more pollution due to excessive and inefficient consumption of commercial energy. The paper concludes with a discussion of policy implications.

An empirical examination of the pollution haven hypothesis for India:Towards a green leontief paradox?

Using input-output analysis, we examine whether India can be regarded as a pollution haven. We calculate the extra CO2, SO2 and NO (x) emissions induced by 1 billion rupees of additional exports. This is compared with the reduction of Indian pollution caused by an import increase of equal size. In contrast to what the pollution haven hypothesis states for developing countries, we find that India considerably gains from extra trade. Comparing 1996/1997 with 1991/1992, the gains have only increased, indicating that India has moved further away from being a pollution haven. The outcome is robust to changes in the underlying assumptions

New Report of Vessel Elements in Aleuritopteris and Cheilanthes

Investigations in the tracheary elements of rhizomes, roots and stipes of four cheilanthoid ferns from two genera viz. Aleuritopteris albomarginata, A. bicolor, A. rufa and Cheilanthes tenuifolia have been made both through maceration followed by light microscopic study and longitudinal sections through SEM study. Presence of vessel elements has been detected in the rhizomes of these species and roots of all species except A. albomarginata. No vessel elements were found in the stipes of any member. The vessel elements were having distinct obliquely elongated endplates mostly provided with compound perforation plate without any pit membrane. Detection of vessel elements in these plants which usually grow in dry habitats justifies their ecological success in rapid uptake of water with limited period of water availability

The impact of the TPP on selected ASEAN economies

Abstract The Trans Pacific Partnership was set to be the world's largest and most comprehensive FTA linking 12 countries on both sides of the Pacific. In a major turnaround, late January 2017, USA-one of the major trading partners to the region announced its decision to withdraw from it. Four of the ASEAN members under the TPP, namely Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam, have a number of existing FTAs with some major TPP members and hold a significant trade share with them. However, these countries do not have any agreements with Canada and Mexico and except Singapore, have no other trade negotiation with the USA, though the USA absorbs a significant share of the exports of the TPP-ASEAN nations, particularly of Vietnam. Given this background, withdrawal of the USA seems to be a major setback for the TPP-ASEAN countries as these economies are expected to be the largest beneficiaries of the agreement. This study investigates how far the non-participation of the USA would affect the overall growth and welfare of each of the TPP-ASEAN countries. For this purpose, the study separately evaluates the impact of the TPP on each of the TPP-ASEAN countries. As an analytical framework, the paper uses a global CGE model and attempts a number of simulations by calibrating various trade integration scenarios, such as tariff reduction and input-augmenting technological change. Results of the study show that all of the TPP-ASEAN members enjoy a welfare gain and positive growth in total output and trade when the USA is a member. Vietnam and Malaysia, in particular are the largest beneficiaries. When the USA is omitted, these countries continue to have positive growth rates but the rates fall considerably