Authors: Nigel Key Gregoire Tallard
Publish Date: 2011/09/06
Volume: 112, Issue: 2, Pages: 387-414
Abstract
Methane emissions from livestock enteric fermentation and manure management represent about 40 of total anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions from the agriculture sector and are projected to increase substantially in the coming decades with most of the growth occurring in nonAnnex 1 countries To mitigate livestock methane incentive policies based on producerlevel emissions are generally not feasible because of high administrative costs and producer transaction costs In contrast incentive policies based on sectoral emissions are likely administratively feasible even in developing countries This study uses an economic model of global agriculture to estimate the effects of two sectoral mitigation policies a carbon tax and an emissions trading scheme based on average national methane emissions per unit of commodity The analysis shows how the composition and location of livestock production and emissions change in response to the policies Results illustrate the importance of global mitigation efforts when policies are limited to Annex 1 countries increased methane emissions in nonAnnex 1 countries offset approximately twothirds of Annex 1 emissions reductions While nonAnnex 1 countries face substantial disincentives to enacting domestic carbon taxes developing countries could benefit from participating in a global sectoral emissions trading scheme We illustrate one scheme in which nonAnnex 1 countries collectively earn USD 24 billion annually from methane emission permit sales when methane is priced at USD 30/t CO2eqThis research was partly supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations The authors would like to thank Theun Vellinga Pierre Gerber Carolyn Opio Henning Steinfeld and Merritt Cluff for helpful insights and assistance We would also like to thank three anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments The views expressed are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of the Economic Research Service USDA or the OECD
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