Biofuel Expansion, Fertilizer Use, and GHG Emissions : Unintended Consequences of Mitigation Policies
Joint Authors
Carriquiry, Miguel
Fabiosa, Jacinto F.
Rosas, Francisco
Babcock, Bruce A.
Elobeid, Amani
Mulik, Kranti
Dumortier, Jerome
Hayes, Dermot J.
Source
Economics Research International
Issue
Vol. 2013, Issue 2013 (31 Dec. 2013), pp.1-12, 12 p.
Publisher
Hindawi Publishing Corporation
Publication Date
2013-12-30
Country of Publication
Egypt
No. of Pages
12
Main Subjects
Abstract EN
Increased biofuel production has been associated with direct and indirect land-use change, changes in land management practices, and increased application of fertilizers and pesticides.
This has resulted in negative environmental consequences in terms of increased carbon emissions, water quality, pollution, and sediment loads, which may offset the pursued environmental benefits of biofuels.
This study analyzes two distinct policies aimed at mitigating the negative environmental impacts of increased agricultural production due to biofuel expansion.
The first scenario is a fertilizer tax, which results in an increase in the US nitrogen fertilizer price, and the second is a policy-driven reversion of US cropland into forestland (afforestation).
Results show that taxing fertilizer reduces US production of nitrogen-intensive crops, but this is partially offset by higher fertilizer use in other countries responding to higher crop prices.
In the afforestation scenario, crop production shifts from high-yielding land in the United States to low-yielding land in the rest of the world.
Important policy implications are that domestic policy changes implemented by a large producer like the United States can have fairly significant impacts on the aggregate world commodity markets.
Also, the law of unintended consequences results in an inadvertent increase in global greenhouse gas emissions.
American Psychological Association (APA)
Elobeid, Amani& Carriquiry, Miguel& Dumortier, Jerome& Rosas, Francisco& Mulik, Kranti& Fabiosa, Jacinto F.…[et al.]. 2013. Biofuel Expansion, Fertilizer Use, and GHG Emissions : Unintended Consequences of Mitigation Policies. Economics Research International،Vol. 2013, no. 2013, pp.1-12.
https://search.emarefa.net/detail/BIM-492279
Modern Language Association (MLA)
Elobeid, Amani…[et al.]. Biofuel Expansion, Fertilizer Use, and GHG Emissions : Unintended Consequences of Mitigation Policies. Economics Research International No. 2013 (2013), pp.1-12.
https://search.emarefa.net/detail/BIM-492279
American Medical Association (AMA)
Elobeid, Amani& Carriquiry, Miguel& Dumortier, Jerome& Rosas, Francisco& Mulik, Kranti& Fabiosa, Jacinto F.…[et al.]. Biofuel Expansion, Fertilizer Use, and GHG Emissions : Unintended Consequences of Mitigation Policies. Economics Research International. 2013. Vol. 2013, no. 2013, pp.1-12.
https://search.emarefa.net/detail/BIM-492279
Data Type
Journal Articles
Language
English
Notes
Includes bibliographical references
Record ID
BIM-492279