WorldWideScience

Sample records for source pollution taxes

  1. Pollution taxes as a source of budgetary revenues in economies in transition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zylicz, T.

    1995-01-01

    In environmental policy, as in other fields, the best is often the enemy of the good. Poland's pollution tax system, as described in this chapter is an example of this dictum. In violation of the usual tenets of public economics (Pigovian taxes, no earmarking), the country imposes a wide variety of pollution taxes (at lower than Pigovian levels) whose revenues feed various environmental funds that finance abatement, conservation projects, and the clean-up of past environmental neglect. The earmarking mechanism shields the revenues from being diverted to other 'worthy' purposes. Although the funds have not brought about an ecological miracle, the pollution tax system has become an effective mechanism for funding environmental investment and ecological recovery - despite some doubts as to the system's efficiency. The system accounts for some 1.6% of the state budget, too little to entertain the idea of making it a source of general budgetary revenue and substantially reducing the traditional distortionary taxes on labor and capital. For the time being, the case for continuing the present arrangements, although not perfect, seems self-evident. 11 refs

  2. Pollution taxes and international competitiveness

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Birch Soerensen, P.

    1994-01-01

    Throughout the industrialized world policy makers are becoming increasingly aware of the potential gains in economic efficiency and environmental quality to be reaped in certain areas of pollution control by switching from direct regulation to market-oriented policy instruments such as pollution taxes. However, concern about the impact on the international competitiveness of domestic producers seems to make governments in many countries hesitant to introduce pollution taxes. As a result, several observers have called for international agreements on harmonized pollution taxes among larger groups of countries such as the member states of the European Community. This paper argues that policy makers should be less concerned about the effects of pollution taxes on international competitiveness and more conscious about their effects on economic efficiency and equity. If pollution taxes improve the allocation of resources, it would be possible to compensate those citizens who might lose from their introduction and still leave the rest of society better off. The openness of the economy only means that a given improvement of environmental quality can be achieved through a lower level of pollution tax rates than would be necessary in a closed economy, because a given pollution tax rate will cause a greater contraction of output in polluting industries, the more these industries are exposed to foreign competition. (EG)

  3. Pollution tax heuristics: An empirical study of willingness to pay higher gasoline taxes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hsu, S.-L.; Walters, Joshua; Purgas, Anthony

    2008-01-01

    Economists widely agree that in concept, pollution taxes are the most cost-effective means of reducing pollution. With the advent of monitoring and enforcement technologies, the case for pollution taxation is generally getting stronger on the merits. Despite widespread agreement among economists, however, pollution taxes remain unpopular, especially in North America. Some oppose pollution taxes because of a suspicion that government would misspend the tax proceeds, while others oppose pollution taxes because they would impose economic hardships upon certain individuals, groups, or industries. And there is no pollution tax more pathologically hated as the gasoline tax. This is unfortunate from an economic perspective, as a gasoline tax is easy to implement, and is a reasonable Pigouvian tax, scaling proportionately with the harms of consumption. Surprisingly, there is a dearth of theory explaining this cleave between economists and virtually everybody else. Drawing on behavioralist literatures, this paper introduces several theories as to why people and governments so vehemently oppose pollution taxes. Using the example of gasoline taxes, we provide some empirical evidence for these theories. We also show that 'revenue recycling,' the use of tax proceeds to reduce other taxes, is an effective means of reducing opposition to gasoline taxes

  4. Taxing bads by taxing goods. Towards efficient pollution control with presumptive charges

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eskeland, G.S.; Devarajan, S.

    1995-01-01

    A strong case is made for relying on a mix of indirect pollution control instruments - those which tax or regulate activities associated with emissions - rather than taxing the emissions themselves. They show that indirect instruments that reduce the scale of output (such as a tax on output or on polluting inputs) can be important complementary measures to emissions standards that reduce the level of emissions per unit of output. In this way, the effects of an optimal emission fee can be mimicked fairly well. The optimal mix of indirect instruments, however, requires knowledge of the 'cleaner' technologies (the ease with which emissions per unit of output can be reduced) as well as the sensitivity of demand to prices (the ease with which the scale of output can be reduced). This contrasts with the optimal emission fee, which relies only on information about emissions. The authors present empirically-based case studies to illustrate the consequences of employing a combination of presumptive charges and emissions standards. A recurring theme throughout their contribution is that the taxation of fuel use, due to the interaction between fuel use and emissions, can serve as a powerful indirect instrument to supplement pollution standards in controlling air pollution. In the case of automobiles, for example, they show that failing to employ gasoline taxes (which ensure that emissions are cut through not only cleaner cars but also fewer trips) in Mexico City would significantly harm welfare, even when regulatory standards (catalytic converters) are in place. In the case of point-source pollution, they calculate that significant potential exists for altering the fuel mix of industries in Indonesia and Chile by taxing 'dirtier' fuels. Furthermore, they show that, in the case of Indonesia, the general-equilibrium consequences of such a change in the tax structure are similar, though somewhat dampened, compared to what is indicated by partial-equilibrium models

  5. Transboundary Pollution, Trade Liberalization, and Environmental Taxes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Baksi, S.; Ray Chaudhuri, A.

    2008-01-01

    In a bilateral trade framework, we examine the impact of tariff reduction on the optimal pollution tax and social welfare when pollution is transboundary. Strategic considerations lead countries to distort their pollution tax in the non-cooperative equilibrium. Trade liberalization changes the distortion, and consequently the pollution tax and welfare, in ways that depend on the extent to which pollution is transboundary. We find that when the pollution damage parameter is sufficiently small (large), bilateral tariff reduction always decreases (increases) the pollution tax, irrespective of the value of the transboundary pollution parameter. However, when the pollution damage parameter takes intermediate values, bilateral tariff reduction decreases the pollution tax if and only if the transboundary pollution parameter is sufficiently large (or even sufficiently small, in certain cases). Moreover, with pollution being transboundary, the impact of trade liberalization on welfare is non-monotonic and concave. The greater the extent to which pollution crosses borders, the more likely is trade liberalization to reduce welfare

  6. Transboundary Pollution, Trade Liberalization, and Environmental Taxes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Baksi, S. [Department of Economics, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg (Canada); Ray Chaudhuri, A. [Department of Economics, CentER, TILEC, Tilburg University, Tilburg (Netherlands)

    2008-08-15

    In a bilateral trade framework, we examine the impact of tariff reduction on the optimal pollution tax and social welfare when pollution is transboundary. Strategic considerations lead countries to distort their pollution tax in the non-cooperative equilibrium. Trade liberalization changes the distortion, and consequently the pollution tax and welfare, in ways that depend on the extent to which pollution is transboundary. We find that when the pollution damage parameter is sufficiently small (large), bilateral tariff reduction always decreases (increases) the pollution tax, irrespective of the value of the transboundary pollution parameter. However, when the pollution damage parameter takes intermediate values, bilateral tariff reduction decreases the pollution tax if and only if the transboundary pollution parameter is sufficiently large (or even sufficiently small, in certain cases). Moreover, with pollution being transboundary, the impact of trade liberalization on welfare is non-monotonic and concave. The greater the extent to which pollution crosses borders, the more likely is trade liberalization to reduce welfare.

  7. Transboundary Pollution, Trade Liberalization, and Environmental Taxes

    OpenAIRE

    Baksi, S.; Ray Chaudhuri, A.

    2008-01-01

    In a bilateral trade framework, we examine the impact of tari¤ reduction on the op- timal pollution tax and social welfare when pollution is transboundary. Strategic considerations lead countries to distort their pollution tax in the non-cooperative equilibrium. Trade liberalization changes the distortion, and consequently the pol- lution tax and welfare, in ways that depend on the extent to which pollution is transboundary. We find that when the pollution damage parameter is sufficiently sma...

  8. Transboundary Pollution, Trade Liberalization and Environmental Taxes

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Baksi, S.; Ray Chaudhuri, A.

    2008-01-01

    In a bilateral trade framework, we examine the impact of tariff reduction on the optimal pollution tax and social welfare when pollution is transboundary. Strategic considerations lead countries to distort their pollution tax in the non-cooperative equilibrium. Trade liberalization changes the

  9. Transboundary Pollution, Trade Liberalization, and Environmental Taxes

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Baksi, S.; Ray Chaudhuri, A.

    2008-01-01

    In a bilateral trade framework, we examine the impact of tari¤ reduction on the op- timal pollution tax and social welfare when pollution is transboundary. Strategic considerations lead countries to distort their pollution tax in the non-cooperative equilibrium. Trade liberalization changes the

  10. Effect of petroleum pollution tax on pollution control and the economy of Taiwan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chi-Yuan Liang.

    1992-01-01

    The objective of this paper is to employ the modified Jorgenson-Liang model (1985), which is a dynamic thirty-sector energy economic model of Taiwan, to analyze the effect of petroleum pollution tax on pollution control, oil consumption, output prices and cost structure in Taiwan's industrial sectors during 1990-1995. The conclusion of this paper is that to levy petroleum pollution tax will result in a significant decrease of consumption on oil products and air pollution. However it has only mild impact on the sectoral output prices and cost structure. And hence the implementation of petroleum pollution tax, will not only be effective in reducing the air pollution emission of oil products but also economically feasible. 4 refs., 2 tabs

  11. A dedicated pollution tax: The motor for change

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stoyke, E.; Stoyke, G.

    1992-01-01

    Carbon taxes coming into effect around the world are predicted to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1-6%. Using the punitive approach alone, such taxes will not be sufficiently effective in fighting global climate change. A dedicated pollution tax is proposed in which moderate fees on greenhouse gases and other polluting emissions are balanced by financial incentives for energy efficient retrofitting or non-polluting substitutions. These incentives will vastly accelerate conversion to energy efficient technologies by reducing payback periods to acceptable levels and will lead to a 50-80% reduction in fossil fuel consumption at a profit. Estimated environmental costs of pollutant emissions from coal and natural gas are presented, and the internalization of external costs into energy prices is discussed. Demand reduction provides more environmental benefits than scrubbing of fossil emissions, at less cost. Examples of potential lighting savings in a classroom are presented, and simple payback and savings for a variety of lighting energy efficiency measures are tabulated. The effects of different pollution tax levels on Alberta's coal fired electricity generation are tabulated. 5 refs., 6 figs., 4 tabs

  12. Study on the relationship between the opening of environmental tax and the prevention and control of air pollution in China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Guilin; Wang, Tianyi

    2018-03-01

    This article systematically expounds the status quo and sources of air pollution, the experience of foreign environmental tax policy, the advantages and disadvantages of environmental taxes levied in our country through literature research, historical analysis and comparative analysis and put forward recommendations on tax policy of prevention and control of air pollution by combining with the specific national conditions in our country. As one of the basic means of national macro-control, the tax policy is the major countermeasure that cannot be ignored in the prevention and control of air pollution. Studying the tax policy of prevention and control of air pollution will help to effectively control air pollution, develop a green economy and recycle economy and achieve the goal of improving environmental quality.

  13. Vehicular air pollution and environmental tax law in Brazil: proposed tax restructuring for sustainable development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pedro Monteiro Machado de Almeida Penna

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available This work presents a restructuring of taxes in the automotive sector in Brazil in order to foster sustainable development. Personal vehicles, trucks or buses emit gases that contribute to global warming and cause human health problems. There are policies in Brazil to reduce the emission of air pollutants from vehicles; however, these neither punish the polluter nor provide for damage compensation. The Tax Law, with the Constitutional Polluter Pays Principle, is an efficient instrument for State intervention in the economy. The work compared environmental and economic views regarding fuel and both personal and public vehicles. We estimated the environmental benefits of recycling vehicles in use more than 10 years, taking into consideration pollution engendered in the manufacture of a new vehicle. Finally, we propose to unify vehicular taxation when the vehicle is acquired, by ending the ICMS and PIS / COFINS taxes on fuels and instead taxing CIDE-fuels, without reducing overall collection by the Brazilian government. The ensuing revenue would be used for repairing environmental damages. We have also made suggestions for the improvement of public policies to control emissions of atmospheric pollutants.

  14. Regulating a Polluting Oligopoly : Emission Tax or Voluntary Agreement ?

    OpenAIRE

    Mala David

    2003-01-01

    This paper compares, in a polluting oligopoly, an emission tax and a form of environmental policy called voluntary agreement (VA). There are here two ways of reducing pollution: output contraction and endof- pipe abatement. Given the imperfect competition, firms' reaction to the tax is sub-optimal. They reduce output excessively in order to raise the price and do not abate enough. The VA is a take-it-or-leaveit contract on abatement effort, offered to the firms with the threat of a tax. It ha...

  15. Optimal pollution taxes and endogenous technological progress

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Parry, I.W.H.

    1995-01-01

    The optimal pollution tax becomes complicated when allowance is made for endogenous innovation, under a patent system. However, if anything, it is below marginal environmental damages, to counteract monopoly pricing by the patent holder, the common pool effect associated with research and a possible excess of patent holder revenue over the social benefits from innovation when environmental damages are convex. In cases where patents are weak at securing appropriability, for example when rivals can easily imitate around patented technologies, awarding research prizes or contracts is probably more efficient than raising the pollution tax. 24 refs., 4 figs

  16. The simple economics of motor vehicle pollution: A case for fuel tax

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Montag, Josef

    2015-01-01

    The volume of pollution produced by an automobile is determined by driver's behavior along three margins: (i) vehicle selection, (ii) kilometers driven, and (iii) on-road fuel economy. The first two margins have been studied extensively, however the third has received scant attention. How significant is this ‘intensive margin’? What would be the optimal policies when it is taken into account? The paper develops and analyzes a simple model of the technical and behavioral mechanisms that determine the volume emissions produced by a car. The results show that an optimal fuel tax would provide drivers with appropriate incentives along all three margins and that only public information is needed for a fuel tax to be set optimally. In contrast, an optimal distance tax would require private information. Lastly, relative to the optimal fuel tax, a simple uniform fuel tax is shown to be progressive. Thus, being already deployed worldwide, a uniform fuel tax is an attractive second-best policy. These findings should be accounted for when designing new mechanisms to alleviate motor vehicle pollution. -- Highlights: •The paper analyzes motor vehicle pollution and optimal policy responses. •The intensive margin of vehicle use (on-road fuel consumption) is modeled explicitly. •An optimal fuel tax requires only public information, unlike an optimal distance tax. •Fuel taxes should remain the core instrument for car pollution control. •Other policies, such as a car tax, may complement fuel taxes but are not substitutes

  17. Environmental taxes in Sweden, does the polluter pay?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sjoelin, M.

    2001-01-01

    Environmental taxes have been on the agenda in many countries in Europe the last couple of years. The aim of environmental taxes is mainly to decrease the harm to the environment by charging the activities that are harmful to the environment. The statistics on environmental taxes have, until today, often been presented on an aggregated level i.e. the total tax revenue for different taxes. Something that has a high political interest is to present environmental taxes broken down by industries. This makes it possible to analyse how the tax burden is spread between different economic activities. This presentation will cover environmental taxes in Sweden on an aggregate level as well as broken down by industries and sectors. The breakdown of environmental taxes by industry are compared to relevant environmental data within the system of environmental accounts, like pollution and energy consumption

  18. Taxation, pollution, unemployment and growth: Could there be a 'triple dividend' from a green tax reform?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Birch Soerensen, P.; Haagen Pedersen, L.; Nielsen, S.B.

    1994-01-01

    The paper develops a model of endogenous economic growth, where sustainable growth is driven by private capital accumulation and productive government spending on education and pollution abatement. The economy is distorted by pollution externalitities in production and consumption; by taxes and transfers, and by union monopoly power creating involuntary unemployment. within this framework we analyse the effects of various 'green' tax policies on pollution, unemployment, growth, and consumer welfare. Among other things, we highlight the differences between pollution taxes which are levied for general revenue purposes and pollution taxes which are 'earmarked' for financing expenditures on pollution abatement. We also investigate the effects of a switch in the policy regime from quantity control of pollution combined with 'grandfathering' of pollution rights to regulation via emission charges. We find that such a regime shift has the potential to raise employment, growth and welfare without damaging the environment, because emission charges improve the efficiency of the tax system by serving as an indirect method of taxing away pure profits. (au) 13 refs

  19. Governance by Green Taxes: Making Pollution Prevention Pay

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Mikael Skou

    a comparative study of the water policies of Denmark, France, Germany and the Netherlands, he shows how, in contrast to administrative regulation, green taxes have made pollution prevention pay and promoted the "ecological modernization" of industry. He goes on, however, to challenge the prevailing orthodoxy...

  20. Air pollution in Australia: review of costs, sources and potential solutions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robinson, Dorothy L

    2005-12-01

    Estimated health costs and principal sources of air pollution are reviewed, together with estimated costs of reducing pollution from major sources in Australia. Emissions data from the Australian National Pollutant Inventory were compared with published estimates of pollution costs and converted to the cost per kilogram of emissions. Costs per kg of emissions (and, for the two main sources of pollution, diesel vehicles and wood heaters, costs per heater and per vehicle) are relatively easy to understand, making it easier to compare health costs with costs of pollution-control strategies. Estimated annual costs of morbidity/mortality exceed $1,100 per diesel vehicle and $2,000 per wood heater. Costs of avoiding emissions (about $2.1/kg PM2.5 for phasing out wood heaters and upwards of $70/kg for reducing diesel emissions) are considerably less than the estimated health costs ($166/kg) of those emissions. In other countries, smokeless zones (for domestic heating), heavy vehicle low-emission zones, and lower registration charges for low-emission vehicles reduce pollution and improve health. Similar 'polluter-pays' taxes in Australia to encourage retrofitting of existing diesels and incentives to choose new ones with lowest emissions would provide substantial benefits. Adopting Christchurch's policy of phasing out wood heaters and 'polluter-pays' levies to discourage their use would be extremely cost-effective.

  1. 26 CFR 513.7 - Release of excess tax withheld at source.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... source from life annuities and pensions, other than pensions paid by the Government of the United States... 26 Internal Revenue 19 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Release of excess tax withheld at source. 513.7...) REGULATIONS UNDER TAX CONVENTIONS IRELAND Withholding of Tax § 513.7 Release of excess tax withheld at source...

  2. Integrating environmental taxes on local air pollutants with fiscal reform in Hungary: simulations with a computable general equilibrium model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Morris, Glenn E.; Revesz, Tamas; Zalai, Ernoe; Fucsko, Jozsef

    1999-01-01

    This paper describes the Fiscal Environmental Integration Model (FEIM) and its use to examine the merits of introducing a set of air pollutant emission taxes and stringent abatement requirements based on best commonly available control technology. These environmental protection strategies are examined both independently and in combination. In addition, Hungary has very high VAT, employment, and income tax rates and therefore might receive more than the usual advantage from using environmental tax revenues to reduce other taxes. We therefore also examine the economic and environmental implications of different uses of the revenues generated by the air pollutant emissions taxes. FEIM is a CGE model of the Hungarian economy that includes sectoral air pollution control costs functions and execution options that allow examination of the key policy choices involved. We developed and ran a baseline and seven scenarios with FEIM. The scenarios centered on introduction of environmental load fees (ELF) on emissions of SO 2 , NO x , and particulates and emission abatement requirements (EAR) for these pollutants. (Author)

  3. Effects of carbon tax

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Michelini, M.

    1992-01-01

    At the recent United Nations Conference held in Rio de Janeiro, a proposal was made by Italy to have surcharges be applied by OECD member countries on fossil fuels (carbon tax), primarily to fund pollution abatement technology transfer to developing countries and promote pollution abatement, energy conservation and the use of renewable energy sources in industrialized countries. This paper assesses how the application of the proposed carbon tax might be successfully combined with additional fiscal policies favouring coal gasification and reforestation so as to provide energy policy strategists of oil-importing countries with a long term economically and environmentally viable alternative to petroleum imports

  4. 75 FR 15610 - Employment Taxes and Collection of Income Tax at Source

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-03-30

    ... DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Internal Revenue Service 26 CFR Part 31 Employment Taxes and Collection of Income Tax at Source CFR Correction In Title 26 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Parts 30 to 39, revised as of April 1, 2010, on page 262, in Sec. 31.3402(o)-3, replace the fifth sentence in paragraph (c...

  5. 78 FR 19100 - Employment Taxes and Collection of Income Tax at Source

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-03-29

    ... DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Internal Revenue Service 26 CFR Part 31 Employment Taxes and Collection of Income Tax at Source CFR Correction In Title 26 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Parts 30 to 39, revised as of April 1, 2012, on page 301, in Sec. 31.3406(b)(3)-2, in paragraph (b)(5), the language ``Sec...

  6. Equilibrium pollution taxes in a two-sector open economy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nannerup, N. [Faculty of Business Administration, Dept. of Economics (Denmark)

    1996-12-31

    This paper is concerned with trade strategic implications of environmental policy between two countries when there are two oligopolistic markets in each of which producers are located in a separate country. Differences in abatement cost structures between domestic firms are moreover introduced. This variant of the basic model of strategic trade makes possible an analysis of the design of optimal emission taxes across domestic sectors when countries have taken unilateral actions to reduce emission of a pollutant harming the global environment, such as CO{sub 2}. It turns out that by differentiating taxes across domestic firms governments can raise national net foreign rents in the two markets. This basic result arising between non-cooperative governments is related to recent results showing that tax-differentiation across sectors could, in fact, raise global welfare insofar as it prevents CO{sub 2} emission to relocate in countries that have no climate policy. (au) 16 refs.

  7. Source Taxation of Technological Services in Finnish Tax Treaties

    OpenAIRE

    Kiviranta, Tuomas

    2016-01-01

    In this study, I analyze the various means of source taxation of technological and other services permitted by Finnish double taxation conventions and the future of source taxation of technological and other services. I attempt to shed light on the various means of source taxation of technological services permitted by Finnish tax treaties and by tax treaties also more generally. I analyze 1) the taxation of technological services in the source country as the profits of a permanent establishm...

  8. The Impact of Greening Tax Systems on Sustainable Energy Development in the Baltic States

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dalia Streimikiene

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available The paper deals with the greening of tax systems in the European Union (EU, and reviews the achievements of the Baltic States in relation to greening their tax systems and implementing the sustainable energy development goals set by the EU’s energy policies. Environmental taxes promote sustainable energy development, as they allow internalizing the external costs of atmospheric pollution in the energy sector. Energy production and consumption are a major source classical pollutants and greenhouse gas (GHG emissions. Almost of the all EU member states (MS apply pollution taxes as the most important economic tool for mitigating the environmental impacts of various economic activities. Considering the importance of the energy sector in terms of its contributions to total atmospheric emissions in the EU, it is supposed that environmental taxes are important drivers of sustainable energy development. Environmental taxes, as the main tool for the integration of negative externalities that are related to atmospheric pollution, are imposed to create incentives for reducing fossil fuel consumption and switching to renewable energy sources or fuels that have a lower carbon content and thus cause less pollution. The paper presents a comparative assessment of the impact of environmental taxes on sustainable energy development indicators in three selected countries from the Baltic region (Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia during the period 2005–2015, and reveals the role that the greening of tax systems has had on implementing sustainable energy development targets in the Baltic States.

  9. Polluted Runoff: Nonpoint Source Pollution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nonpoint Source (NPS) pollution is caused by rainfall or snowmelt moving over and through the ground, it picks up and carries natural and human-made pollutants, depositing them into lakes, rivers, wetlands, coastal waters and ground waters.

  10. Modeling generator power plant portfolios and pollution taxes in electric power supply chain networks: a transportation network equilibrium transformation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kai Wu; Nagurney, A.; University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA; Zugang Liu; Stranlund, J.K.

    2006-01-01

    Global climate change and fuel security risks have encouraged international and regional adoption of pollution/carbon taxes. A major portion of such policy interventions is directed at the electric power industry with taxes applied according to the type of fuel used by the power generators in their power plants. This paper proposes an electric power supply chain network model that captures the behavior of power generators faced with a portfolio of power plant options and subject to pollution taxes. We demonstrate that this general model can be reformulated as a transportation network equilibrium model with elastic demands and qualitatively analyzed and solved as such. The connections between these two different modeling schemas is done through finite-dimensional variational inequality theory. The numerical examples illustrate how changes in the pollution/carbon taxes affect the equilibrium electric power supply chain network production outputs, the transactions between the various decision-makers the demand market prices, as well as the total amount of carbon emissions generated. (author)

  11. Environmental taxes 1991 - 2000 (2001)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    2001-01-01

    The statistics presents statements of environmental taxes for the period 1991-2000 (and budget figure for 2001). Environmental taxes is a collective concept for pollution, energy, transportation and resource related taxes. Income of the government from environmental taxes have increased from 30,0 billions DDK in 1991 to 60,6 billions DDK in 2000 - a little more than a doubling. The environmental taxes' part of the total taxes has increased from 7,5% in 1991 to 9,7% in 2000. In 2000 the energy taxes are 55%, the transportation taxes 38% and the pollution and resource taxes 7% of the environmental taxes. (EHS)

  12. Tax evasion and income source: A comparative experimental study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gërxhani, K.; Schram, A.J.H.C.

    2006-01-01

    We compare tax evasive behavior in a country in transition from communism to that in a developed economy by running an experiment across distinct social groups in Albania and the Netherlands. Aside from the tax compliance decision, subjects choose a source of income, where one type enables

  13. Environmental taxes 1991 - 2001 (2002)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    2002-01-01

    The statistics presents statements of environmental taxes for the period 1991-2001 (and budget figure for 2002). Environmental taxes are a concept for pollution, energy, transportation and resource related taxes. Income of the government from environmental taxes have increased from 30,0 billions DDK in 1991 to 62,2 billions DDK in 2001 - a little more than a doubling. The environmental taxes' part of the total taxes' part og the total taxes has increased from 7,5% in 1991 to 9,4% in 2001. In 2001 the energy taxes are 57%, the transportation taxes 36% and the pollution and resource taxes 7% of the environmental taxes. (LN)

  14. Environmental taxes and subsidies 2002

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    2003-01-01

    The statistics presents statements of environmental taxes for the period 1970 - 2002 and statements of environmentally related subsidies for the years 1996 - 2002. Environmental taxes are a concept for pollution, energy, transportation, and resource related taxes. The State's revenue from environmental taxes have increased from 4,0 billions DKK in 1970 to 65,7 billions DKK in 2002. The environmental taxes' part of the GNP has increased from 3,2 % in 1970 to 4,8 % in 2002. The part of the environmental taxes of the total taxes and tariffs has increased from 8,2 % in 1970 to 9,8 % in 2002. >From 2001 to 2002 the environmental taxes increased with 5,6 %, primarily because the taxes in the transportation sector increased with 13,5 % due to more new cars. The pollution taxes increased with 6 % while the environmental taxes for energy increased with only 0,8 %. In 2002 the energy related taxes amounted to 54 %, the transport related taxes to 39 %, and pollution and resource related taxes amounted to 7 % of the total environmental taxes. The public environmentally related subsidies to companies and households has been on a stable level of a little more than 10 billions DKK through the latest years. The energy related subsidies have, however, been transferred to transport related subsidies, i.e. primarily subsidies to the public transport. (ln)

  15. Energy taxes -- Some critical remarks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wirl, F.

    1994-01-01

    The familiar concept of Pigouvian taxes has finally caught the interest of politicians as the various proposals for a pollution tax, often simplified to an energy tax, document. This paper reviews these proposals critically and points at some wrong presumptions. The suggestion to make the polluter liable for all damages is in general inefficient. In order to sell new taxes, politicians argue that Pigouvian taxes would not lower disposable income, because the associated revenues allow one to reduce other taxes (in particular, income taxes) correspondingly. However, strategic, noncompetitive energy producers may themselves attempt to internalize the external costs rather than to leave these tax revenues to the treasuries of the consuming countries. Moreover, the revenues from a commodity tax are potentially volatile. Finally, the conservation impact from Pigouvian energy taxes may fall short of expectations, in particular, if the tax is too low

  16. Bureaucratic Tax-Seeking: The Danish Waste Tax

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Christoffersen, Henrik; Svendsen, Gert Tinggaard

    2000-01-01

    Two main results in traditional tax theory states the following. First, general taxes minimize the welfare loss from changed relative prices. Second, because the total public budget tends to exceed the optimal size, a leader (here named 'troop leader') is needed in the budget process to prevent...... over-taxation. Nevertheless, differentiated taxes initiated by individual ministries generate a still larger proportion of total tax revenue, in particular under cover of taxing externalities such as environmental pollution. We suggest that this situation leads to over-taxation for two reasons. First......, the absence of a strong and fully informed troop leader prevents rational coordination of collective action. Second, budget maximization leads to overwhelming fiscal pressure because bureaucracies are competing about resources just like fishermen or hunters (here named 'bureaucratic tax-seeking'). Taxing...

  17. Point Pollution Sources Dimensioning

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Georgeta CUCULEANU

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available In this paper a method for determining the main physical characteristics of the point pollution sources is presented. It can be used to find the main physical characteristics of them. The main physical characteristics of these sources are top inside source diameter and physical height. The top inside source diameter is calculated from gas flow-rate. For reckoning the physical height of the source one takes into account the relation given by the proportionality factor, defined as ratio between the plume rise and physical height of the source. The plume rise depends on the gas exit velocity and gas temperature. That relation is necessary for diminishing the environmental pollution when the production capacity of the plant varies, in comparison with the nominal one.

  18. Pollution taxes - where are we heading?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ritter, W.

    1996-01-01

    Reshaping the system of taxation towards ecologic objectives by introduction of new, environment-oriented taxes affecting industrial production factors would adversely affect the ecologic and economic progress and in the end would give advocates of this policy the lie. Approaches for amendment of the tax system more strongly implementing environmental policy objectives should rather be based on legal incentives given by the system of taxation for enhanced investments and innovation, as well as pinpointed tax benefits, than on new taxes skimming off the financial means required for investments and innovation. Inudstry has been playing a positive and active part in the efforts for enhanced protection of the environment. Industry's self-commitment programme for greenhouse gas abatement has meant an important step forward. It is now up to the legislator to open up new room for action in support of environmental policy goals, instead of barring the road by new taxes. (orig.) [de

  19. Eco taxes and double dividend. A co-integration analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ghignoni, E.

    1999-01-01

    The paper tackles with the critical discussion of the eco tax double dividend theory. It is built up a theoretical and empirical analysis on short and long run effects of changes in real prices of energetic inputs on the use of polluted sources and labour, as well as on short and long run effects of changes in real labour cost on the use of labour and energy. At that purpose Johansen's procedure allows to get a structural multivariate model of dynamic relationships among the variables enclosed in the data set of a production function with labour and energy. This model is submitted to a dynamic simulation and results suggest that the introduction of an eco tax coupled with a decreasing in real labour cost would have uncertain and not leasing effects on the reduction of pollution coming from the utilisation of energetic sources and very limited effects on employment [it

  20. Environment taxation and greenhouse gases (general tax on energy polluting activities and emissions trading)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Parayre, P.; Bruhnes, P.; Huglo, Ch.

    2000-12-01

    This document brings together 11 expert testimonies about the French general tax on polluting activities (GTPA). Content: 1 - the GTPA today and in 2001: the first year GTPA, the GTPA 2001 in the water sector, the everyday formal procedures linked with GTPA, the contentious aspects of GTPA; 2 - the eco-tax or energy-GTPA: European framework of energy products taxing, enforcement and implementation of the energy-GTPA in France; 3 - the negotiable emission permits: negotiable permits for companies with a strong energy intensity, functioning of emission permits in a global strategy, the position of the European Commission about negotiable permits and the perspectives in this domain at the community level; 4 - towards a reduction of greenhouse gases: the Goeteborg protocol, the consequences of La Haye's COP6, the position of a type-sector, an efficient system for the abatement of greenhouse gases by the producing sector. (J.S.)

  1. Economic-environmental modeling of point source pollution in Jefferson County, Alabama, USA.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kebede, Ellene; Schreiner, Dean F; Huluka, Gobena

    2002-05-01

    This paper uses an integrated economic-environmental model to assess the point source pollution from major industries in Jefferson County, Northern Alabama. Industrial expansion generates employment, income, and tax revenue for the public sector; however, it is also often associated with the discharge of chemical pollutants. Jefferson County is one of the largest industrial counties in Alabama that experienced smog warnings and ambient ozone concentration, 1996-1999. Past studies of chemical discharge from industries have used models to assess the pollution impact of individual plants. This study, however, uses an extended Input-Output (I-O) economic model with pollution emission coefficients to assess direct and indirect pollutant emission for several major industries in Jefferson County. The major findings of the study are: (a) the principal emission by the selected industries are volatile organic compounds (VOC) and these contribute to the ambient ozone concentration; (b) the direct and indirect emissions are significantly higher than the direct emission by some industries, indicating that an isolated analysis will underestimate the emission by an industry; (c) while low emission coefficient industries may suggest industry choice they may also emit the most hazardous chemicals. This study is limited by the assumptions made, and the data availability, however it provides a useful analytical tool for direct and cumulative emission estimation and generates insights on the complexity in choice of industries.

  2. Identification of petroleum pollution sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Begak, O.Yu.; Syroezhko, A.M.

    2001-01-01

    A possibility of preliminary identification of petroleum pollution sources was investigated on specimens of the Khanty-Mansi autonomous district six deposits and specimens of soil and water polluted by these petroleums. Investigations were conducted using IR Fourier spectroscopy and gamma spectrometry, as well as methods of chromato-mass spectrometry and capillary gas liquid chromatography. Every of studied samples of petroleum from different deposits have an individual radiation impression. Insignificant total content of radionuclides in samples is specific to the Khanty-Mansi petroleum region. Gamma spectrometry admits to identify potential source of petroleum pollution using radionuclides of uranium and thorium series [ru

  3. A comparison of European energy taxes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boiteux, S.

    2004-01-01

    Energy and pollution are two closely related topics, and justifiably so, even if the environmental repercussions of energy consumption affect society to varying degrees. Today, there is a revival of interest for 'clean' energy solutions with respect to the traditional, more polluting, energy sources. The boundary between these two energy categories remains difficult to established. Natural gas is a perfect example because it is considered as a clean alternative to hydrocarbons, while its use generates greenhouse gases. Taking into consideration these criteria, together with some others, in particular economical and strategic, each country must establish environmental policies in which energy taxes play a key role. This study examines the taxation of traditional types of energy (automotive fuels, fuel oil, natural gas and electricity) within the European Union. The goal is to provide an overview of environmental taxes applied to energy in Europe, prior to the application of the new directive that sets minimum rates for these energies starting in 2004

  4. MACROECONMIC TENDENCIES OF ENVIRONMENTAL TAXES IN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cristea Anca

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Reforms of environmental taxes in EU member states began to consolidate a strategic conceptual basis since the early '90s, when it was launched the idea of changing the tax burden from the tax factor of production, work to the environmental factors and use of environmental unfriendly activities and goods. The theoretical support of this view is represented by the corrective taxes Pigou situation justifying the optimal level of activity of producing goods and services from a social perspective, the collection of taxes imposed by the state of polluters, depending on the amount of damage and damage to third parties, the principle of 'polluter pays'. Despite the green fees start reforms of the EU member countries and their levels are not increased in recent years as a share of GDP. In the EU-27, 2008, revenues from environmental taxes represented a rate of about 2.8% of GDP and 6.1% of total revenues compared to 2.9% and 7.0% record share of GDP in 1999. Effects of environmental taxes on eco-efficiency must be seen not only in terms of their size or budget as income tax to GDP ratio, but also as a positive economic and social impact generated by larger beneficial effects of reducing pollution and preserving the quality natural resources and environmental factors.

  5. Sources of pollution

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    First page Back Continue Last page Overview Graphics. Sources of pollution. Domestic wastewater (Sewage). Organic matter; Nitrogen & phosphorus; Pathogens, viruses, …. Agricultural runoff. Nitrogen & phosphorus; Pesticides; Industrial effluents; Organics (oil &grease, pigments, phenols, organic matter ….) Heavy ...

  6. Trade implications of environmental taxes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Klepper, G.

    1994-01-01

    The general equilibrium impact of environmental taxes does not consist simply consist in a reduction of international trade. This rather depends on the particular circumstances in which the tax is imposed. The trade impacts of environmental regulation which have been measured empirically are almost negligable. Even simulation studies predict strong effects only for very few sectors of the economy. Since the environmental taxes are imposed in order to induce a reallocation of the economy away from the polluting towards the less polluting activities, one can not expect that the polluting industries will not need to shrink or need to introduce abatement measures. This internal reallocation will necessarily be accompanied by a restructuring of trade between economies. Hence, mitigating these trade effects is about as meaningful as mitigating the internal restructuring of the economy. (orig./UA)

  7. Pollution taxation and revenue recycling under monopoly unions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Strand, J.

    1996-04-01

    This paper discusses a model in which a given number of firms decide on a pollution reducing production technology, and then hire workers who subsequently form a monopoly union which sets the wage. The paper discusses the possibility of ``double dividends``. By this is meant simultaneous pollution reductions and employment increase when the pollution tax is increased and tax revenues recycled, in alternative ways. In all cases overall pollution is then reduced. When pollution tax revenues are used to subsidize output, the effect on employment of a marginal pollution tax increase is neutral in all cases studied. When employment is subsidized, it is increased in one case, implying a ``double dividend``. When instead investments in pollution reducing equipment are subsidized, increasing the pollution tax reduces employment. On the whole, employment subsidies are the most efficient way of recycling pollution tax revenues, with respect to simultaneous environmental and employment objectives. 19 refs.

  8. The air pollution: sources, effects, prevention

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Elichegaray, C.

    2008-01-01

    The author offers a detailed and illustrated panorama of the air pollution sources and effects. The study is realized at the individual scale with the indoor pollution and at a global scale with the consequences of the greenhouse effect gases. Added to classical pollutants, the book takes into account new pollutants (organic, nano particulates, biological) and the epidemiology. (A.L.B.)

  9. Rate Proposal for Remuneration of Air Pollutants Emissions From Stationary Sources Located in Bogota D.C.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gabriel Herrera Torres

    2011-04-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this project is to develop a methodological proposal for the establishment of the retributive rate for the direct use of the atmosphere as the receptor of pollutant emissions that come from stationary resources on Bogotá D.C. By means of the emissions from stationary sources inventory and the air quality analysis, the pollutant that are emitted by the industries and the ones that are regulated by the network observations of the were identified selecting the particulated matter (PM10, sulfur oxides (SOx, and nitrogen oxides (NOx as the atmospheric pollutants that should be the object of payment in the retributive rate. Besides the selection of the pollutants that should be in the payment, the analysis of the retributive rate structure was made witch was based on the description or four key elements the generated fact, the tax base, the passive subject, and the fee of the rate. taking into account the social costs which are related to the investment being made by the district for the treatment of patients that present acute respiratory diseases ERA´s, associated and the costs of program control and monitoring of the air quality in Bogotá, the tariffs of the payment of the retributive rate were redefined in 281 $/Kg for the PM10, 2816 $/kg for the SOX and 2866 $/kg for NOX. Finally a new model of the payment was established, which is the result of the multiplication of the respective tariff for each of the pollutants that were selected as object of payment, expressed in ($/kg times, the charge of the pollutants emitted by the source expressed in (kg/ day.times the total number of days of the operation of the source emissions in a year.

  10. Mining-related nonpoint-source pollution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cohen, R.H.; Gorman, J.

    1991-01-01

    This article describes the effects of increased mining activity on surface and groundwater. The topics covered include pollutant sources, contaminant transport and fate, trace element toxicity, pollution control and abatement, treating acid mine drainage, modern constructed wetlands and site reclamation including site stabilization, refuse burial and sludge application

  11. On cost benefit rules for green taxes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aronsson, T.

    1999-01-01

    This paper concerns the welfare effects of a green tax reform in a dynamic general equilibrium model with preexisting taxes on labor income and capital income. In comparison with previous studies on green taxes in dynamic models, which have focused their main attention on long run effects of such reforms, I derive cost benefit rules for a change in the tax mix by using the properties of the value function in optimal control theory. This enables me to relate the welfare effect of a change in the tax mic to responses in employment, the capital stock, (flow) emissions and the stock of pollution along the whole general equilibrium path. Another contribution of the paper is to examine under what conditions an emission tax, which is set permanently below the marginal damage of pollution, is welfare superior to an emission tax path that fully internalizes the external effect. 22 refs

  12. Documentation for grants equal to tax model: Volume 3, Source code

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boryczka, M.K.

    1986-01-01

    The GETT model is capable of forecasting the amount of tax liability associated with all property owned and all activities undertaken by the US Department of Energy (DOE) in site characterization and repository development. The GETT program is a user-friendly, menu-driven model developed using dBASE III/trademark/, a relational data base management system. The data base for GETT consists primarily of eight separate dBASE III/trademark/ files corresponding to each of the eight taxes (real property, personal property, corporate income, franchise, sales, use, severance, and excise) levied by State and local jurisdictions on business property and activity. Additional smaller files help to control model inputs and reporting options. Volume 3 of the GETT model documentation is the source code. The code is arranged primarily by the eight tax types. Other code files include those for JURISDICTION, SIMULATION, VALIDATION, TAXES, CHANGES, REPORTS, GILOT, and GETT. The code has been verified through hand calculations

  13. Environmental taxes in 2008

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2011-01-01

    This report briefly presents and comments the amount of environmental taxes which have been collected in France in 2008. These taxes comprise energy taxes (nearly 68 per cent), transport taxes (nearly 28 per cent) and pollution and resource taxes (less than 5 per cent), and represent 2 per cent of the French GDP and 5 per cent of mandatory contributions. The share of environmental taxes is compared among the European Union countries. This shows that France is close to the average. It also appears that these taxes evolve slower than the GDP. An indicator is built up and commented: it relates the rate between energy taxes and the GDP on the one hand, and energy consumption on the other hand. This indicator displays a slow but significant decrease since the end of the last century

  14. [A landscape ecological approach for urban non-point source pollution control].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guo, Qinghai; Ma, Keming; Zhao, Jingzhu; Yang, Liu; Yin, Chengqing

    2005-05-01

    Urban non-point source pollution is a new problem appeared with the speeding development of urbanization. The particularity of urban land use and the increase of impervious surface area make urban non-point source pollution differ from agricultural non-point source pollution, and more difficult to control. Best Management Practices (BMPs) are the effective practices commonly applied in controlling urban non-point source pollution, mainly adopting local repairing practices to control the pollutants in surface runoff. Because of the close relationship between urban land use patterns and non-point source pollution, it would be rational to combine the landscape ecological planning with local BMPs to control the urban non-point source pollution, which needs, firstly, analyzing and evaluating the influence of landscape structure on water-bodies, pollution sources and pollutant removal processes to define the relationships between landscape spatial pattern and non-point source pollution and to decide the key polluted fields, and secondly, adjusting inherent landscape structures or/and joining new landscape factors to form new landscape pattern, and combining landscape planning and management through applying BMPs into planning to improve urban landscape heterogeneity and to control urban non-point source pollution.

  15. A Study of Japanese Consumption Tax System : Mainly on Multiple Tax Rates and Input Tax Credit Methods

    OpenAIRE

    栗原, 克文

    2007-01-01

    One of the most important discussions on Japanese tax system reform includes how consumption tax (Value-added tax) system ought to be. Facing issues like depopulation, aging society and large budget deficit, consumption tax can be an effective source of revenue to secure social security. This article mainly focuses on multiple tax rates and input tax credit methods of Japanese consumption tax system. Because of regressive nature of consumption tax, tax rate reduction, exemption on foodstuffs ...

  16. Adjusting export tax rebates to reduce the environmental impacts of trade: Lessons from China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, Peng; Mao, Xianqiang; Corsetti, Gabriel

    2015-09-15

    Export tax rebates are an important policy instrument for stimulating exports, which many developing countries make use of. However, excessive export tax rebates and inappropriate structural arrangements can lead to over-production in highly polluting industries and cause the environment to deteriorate. This paper, taking China as the study case, tests and verifies the statistical significance of the causal relationship between export tax rebates and pollution emissions. With a computable general equilibrium modeling, the current study further analyzes the effectiveness of export tax rebate adjustments aimed at alleviating environmental pressure for different time periods. It is found that before 2003, export tax rebates primarily promoted exports and boosted foreign exchange reserves, and highly polluting sectors enjoyed above-average export tax rebates, which led to increased pollution emissions. Between 2003 and 2010, the export tax rebate system was reformed to reduce support for the highly polluting export sectors, which led to decreases in emissions. Canceling export tax rebates for highly polluting sectors is shown to be the most favorable policy choice for improving the environmental performance of China's international trade. This study can serve as reference for other developing countries which similarly rely on export tax rebates, so that they can adjust their policies so as to combine economic growth with pollution control. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. New source review for stationary sources of air pollution

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Committee on Changes in New Source Review Programs for Stationary Sources of Air Pollution, National Research Council

    2006-01-01

    The Clean Air Act established a pair of programsâ€"known as New Source Review (NSR)â€"that regulate large stationary sources of air pollution, such as factories and electricity-generating facilities...

  18. Rainfall Deduction Method for Estimating Non-Point Source Pollution Load for Watershed

    OpenAIRE

    Cai, Ming; Li, Huai-en; KAWAKAMI, Yoji

    2004-01-01

    The water pollution can be divided into point source pollution (PSP) and non-point source pollution (NSP). Since the point source pollution has been controlled, the non-point source pollution is becoming the main pollution source. The prediction of NSP load is being increasingly important in water pollution controlling and planning in watershed. Considering the monitoring data shortage of NPS in China, a practical estimation method of non-point source pollution load --- rainfall deduction met...

  19. The optimal gas tax for California

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin, C.-Y. Cynthia; Prince, Lea

    2009-01-01

    This paper calculates the optimal gasoline tax for the state of California. According to our analysis, the optimal gasoline tax in California is $1.37/gal, which is over three times the current California tax when excluding sales taxes. The Pigovian tax is the largest part of this tax, comprising $0.85/gal. Of this, the congestion externality is taxed the most heavily, at $0.27, followed by oil security, accident externalities, local air pollution, and finally global climate change. The other major component, a Ramsey tax, comprises a full $0.52 of this tax, reflecting the efficiency in raising revenues from a tax on gasoline consumption due to the inelastic demand of this consumption good.

  20. The 1990 utility tax conference

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Norris, J.E.

    1990-01-01

    This article reports on the Sixth Annual Utility Tax Conference held in Washington, D.C. in October. Topics of the conference concerned tax issues associated with depreciable assets, employee benefits plans, valuation on utility property, pollution control, and restructuring and reorganization. Also discussed briefly were the tax changes being considered at that time as part of the negotiation of the details of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act

  1. The optimal gas tax for California

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lin, C.-Y. Cynthia; Prince, Lea [Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of California, Davis, CA 95616 (United States)

    2009-12-15

    This paper calculates the optimal gasoline tax for the state of California. According to our analysis, the optimal gasoline tax in California is USD1.37/gal, which is over three times the current California tax when excluding sales taxes. The Pigovian tax is the largest part of this tax, comprising USD0.85/gal. Of this, the congestion externality is taxed the most heavily, at USD0.27, followed by oil security, accident externalities, local air pollution, and finally global climate change. The other major component, a Ramsey tax, comprises a full USD0.52 of this tax, reflecting the efficiency in raising revenues from a tax on gasoline consumption due to the inelastic demand of this consumption good. (author)

  2. Environmental policy, pollution, unemployment and endogenous growth

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pedersen, Lars Haagen; Nielsen, Søren Bo; Sørensen, Peter Birch

    1995-01-01

    The paper develops a model of endogenous economic growth with pollution externalities and a labor market distorted by union monopoly power and by taxes and transfers. We study the optimal second-best pollution tax and abatement policy and find that a shift toward greener preferences will tend...... to reduce unemployment, although it will hamper growth. We also find that greater labor-market distortions call for higher pollution tax rates. Finally, we show that a switch from quantity control of pollution combined with grandfathering of pollution rights to regulation via emission charges has...

  3. Can French environmental taxes really turn into green taxes? Current status and conditions of acceptability

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chiroleu-Assouline, Mireille

    2015-01-01

    French environmental taxes are not really ecologically oriented. Their main aim is to raise revenues. Clear signs of this inappropriate direction are given by the large share of the energy taxes and by the low level of most tax rates, which for the most part, are only implicit tax rates on the polluting goods. An ecological tax reform would imply a global green tax shift with tax rates proportionate to the marginal damages. The success and the acceptation of such a reform by the taxpayers rely on the chosen recycling mechanism for the tax revenues, on government's efforts in information and pedagogy, on transparency about the policy choices but also, somehow paradoxically, on audacity of actions. Initially published in 'Revue de l'OFCE', No. 139

  4. Heavy Metals Pollution on Surface Water Sources in Kaduna ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This study examine the effects of heavy metal pollutants to aquatic ecosystems and the environment by considering the role of urban, municipal, agricultural, industrial and other anthropogenic processes as sources of heavy metal pollution in surface water sources of Kaduna metropolis. Samples of the polluted water were ...

  5. Nonpoint source pollution of urban stormwater runoff: a methodology for source analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Petrucci, Guido; Gromaire, Marie-Christine; Shorshani, Masoud Fallah; Chebbo, Ghassan

    2014-09-01

    The characterization and control of runoff pollution from nonpoint sources in urban areas are a major issue for the protection of aquatic environments. We propose a methodology to quantify the sources of pollutants in an urban catchment and to analyze the associated uncertainties. After describing the methodology, we illustrate it through an application to the sources of Cu, Pb, Zn, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) from a residential catchment (228 ha) in the Paris region. In this application, we suggest several procedures that can be applied for the analysis of other pollutants in different catchments, including an estimation of the total extent of roof accessories (gutters and downspouts, watertight joints and valleys) in a catchment. These accessories result as the major source of Pb and as an important source of Zn in the example catchment, while activity-related sources (traffic, heating) are dominant for Cu (brake pad wear) and PAH (tire wear, atmospheric deposition).

  6. Tax evasion and the source of income: An experimental study in Albania and the Netherlands

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gërxhani, K.; Schram, A.

    2003-01-01

    A series of experiments among different social groups in both Albania and the Netherlands give the opportunity to compare behavioral patterns related to tax evasion. Aside from the decision whether or not to evade taxes, subjects have to choose a source of income, where one type enables subsequent

  7. Pollutant source identification model for water pollution incidents in small straight rivers based on genetic algorithm

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Shou-ping; Xin, Xiao-kang

    2017-07-01

    Identification of pollutant sources for river pollution incidents is an important and difficult task in the emergency rescue, and an intelligent optimization method can effectively compensate for the weakness of traditional methods. An intelligent model for pollutant source identification has been established using the basic genetic algorithm (BGA) as an optimization search tool and applying an analytic solution formula of one-dimensional unsteady water quality equation to construct the objective function. Experimental tests show that the identification model is effective and efficient: the model can accurately figure out the pollutant amounts or positions no matter single pollution source or multiple sources. Especially when the population size of BGA is set as 10, the computing results are sound agree with analytic results for a single source amount and position identification, the relative errors are no more than 5 %. For cases of multi-point sources and multi-variable, there are some errors in computing results for the reasons that there exist many possible combinations of the pollution sources. But, with the help of previous experience to narrow the search scope, the relative errors of the identification results are less than 5 %, which proves the established source identification model can be used to direct emergency responses.

  8. Analysis of China's Regional Tax Fairness --From the Perspective of the Relationship between Tax and Tax Source%我国区域税负公平探析——以税收与税源的关系为研究视角

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    杨杨; 杜剑

    2011-01-01

    In theory, the tax revenue mainly depend on the scale of tax sources in a area. But in reality, due to the design of tax system and the complexity of production and business activities, tax revenue deviates from tax source in many areas. This phenomenon is contrary to the principles of consistency of tax and tax source, resul- ting in an imbalance of finance between different regions and the increase of tax burden in western regions. Therefore, on the one hand, tax revenue attribution should be considered as factors in tax system and establish consistency between tax and tax source in legislation. On the other hand, based on perfect theory, tax revenue should be operated prudently and flexibly so as to promote the consistency of tax burden in eastern, central and western areas in reality.%理论上,一个地区有多大规模的税源就应该收到多少税,但在现实中,由于税收体制设计和生产经营活动的复杂性,普遍存在着税收与税源相背离的现象。这违背了税收与税源相一致的原则,造成了区域间财力的不平衡,并进一步加重了西部地区的税收负担。为此,建议将“税收收入归属”列入税制要素,并从立法层面确立税收与税源的一致性原则;在完善相关理论的基础上,实践中审慎灵活操作,以促进东中西部之间的实际税负趋于一致。

  9. Identifiability and Identification of Trace Continuous Pollutant Source

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hongquan Qu

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Accidental pollution events often threaten people’s health and lives, and a pollutant source is very necessary so that prompt remedial actions can be taken. In this paper, a trace continuous pollutant source identification method is developed to identify a sudden continuous emission pollutant source in an enclosed space. The location probability model is set up firstly, and then the identification method is realized by searching a global optimal objective value of the location probability. In order to discuss the identifiability performance of the presented method, a conception of a synergy degree of velocity fields is presented in order to quantitatively analyze the impact of velocity field on the identification performance. Based on this conception, some simulation cases were conducted. The application conditions of this method are obtained according to the simulation studies. In order to verify the presented method, we designed an experiment and identified an unknown source appearing in the experimental space. The result showed that the method can identify a sudden trace continuous source when the studied situation satisfies the application conditions.

  10. Groundwater Pollution Source Identification using Linked ANN-Optimization Model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ayaz, Md; Srivastava, Rajesh; Jain, Ashu

    2014-05-01

    Groundwater is the principal source of drinking water in several parts of the world. Contamination of groundwater has become a serious health and environmental problem today. Human activities including industrial and agricultural activities are generally responsible for this contamination. Identification of groundwater pollution source is a major step in groundwater pollution remediation. Complete knowledge of pollution source in terms of its source characteristics is essential to adopt an effective remediation strategy. Groundwater pollution source is said to be identified completely when the source characteristics - location, strength and release period - are known. Identification of unknown groundwater pollution source is an ill-posed inverse problem. It becomes more difficult for real field conditions, when the lag time between the first reading at observation well and the time at which the source becomes active is not known. We developed a linked ANN-Optimization model for complete identification of an unknown groundwater pollution source. The model comprises two parts- an optimization model and an ANN model. Decision variables of linked ANN-Optimization model contain source location and release period of pollution source. An objective function is formulated using the spatial and temporal data of observed and simulated concentrations, and then minimized to identify the pollution source parameters. In the formulation of the objective function, we require the lag time which is not known. An ANN model with one hidden layer is trained using Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm to find the lag time. Different combinations of source locations and release periods are used as inputs and lag time is obtained as the output. Performance of the proposed model is evaluated for two and three dimensional case with error-free and erroneous data. Erroneous data was generated by adding uniformly distributed random error (error level 0-10%) to the analytically computed concentration

  11. 26 CFR 1.857-4 - Tax imposed by reason of the failure to meet certain source-of-income requirements.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ..., DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES Real Estate Investment Trusts § 1.857-4 Tax imposed by reason of the failure to meet certain source-of-income requirements. Section 857... 26 Internal Revenue 9 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Tax imposed by reason of the failure to meet...

  12. A Comparison of Emission Taxes and Permit Markets for Controlling Correlated Externalities

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Caplan, A.J. [Department of Economics, Utah State University, 3530 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322-3530 (United States)

    2006-08-15

    This paper provides an answer to the question: Are emission taxes an efficient and self-enforcing mechanism to control correlated externality problems? By 'correlated externalities' we mean multiple pollutants that are jointly produced by a single source but cause differentiated regional and global externalities. By 'self-enforcing' we mean a mechanism that accounts for the endogeneity that exists between competing jurisdictions in the setting of environmental policy within a federation of regions. This mechanism incorporates sequential decision making among the jurisdictions and therefore determines an equilibrium based on the concept of subgame perfection. We find that, unlike joint domestic and international tradable permit markets, joint emission taxes and a hybrid scheme of permits and taxes are neither efficient nor self-enforcing.

  13. A Comparison of Emission Taxes and Permit Markets for Controlling Correlated Externalities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Caplan, A.J.

    2006-01-01

    This paper provides an answer to the question: Are emission taxes an efficient and self-enforcing mechanism to control correlated externality problems? By 'correlated externalities' we mean multiple pollutants that are jointly produced by a single source but cause differentiated regional and global externalities. By 'self-enforcing' we mean a mechanism that accounts for the endogeneity that exists between competing jurisdictions in the setting of environmental policy within a federation of regions. This mechanism incorporates sequential decision making among the jurisdictions and therefore determines an equilibrium based on the concept of subgame perfection. We find that, unlike joint domestic and international tradable permit markets, joint emission taxes and a hybrid scheme of permits and taxes are neither efficient nor self-enforcing

  14. The Implementation of Effluent Taxes for Cambodian Industry: An Assessment of Pollutant Levies

    OpenAIRE

    Sideth Muong

    2006-01-01

    This study looks at how the Cambodian government might introduce a pollution levy system to address the country's industrial pollution problem. Using information drawn from a variety of sources, including a recent industrial survey, it estimates the levels of pollution charges that would reduce pollution by 25%-85%. It also calculates the overall revenue that such levies would produce and estimates the costs that industry would have to bear in terms of abatement costs and pollution charges. B...

  15. Annotated Bibliography of Law-Related Pollution Prevention Sources.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lynch, Holly; Murphy, Elaine

    This annotated bibliography of law-related pollution prevention sources was prepared by the National Pollution Prevention Center for Higher Education. Some topics of the items include waste reduction, hazardous wastes, risk reduction, environmental policy, pollution prevention, environmental protection, environmental leadership, environmental…

  16. Green taxes by doubling energy levies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    De Vos, R.

    1998-01-01

    An overview is given of green taxes, levies and investment facilities in the Netherlands. Also, attention is paid to the main issues in the Third Dutch National Environmental Plan (NMP3). Energy levies are imported for the Dutch government to shift taxes on labor further towards taxes on pollution. However, the proposed doubling of the energy levies meets strong opposition from industry and businesses. 2 fig., 3 tabs

  17. A source classification framework supporting pollutant source mapping, pollutant release prediction, transport and load forecasting, and source control planning for urban environments

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lützhøft, Hans-Christian Holten; Donner, Erica; Wickman, Tonie

    2012-01-01

    for this purpose. Methods Existing source classification systems were examined by a multidisciplinary research team, and an optimised SCF was developed. The performance and usability of the SCF were tested using a selection of 25 chemicals listed as priority pollutants in Europe. Results The SCF is structured...... in the form of a relational database and incorporates both qualitative and quantitative source classification and release data. The system supports a wide range of pollution monitoring and management applications. The SCF functioned well in the performance test, which also revealed important gaps in priority...

  18. Fiscal federalism approach for controlling global environmental pollution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Murty, M.N.

    1996-01-01

    It is found that optimal international carbon taxes are country specific and we can decompose a tax on a domestically produced carbon-intensive commodity into a revenue tax, a tax to control local atmospheric pollution and an international carbon tax. It shows that an institutional arrangement for the world economy similar to the fiscal federalism in the federal countries can be useful to internalize the global externalities of atmospheric pollution. 18 refs

  19. International capital tax evasion and the foreign tax credit puzzle

    OpenAIRE

    Kimberley A. Scharf

    2001-01-01

    This paper examines the role of international tax evasion for the choice of an optimal foreign tax credit by a capital exporting region. Since a foreign tax credit raises the opportunity cost of concealing foreign source income, it can be employed to discourage evasion activity. The existence of international tax evasion possibilities could thus help rationalize a choice of tax credit in excess of a deduction-equivalent credit level. Our analysis shows that, in general the optimal credit will...

  20. The Sources of Air Pollution and Their Control.

    Science.gov (United States)

    National Air Pollution Control Administration (DHEW), Arlington, VA.

    The problems of air pollution and its control are discussed. Major consideration is given the sources of pollution - motor vehicles, industry, power plants, space heating, and refuse disposal. Annual emission levels of five principle pollutants - carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons, and particulate matter - are listed…

  1. Ecological tax reform

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1996-12-31

    An environmental tax reform is seen by many as a possible solution to some crucial problems of modern society - pollution, excessive resource consumption and unemployment. Changes in the system of taxation are here seen as a long term process, one that must cheapen the costs of labour and make the costs of resource use more expensive - a process which can also create major changes in our society as to conceptions of quality, work, consumption etc. The conference presented proposals for an ecological tax and duty system that would contribute to: Changing technology so that it becomes more resource and energy effective. Changing the economic mechanisms so that resource consumption and pollution become more expensive while human resources become cheaper. Changing personal life styles and values so that material consumption becomes less decisive for our choices and priorities. An environmental tax reform is neither without problems nor painless. An economy and an industrial sector based on increasing consumption of energy and raw materials will, in the long run, lead to drawbacks that far outweigh those that are connected with an economic re-orientation whose driving force is another conception of nature. (EG)

  2. Ecological tax reform

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1996-01-01

    An environmental tax reform is seen by many as a possible solution to some crucial problems of modern society - pollution, excessive resource consumption and unemployment. Changes in the system of taxation are here seen as a long term process, one that must cheapen the costs of labour and make the costs of resource use more expensive - a process which can also create major changes in our society as to conceptions of quality, work, consumption etc. The conference presented proposals for an ecological tax and duty system that would contribute to: Changing technology so that it becomes more resource and energy effective. Changing the economic mechanisms so that resource consumption and pollution become more expensive while human resources become cheaper. Changing personal life styles and values so that material consumption becomes less decisive for our choices and priorities. An environmental tax reform is neither without problems nor painless. An economy and an industrial sector based on increasing consumption of energy and raw materials will, in the long run, lead to drawbacks that far outweigh those that are connected with an economic re-orientation whose driving force is another conception of nature. (EG)

  3. Ecological tax reform

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1997-12-31

    An environmental tax reform is seen by many as a possible solution to some crucial problems of modern society - pollution, excessive resource consumption and unemployment. Changes in the system of taxation are here seen as a long term process, one that must cheapen the costs of labour and make the costs of resource use more expensive - a process which can also create major changes in our society as to conceptions of quality, work, consumption etc. The conference presented proposals for an ecological tax and duty system that would contribute to: Changing technology so that it becomes more resource and energy effective. Changing the economic mechanisms so that resource consumption and pollution become more expensive while human resources become cheaper. Changing personal life styles and values so that material consumption becomes less decisive for our choices and priorities. An environmental tax reform is neither without problems nor painless. An economy and an industrial sector based on increasing consumption of energy and raw materials will, in the long run, lead to drawbacks that far outweigh those that are connected with an economic re-orientation whose driving force is another conception of nature. (EG)

  4. 26 CFR 31.3221-3 - Supplemental tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Supplemental tax. 31.3221-3 Section 31.3221-3 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY (CONTINUED) EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE Railroad...

  5. Tax havens: Features, operations and solving tax evasion problems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Obradović-Ćuk Jelena

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Tax haven offers minimal or no tax liability to foreign individuals and enterprises in economically and politically stable environment, where little or no financial information is shared with foreign tax authorities. The aim of this research is to create a comprehensive overview of the characteristics and operations of tax havens, as well as to point out to the ways to overcome the problem of tax evasion. The methodology used in the work is characteristic of social science research: analysis, synthesis and discussion, comparative, inductive and historical analysis, together with the usage of relevant national and international sources. This paper describes the basic features of tax havens, as well as specific business models applied in them. A separate chapter deals with overcoming the problem of tax evasion, which is the main adverse effect of doing business through tax havens.

  6. Source apportionment of toxic chemical pollutants at Trombay region

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sahu, S.K.; Pandit, G.G.; Puranik, V.D.

    2007-05-01

    Anthropogenic activities like industrial production and transportation, a wide range of chemical pollutants such as trace and toxic metals, pesticides, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons etc. eventually find their way into various environmental compartments. One of the main issues of environmental pollution is the chemical composition of aerosols and their sources. In spite of all the efforts a considerable part of the atmospheric aerosol mass is still not accounted for. This report describes some of the activities of Environmental Assessment Division which are having direct relevance to the public health and regulatory bodies. Extensive studies were carried out in our laboratories for the Trombay site, over the years; on the organic as well as inorganic pollution in the environment to understand inter compartmental behaviour of these chemical pollutants. In this report an attempt has been made to collect different size fractionated ambient aerosols and to quantify the percentage contribution of each size fraction to the total aerosol mass. Subsequently, an effort has been made for chemical characterization (inorganic, organic and carbon content) of these particulate matter using different analytical techniques. The comprehensive data set on chemical characterization of particulate matter thus generated is being used with receptor modeling techniques to identify the possible sources contributing to the observed concentrations of the measured pollutants. The use of this comprehensive data set in receptor modeling has been helpful in distinguishing the source types in a better way. Receptor modeling techniques are powerful tools that can be used to locate sources of pollutants to the atmosphere. The major advantage of the receptor models is that actual ambient data are used to apportion source contributions, negating the need for dispersion calculations. Pollution sources affecting the sampling site were statistically identified using varimax rotated factor analysis of

  7. Chemometric Analysis for Pollution Source Assessment of Harbour Sediments in Arctic Locations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pedersen, Kristine B.; Lejon, Tore; Jensen, Pernille Erland

    2015-01-01

    Pollution levels, pollutant distribution and potential source assessments based on multivariate analysis (chemometrics) were made for harbour sediments from two Arctic locations; Hammerfest in Norway and Sisimiut in Greenland. High levels of heavy metals were detected in addition to organic...... pollutants. Preliminary assessments based on principal component analysis (PCA) revealed different sources and pollutant distribution in the sediments of the two harbours. Tributyltin (TBT) was, however, found to originate from point source(s), and the highest concentrations of TBT in both harbours were...... indicated relation primarily to German, Russian and American mixtures in Hammerfest; and American, Russian and Japanese mixtures in Sisimiut. PCA was shown to be an important tool for identifying pollutant sources and differences in pollutant composition in relation to sediment characteristics....

  8. Environmental Radioactive Pollution Sources and Effects on Man

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El-Naggar, A.M.

    1999-01-01

    The sources of environmental radioactivity are essentially the naturally occurring radionuclides in the earth,s crust and the cosmogenic radionuclides reaching the environmental ecosystems. The other sources of environmental radioactivity are the man made sources which result from the radioactive materials in human life. The naturally occurring environmental radioactivity is an integral component of the terrestrial and extraterrestrial creation, and therefore it is not considered a source of radioactive pollution to the environment. The radioactive waste from human activities is released into the environment, and its radionuclide content becomes incorporated into the different ecosystems. This results in a situation of environmental radioactive pollution. This review presents the main features of environmental radioactive pollution, the radionuclide behaviour in the ecosystems, pathway models of radionuclides in the body and the probability of associated health hazards. The dose effect relationship of internal radiation exposure and its quantitative aspects are considered because of their relevance to this subject

  9. Study on road surface source pollution controlled by permeable pavement

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Chaocheng

    2018-06-01

    The increase of impermeable pavement in urban construction not only increases the runoff of the pavement, but also produces a large number of Non-Point Source Pollution. In the process of controlling road surface runoff by permeable pavement, a large number of particulate matter will be withheld when rainwater is being infiltrated, so as to control the source pollution at the source. In this experiment, we determined the effect of permeable road surface to remove heavy pollutants in the laboratory and discussed the related factors that affect the non-point pollution of permeable pavement, so as to provide a theoretical basis for the application of permeable pavement.

  10. Pollution of water sources and removal of pollutants by advanced drinking-water treatment in China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, L; Wang, B

    2000-01-01

    The pollution of water resources and drinking water sources in China is described in this paper with basic data. About 90% of surface waters and over 60% of drinking water sources in urban areas have been polluted to different extents. The main pollutants present in drinking water sources are organic substances, ammonia nitrogen, phenols, pesticides and pathogenic micro-organisms, some of which cannot be removed effectively by the traditional water treatment processes like coagulation, sedimentation, filtration and chlorination, and the product water usually does not meet Chinese national drinking water standards, when polluted source water is treated. In some drinking-water plants in China, advanced treatment processes including activated carbon filtration and adsorption, ozonation, biological activated carbon and membrane separation have been employed for further treatment of the filtrate from a traditional treatment system producing unqualified drinking water, to make final product water meet the WHO guidelines and some developed countries' standards, as well as the Chinese national standards for drinking water. Some case studies of advanced water treatment plants are described in this paper as well.

  11. Was there significant tax evasion after the 1999 50 cent per pack cigarette tax increase in California?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Emery, S; White, M; Gilpin, E; Pierce, J

    2002-01-01

    Objectives: Several states, including California, have implemented large cigarette excise tax increases, which may encourage smokers to purchase their cigarettes in other lower taxed states, or from other lower or non-taxed sources. Such tax evasion thwarts tobacco control objectives and may cost the state substantial tax revenues. Thus, this study investigates the extent of tax evasion in the 6–12 months after the implementation of California's $0.50/pack excise tax increase. Design and setting: Retrospective data analysis from the 1999 California Tobacco Surveys (CTS), a random digit dialled telephone survey of California households. Main outcome measures: Sources of cigarettes, average daily cigarette consumption, and reported price paid. Results: Very few (5.1 (0.7)% (±95% confidence limits)) of California smokers avoided the excise tax by usually purchasing cigarettes from non- or lower taxed sources, such as out-of-state outlets, military commissaries, or the internet. The vast majority of smokers purchased their cigarettes from the most convenient and expensive sources: convenience stores/gas (petrol) stations (45.0 (1.9)%), liquor/drug stores (16.4 (1.6)%), and supermarkets (8.8 (1.2)%). Conclusions: Despite the potential savings, tax evasion by individual smokers does not appear to pose a serious threat to California's excise tax revenues or its tobacco control objectives. PMID:12035006

  12. Energy demand and environmental taxes: the case of Greece

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rapanos, V.T.; Polemis, M.L.

    2005-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effects that energy taxes may have on reducing environmental pollution in Greece. We study the demand for residential energy for the period 1965-1998, and on the basis of these estimates we make forecasts for CO 2 emissions in the coming years. Furthermore we develop alternative scenarios for tax changes, and study their effects on CO 2 emissions. According to our findings the harmonization of the Greek energy taxes to the average European Union levels implies an increase of total CO 2 emissions by 6% annually. If taxes are raised, however, to the highest European Union levels, the CO 2 emissions are restricted significantly. These empirical findings may indicate that environmental taxation cannot be the unique instrument for combating pollution. (author)

  13. Energy demand and environmental taxes: the case of Greece

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rapanos, Vassilis T.; Polemis, Michael L.

    2005-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effects that energy taxes may have on reducing environmental pollution in Greece. We study the demand for residential energy for the period 1965-1998, and on the basis of these estimates we make forecasts for CO 2 emissions in the coming years. Furthermore we develop alternative scenarios for tax changes, and study their effects on CO 2 emissions. According to our findings the harmonization of the Greek energy taxes to the average European Union levels implies an increase of total CO 2 emissions by 6% annually. If taxes are raised, however, to the highest European Union levels, the CO 2 emissions are restricted significantly. These empirical findings may indicate that environmental taxation cannot be the unique instrument for combating pollution

  14. Source selection problem of competitive power plants under government intervention: a game theory approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mahmoudi, Reza; Hafezalkotob, Ashkan; Makui, Ahmad

    2014-06-01

    Pollution and environmental protection in the present century are extremely significant global problems. Power plants as the largest pollution emitting industry have been the cause of a great deal of scientific researches. The fuel or source type used to generate electricity by the power plants plays an important role in the amount of pollution produced. Governments should take visible actions to promote green fuel. These actions are often called the governmental financial interventions that include legislations such as green subsidiaries and taxes. In this paper, by considering the government role in the competition of two power plants, we propose a game theoretical model that will help the government to determine the optimal taxes and subsidies. The numerical examples demonstrate how government could intervene in a competitive market of electricity to achieve the environmental objectives and how power plants maximize their utilities in each energy source. The results also reveal that the government's taxes and subsidiaries effectively influence the selected fuel types of power plants in the competitive market.

  15. 26 CFR 31.3211-3 - Employee representative supplemental tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Employee representative supplemental tax. 31... (CONTINUED) EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE Railroad Retirement Tax Act (Chapter 22, Internal Revenue Code of 1954) Tax on Employee...

  16. Examination of the conditions of a broadening of the general tax for polluting activities to the intermediate energy consumptions, examination of the conditions of exoneration and attenuation for the energy uses in the industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Beaulinet, M.

    2000-05-01

    This document examines the conditions for a broadening of the general tax on polluting activities to the intermediate energy consumptions in order to reinforce the fight against greenhouse effect and to better master the energy consumption. It analyses the characteristics of each energy source with respect to the principle of a taxation of the consumptions. Finally, several scenarios are analyzed to show the advantage and drawbacks of such a system. A first evaluation and a preliminary tariffing are given. (J.S.)

  17. Modeling the contribution of point sources and non-point sources to Thachin River water pollution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schaffner, Monika; Bader, Hans-Peter; Scheidegger, Ruth

    2009-08-15

    Major rivers in developing and emerging countries suffer increasingly of severe degradation of water quality. The current study uses a mathematical Material Flow Analysis (MMFA) as a complementary approach to address the degradation of river water quality due to nutrient pollution in the Thachin River Basin in Central Thailand. This paper gives an overview of the origins and flow paths of the various point- and non-point pollution sources in the Thachin River Basin (in terms of nitrogen and phosphorus) and quantifies their relative importance within the system. The key parameters influencing the main nutrient flows are determined and possible mitigation measures discussed. The results show that aquaculture (as a point source) and rice farming (as a non-point source) are the key nutrient sources in the Thachin River Basin. Other point sources such as pig farms, households and industries, which were previously cited as the most relevant pollution sources in terms of organic pollution, play less significant roles in comparison. This order of importance shifts when considering the model results for the provincial level. Crosschecks with secondary data and field studies confirm the plausibility of our simulations. Specific nutrient loads for the pollution sources are derived; these can be used for a first broad quantification of nutrient pollution in comparable river basins. Based on an identification of the sensitive model parameters, possible mitigation scenarios are determined and their potential to reduce the nutrient load evaluated. A comparison of simulated nutrient loads with measured nutrient concentrations shows that nutrient retention in the river system may be significant. Sedimentation in the slow flowing surface water network as well as nitrogen emission to the air from the warm oxygen deficient waters are certainly partly responsible, but also wetlands along the river banks could play an important role as nutrient sinks.

  18. ALTERNATIVE SOURCES OF ENERGY - ALTERNATIVE SOURCES OF POLLUTION?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marius-Razvan SURUGIU

    2007-06-01

    Full Text Available In many countries of the world investments are made for obtaining energy efficiency, pursuing to increase the generation of non-polluting fuels due to the fact that energy is vital for any economy. The increase in non-polluting fuels and in renewable energy generation might lead to diminishing the dependence of countries less endowed with conventional energy resources on oil and natural gas from Russia or from Arab countries. Nevertheless, environmental issues represent serious questions facing the mankind, requiring the identification, prevention, and why not, their total solving.European Union countries depend on imports of energy, especially on oil imports. At the same time, the European Union countries record a high volume of greenhouse gas emissions, substances adding to global warming. The transport sector is the main consumer of fossil fuels and generator of greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, diversifying the energy supply used in the transport sector with less polluting sources is an essential objective of the European Union policy in the transport, energy and environment sector. Road transports’ is the sector recording the highest consumption of energy and the highest volume of greenhouse gas emissions.The use of ecologic fuels in the transport sector is an important factor for achieving the objectives of European policies in the field. It is yet to be seen to what extent alternative energy sources are damaging to the environment, as it is a known fact that even for them is recorded a certain level of negative externalities.

  19. Importance of the Recurrent Tax on Immovable Property in the Tax Systems of EU Countries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Břetislav Andrlík

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper deals with the issue of the recurrent tax on immovable property and its significance in the tax systems of the EU Member States. The recurrent tax on immovable property is classified as property taxes, also according to the international methodology of the classification of taxes. This tax is imposed on the owners (in some cases on the lessee or user of the immovable property in the various tax jurisdictions and belong to the taxes that the taxpayer cannot avoid and from this perspective it represents a stable source of income for the public budgets of the modern market economies. This paper discusses the current state of the application of this tax in the tax systems of the Member States with an emphasis on numerical characteristics on the defined timeline. In frame of the analysis of the numerical characteristics there are use the primary sources, which are followed by the interpretation of the calculated results. The theoretical introduction is defining the theoretical basis for the application of this tax in modern tax systems and its conflict with the issue of double taxation.

  20. Pollution Sources in the nile and their environmental impacts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abd El- Bary, M.R.

    1999-01-01

    Over the past decades , the natural quality of water sources has been altered by the impact of various human activities and water uses. In Egypt, the Nile River which is considered as the main water source is still a recipient of most of the wastewater discharged by industrial effluents and several agriculture drains contains mixed wastes (sewage and industrial). These wastes includes a variety of pollutants which have considerable potential effect on both water ecosystem and human health. Monitoring of these pollutant is the first step for the improvement and protection of the Nile River .The Nile Research Institute designed a monitoring program includes collection and analysis of samples from 35 stations along the Nile River from Aswan to the Mediterranean Sea and from all points sources of pollution discharge their wastes into the Nile. The most important pollutant in these wastes are heavy metals, organic matters, inorganic compounds and micro organism causing disease

  1. 26 CFR 31.3221-4 - Exception from supplemental tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Exception from supplemental tax. 31.3221-4...) EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE Railroad Retirement Tax Act (Chapter 22, Internal Revenue Code of 1954) Tax on Employers § 31.3221...

  2. 26 CFR 31.3403-1 - Liability for tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Liability for tax. 31.3403-1 Section 31.3403-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY (CONTINUED) EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE Collection of...

  3. 26 CFR 31.3301-2 - Measure of tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Measure of tax. 31.3301-2 Section 31.3301-2 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY (CONTINUED) EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE Federal...

  4. Light sources and light pollution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pichler, G.

    2005-01-01

    From the dawn of mankind fire and light sources in general played an essential role in everyday life and protection over night. The development of new light sources went through many stages and is now an immense technological achievement, but also a threat for the wildlife at night, mainly because of the so-called light pollution. This paper discusses several very successful light sources connected with low pressure mercury and sodium vapour electric discharges. The luminous efficacy, colour rendering index and other lighting features cannot be always satisfactory, but at least some of the features can be much better than those met by the standard tungsten filament bulbs. High-pressure metal-vapour discharge lamps definitely have a good colour rendering index and a relatively high luminosity. Different light sources with burners at high pressure are discussed, paying special attention to their spectrum. The paper investigates new trends in development through a number of examples with non-toxic elements and pulsed electric discharge, which may be good news in terms of clean environment and energy savings. Light emitting diodes have recently appeared as worthy competitors to conventional light sources. White LEDs have approached 100 lumen/Watt efficacy in laboratories. This suggests that in some not very distant future they could completely replace high-pressure lamps, at least in indoor lighting. The article speculates on new developments which combine trends in nano technology and material science. The paper concludes with light pollution in view of several recent observations of plant and animal life at night in the vicinity of strong light sources. Photo-induced changes at the cell level may completely alter the normal life of plants and animals.(author)

  5. A method to analyze "source-sink" structure of non-point source pollution based on remote sensing technology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Mengzhen; Chen, Haiying; Chen, Qinghui

    2013-11-01

    With the purpose of providing scientific basis for environmental planning about non-point source pollution prevention and control, and improving the pollution regulating efficiency, this paper established the Grid Landscape Contrast Index based on Location-weighted Landscape Contrast Index according to the "source-sink" theory. The spatial distribution of non-point source pollution caused by Jiulongjiang Estuary could be worked out by utilizing high resolution remote sensing images. The results showed that, the area of "source" of nitrogen and phosphorus in Jiulongjiang Estuary was 534.42 km(2) in 2008, and the "sink" was 172.06 km(2). The "source" of non-point source pollution was distributed mainly over Xiamen island, most of Haicang, east of Jiaomei and river bank of Gangwei and Shima; and the "sink" was distributed over southwest of Xiamen island and west of Shima. Generally speaking, the intensity of "source" gets weaker along with the distance from the seas boundary increase, while "sink" gets stronger. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. 26 CFR 31.3221-1 - Measure of employer tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Measure of employer tax. 31.3221-1 Section 31... TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE Railroad Retirement Tax Act (Chapter 22, Internal Revenue Code of 1954) Tax on Employers § 31.3221-1...

  7. 26 CFR 31.3201-1 - Measure of employee tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Measure of employee tax. 31.3201-1 Section 31... TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE Railroad Retirement Tax Act (Chapter 22, Internal Revenue Code of 1954) Tax on Employees § 31.3201-1...

  8. Air pollution sources, impact and monitoring

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qureshi, I.H.

    1999-01-01

    Improper management of socio-economic developmental activities has put a great stress on natural resources and eco-systems and has caused environmental degradation. Indiscriminate release of toxic substances into the atmosphere from power generation, industrial operations, transportation, incineration of waste and other operations has affected the quality of ambient air. Combustion of fossil fuel results in the emission of oxides of carbon, sulfur and nitrogen, particulate and organic compounds which affect the local, regional and global environment. Industrial operations release a wide variety of pollutants which directly affect the local environment. Operation of automobiles releases oxides of carbon, sulfur and nitrogen, hydrocarbons, traces of heavy metals and toxic polycyclic aromatic compounds whereas incineration of municipal waste releases particulate, acid fumes and photochemically reactive and odorous compounds. These air pollutants have varying impacts on health and environment. The intake of polluted air may produce various physiological disorders ranging from respiratory diseases to changes in blood chemistry. Therefore, the emission of pollutants should be controlled at the source and monitoring the levels of pollution should assess the quality of air. (author)

  9. Characterization and source apportionment of water pollution in Jinjiang River, China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Haiyang; Teng, Yanguo; Yue, Weifeng; Song, Liuting

    2013-11-01

    Characterizing water quality and identifying potential pollution sources could greatly improve our knowledge about human impacts on the river ecosystem. In this study, fuzzy comprehensive assessment (FCA), pollution index (PI), principal component analysis (PCA), and absolute principal component score-multiple linear regression (APCS-MLR) were combined to obtain a deeper understanding of temporal-spatial characterization and sources of water pollution with a case study of the Jinjiang River, China. Measurement data were obtained with 17 water quality variables from 20 sampling sites in the December 2010 (withered water period) and June 2011 (high flow period). FCA and PI were used to comprehensively estimate the water quality variables and compare temporal-spatial variations, respectively. Rotated PCA and receptor model (APCS-MLR) revealed potential pollution sources and their corresponding contributions. Application results showed that comprehensive application of various multivariate methods were effective for water quality assessment and management. In the withered water period, most sampling sites were assessed as low or moderate pollution with characteristics pollutants of permanganate index and total nitrogen (TN), whereas 90% sites were classified as high pollution in the high flow period with higher TN and total phosphorus. Agricultural non-point sources, industrial wastewater discharge, and domestic sewage were identified as major pollution sources. Apportionment results revealed that most variables were complicatedly influenced by industrial wastewater discharge and agricultural activities in withered water period and primarily dominated by agricultural runoff in high flow period.

  10. To impose a tax on energy: why and how

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1993-01-01

    This study inspects fiscal organization applicable to energy in certain countries of OECD and approaches following topics: the reasons for which energy is taxed, the question to know if actual organizations could be used to new aims, and the level of efficiency of taxes to reach other aims that providing fiscal receipts. The study begins by a comparison between five countries of OECD where fiscal regimes, the proportioning of different energies used and the burden of pollution are different: Germany, Australia, Denmark, United states and Japan. This work displays what kind of questions the governments have to answer when they want to make new taxes on energy to act against pollution and on energy consumption

  11. 26 CFR 31.3111-4 - Liability for employer tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Liability for employer tax. 31.3111-4 Section...) EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE Federal Insurance Contributions Act (Chapter 21, Internal Revenue Code of 1954) Tax on Employers...

  12. Green taxes, blue taxes: A comparative study of the use of fiscal policy to promote environmental quality

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shaw, C.L.

    1991-01-01

    Central governments are facing increasingly stringent demands to lead the clean-up of public resources. Historically, governments have chosen legislation and regulation to address these concerns and achieved mixed results, but another tool of public policy holds significant promise and is gaining ground in the policy debate: 'green' taxes. The potential of a tax system is to mitigate environmental externalities is explored. The theory of pollution tax is reviewed and a comparison of two country cases where taxes have been designed explicitly to reduce industrial effluents and improve the quality of fresh water resources is presented. If structures to approximate social costs are federally mandated and regionally implemented, a comprehensive tax system can constitute an integral part of an effective response to private spoliation of the commons. (author). 17 refs, 2 figs, 4 tabs

  13. Energy taxes in Iceland

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vilhjalmsson, A.

    1991-01-01

    A detailed survey, including data, of energy taxation, and related reforms and plans for reforms, in Iceland is presented. The current energy tax system here is mostly connected with consumption. There is as yet no taxation on air pollutants from fuel combustion. (AB)

  14. 26 CFR 31.3301-1 - Persons liable for tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Persons liable for tax. 31.3301-1 Section 31... TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE Federal Unemployment Tax Act (Chapter 23, Internal Revenue Code of 1954) § 31.3301-1 Persons liable for...

  15. 26 CFR 31.3111-1 - Measure of employer tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Measure of employer tax. 31.3111-1 Section 31... TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE Federal Insurance Contributions Act (Chapter 21, Internal Revenue Code of 1954) Tax on Employers § 31.3111...

  16. 26 CFR 31.3101-1 - Measure of employee tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Measure of employee tax. 31.3101-1 Section 31... TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE Federal Insurance Contributions Act (Chapter 21, Internal Revenue Code of 1954) Tax on Employees § 31.3101...

  17. [VOCs tax policy on China's economy development].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Chang-Xin; Wang, Yu-Fei; Wang, Hai-Lin; Hao, Zheng-Ping; Wang, Zheng

    2011-12-01

    In this paper, environmental tax was designed to control volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emissions. Computable general equilibrium (CGE) model was used to explore the impacts of environmental tax (in forms of indirect tax) on the macro-economy development at both national and sector levels. Different levels of tax were simulated to find out the proper tax rate. It is found out that imposing environmental tax on high emission sectors can cause the emission decreased immediately and can lead to negative impacts on macro-economy indicators, such as GDP (gross domestic products), total investment, total product and the whole consumption etc. However, only the government income increased. In addition, the higher the tax rate is, the more pollutants can be reduced and the worse economic effects can be caused. Consequently, it is suggested that, the main controlling policies of VOCs abatement should be mandatory orders, and low environmental tax can be implemented as a supplementary.

  18. Source apportionment of nitrogen and phosphorus from non-point source pollution in Nansi Lake Basin, China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Bao-Lei; Cui, Bo-Hao; Zhang, Shu-Min; Wu, Quan-Yuan; Yao, Lei

    2018-05-03

    Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) from non-point source (NPS) pollution in Nansi Lake Basin greatly influenced the water quality of Nansi Lake, which is the determinant factor for the success of East Route of South-North Water Transfer Project in China. This research improved Johnes export coefficient model (ECM) by developing a method to determine the export coefficients of different land use types based on the hydrological and water quality data. Taking NPS total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) as the study objects, this study estimated the contributions of different pollution sources and analyzed their spatial distributions based on the improved ECM. The results underlined that the method for obtaining output coefficients of land use types using hydrology and water quality data is feasible and accurate, and is suitable for the study of NPS pollution at large-scale basins. The average output structure of NPS TN from land use, rural breeding and rural life is 33.6, 25.9, and 40.5%, and the NPS TP is 31.6, 43.7, and 24.7%, respectively. Especially, dry land was the main land use source for both NPS TN and TP pollution, with the contributed proportions of 81.3 and 81.8% respectively. The counties of Zaozhuang, Tengzhou, Caoxian, Yuncheng, and Shanxian had higher contribution rates and the counties of Dingtao, Juancheng, and Caoxian had the higher load intensities for both NPS TN and TP pollution. The results of this study allowed for an improvement in the understanding of the pollution source contribution and enabled researchers and planners to focus on the most important sources and regions of NPS pollution.

  19. Source-specific pollution exposure and associations with pulmonary response in the Atlanta Commuters Exposure Studies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krall, Jenna R; Ladva, Chandresh N; Russell, Armistead G; Golan, Rachel; Peng, Xing; Shi, Guoliang; Greenwald, Roby; Raysoni, Amit U; Waller, Lance A; Sarnat, Jeremy A

    2018-01-03

    Concentrations of traffic-related air pollutants are frequently higher within commuting vehicles than in ambient air. Pollutants found within vehicles may include those generated by tailpipe exhaust, brake wear, and road dust sources, as well as pollutants from in-cabin sources. Source-specific pollution, compared to total pollution, may represent regulation targets that can better protect human health. We estimated source-specific pollution exposures and corresponding pulmonary response in a panel study of commuters. We used constrained positive matrix factorization to estimate source-specific pollution factors and, subsequently, mixed effects models to estimate associations between source-specific pollution and pulmonary response. We identified four pollution factors that we named: crustal, primary tailpipe traffic, non-tailpipe traffic, and secondary. Among asthmatic subjects (N = 48), interquartile range increases in crustal and secondary pollution were associated with changes in lung function of -1.33% (95% confidence interval (CI): -2.45, -0.22) and -2.19% (95% CI: -3.46, -0.92) relative to baseline, respectively. Among non-asthmatic subjects (N = 51), non-tailpipe pollution was associated with pulmonary response only at 2.5 h post-commute. We found no significant associations between pulmonary response and primary tailpipe pollution. Health effects associated with traffic-related pollution may vary by source, and therefore some traffic pollution sources may require targeted interventions to protect health.

  20. Carbon taxes: Their benefits, liabilities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kaufmann, R.K.; Thompson, L.L.J.

    1993-01-01

    A carbon tax holds much promise for helping to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions, but administration will be a problem. Non-compliance, tilting the economic scales in favor of one energy source at the expense of another, and questions of equity between and within nations all must be addressed if the market-based efficiencies of a carbon tax are to become a concrete global reality. This article discusses carbon taxes in the following topic areas: how to set the rates for carbon taxes; administering the tax; international cooperation; type or form of tax; tax adjustments in existing taxes

  1. Reduction Assessment of Agricultural Non-Point Source Pollutant Loading

    OpenAIRE

    Fu, YiCheng; Zang, Wenbin; Zhang, Jian; Wang, Hongtao; Zhang, Chunling; Shi, Wanli

    2018-01-01

    NPS (Non-point source) pollution has become a key impact element to watershed environment at present. With the development of technology, application of models to control NPS pollution has become a very common practice for resource management and Pollutant reduction control in the watershed scale of China. The SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool) model is a semi-conceptual model, which was put forward to estimate pollutant production & the influences on water quantity-quality under different...

  2. Who participates in tax avoidance?

    OpenAIRE

    Alstadsæter, Annette; Jacob, Martin

    2013-01-01

    This paper analyzes the sources of heterogeneity in legal tax avoidance strategies across individuals. Three conditions are required for a taxpayer to participate in tax avoidance: incentive, access, and awareness. Using rich Swedish administrative panel data with a unique link between corporate and individual tax returns, we analyze individual participation in legal tax planning around the 2006 Swedish tax reform. Our results suggest that closely held corporations are utilized to facilitate ...

  3. Study on the Influence of Building Materials on Indoor Pollutants and Pollution Sources

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Yao

    2018-01-01

    The paper summarizes the achievements and problems of indoor air quality research at home and abroad. The pollutants and pollution sources in the room are analyzed systematically. The types of building materials and pollutants are also discussed. The physical and chemical properties and health effects of main pollutants were analyzed and studied. According to the principle of mass balance, the basic mathematical model of indoor air quality is established. Considering the release rate of pollutants and indoor ventilation, a mathematical model for predicting the concentration of indoor air pollutants is derived. The model can be used to analyze and describe the variation of pollutant concentration in indoor air, and to predict and calculate the concentration of pollutants in indoor air at a certain time. The results show that the mathematical model established in this study can be used to analyze and predict the variation law of pollutant concentration in indoor air. The evaluation model can be used to evaluate the impact of indoor air quality and evaluation of current situation. Especially in the process of building and interior decoration, through pre-evaluation, it can provide reliable design parameters for selecting building materials and determining ventilation volume.

  4. 26 CFR 31.6151-1 - Time for paying tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Time for paying tax. 31.6151-1 Section 31.6151-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY (CONTINUED) EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE...

  5. Land-based sources of pollution and environmental quality of Weija ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    A survey of land-based sources of pollution was undertaken in the catchment area of Weija Lake. Activities that may influence the quality of the environment, and the sources, amounts and effects of the pollution of the water body were assessed. Water and precipitation chemistry showed that Na:Ca (0.48) and Na:K (2.0) ...

  6. Tax reforms - taxes without tax laws

    OpenAIRE

    Varma, Vijaya Krushna Varma

    2009-01-01

    All Direct and Indirect taxes accompanied by tax laws, accounting, auditing and tax returns, can be abolished if a new tax system called "TOP Tax system" is adopted and implemented by all nations. Ultimate economic reforms will relieve 7 billion people of the world from the cobweb of ambiguous and complex tax structures, plethora of tax laws, mandatory and cumbersome accounting, auditing, tax returns and consequent quagmire of all tax related cases. Taxation, tax collection, tax enforce...

  7. The relationship between alcohol taxes and binge drinking: evaluating new tax measures incorporating multiple tax and beverage types.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xuan, Ziming; Chaloupka, Frank J; Blanchette, Jason G; Nguyen, Thien H; Heeren, Timothy C; Nelson, Toben F; Naimi, Timothy S

    2015-03-01

    U.S. studies contribute heavily to the literature about the tax elasticity of demand for alcohol, and most U.S. studies have relied upon specific excise (volume-based) taxes for beer as a proxy for alcohol taxes. The purpose of this paper was to compare this conventional alcohol tax measure with more comprehensive tax measures (incorporating multiple tax and beverage types) in analyses of the relationship between alcohol taxes and adult binge drinking prevalence in U.S. states. Data on U.S. state excise, ad valorem and sales taxes from 2001 to 2010 were obtained from the Alcohol Policy Information System and other sources. For 510 state-year strata, we developed a series of weighted tax-per-drink measures that incorporated various combinations of tax and beverage types, and related these measures to state-level adult binge drinking prevalence data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System surveys. In analyses pooled across all years, models using the combined tax measure explained approximately 20% of state binge drinking prevalence, and documented more negative tax elasticity (-0.09, P = 0.02 versus -0.005, P = 0.63) and price elasticity (-1.40, P tax. In analyses stratified by year, the R-squares for models using the beer combined tax measure were stable across the study period (P = 0.11), while the R-squares for models rely only on volume-based tax declined (P tax measures, combined tax measures (i.e. those incorporating volume-based tax and value-based taxes) yield substantial improvement in model fit and find more negative tax elasticity and price elasticity predicting adult binge drinking prevalence in U.S. states. © 2014 Society for the Study of Addiction.

  8. Distributional consequences of environmental taxes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Klinge Jacobsen, H.; Birr-Pedersen, K.; Wier, M.

    2001-11-01

    household consumption of energy and other polluting activities. Indirect effect is calculated to include the indirect tax effect from environmental taxes imposed on domestic production of goods and services that are finally consumed by domestic households. The input-output methodology is used by combing the household consumption patterns of different income and socioeconomic groups with the Danish input-output matrices. (au)

  9. Towards an International Code for administrative cooperation in tax matter and international tax governance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eva Andrés Aucejo

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available There is not a “Global Code” that encodes the duty of cooperation between tax authorities in the world, concerning the global tax system. This article addresses this issue by proposing a global Code of administrative cooperation in tax matters including both tax relations: between States, and between States, taxpayers and intermediary’s agents. It follows a wide concept of tax governance. The findings of this research have highlighted several practical applications for future practice. article analyses, firstly, the State of the question, starting with the legal sources (international and European sources of hard law and soft law reviewing the differences with the Code as here proposed. It also examines some important Agents who emit relevant normative in international administrative tax cooperation and the role that these agents are developing nowadays (sometimes international organizations but also States like the United States, which Congress enacted the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, FATCA. Overlapping and gaps between different regulations are underlined. Finally, the consequences of this “General Code” lack for the functioning of a good international governance, are described. Hence, the need to create an International Cooperation Code on tax matters and international fiscal governance is concluded. That Code could be proposed by any International Organization as the World Bank nature, for instance, or the International Monetary Fund or whichever International or European Organization. This instrument could be documented through a multilateral instrument (soft law, to be signed by the States to become an international legal source (hard law. Filling this Code as Articulated Text (form could be very useful for the International Community towards an International Tax Governance.

  10. [Nitrogen non-point source pollution identification based on ArcSWAT in Changle River].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deng, Ou-Ping; Sun, Si-Yang; Lü, Jun

    2013-04-01

    The ArcSWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool) model was adopted for Non-point source (NPS) nitrogen pollution modeling and nitrogen source apportionment for the Changle River watershed, a typical agricultural watershed in Southeast China. Water quality and hydrological parameters were monitored, and the watershed natural conditions (including soil, climate, land use, etc) and pollution sources information were also investigated and collected for SWAT database. The ArcSWAT model was established in the Changle River after the calibrating and validating procedures of the model parameters. Based on the validated SWAT model, the contributions of different nitrogen sources to river TN loading were quantified, and spatial-temporal distributions of NPS nitrogen export to rivers were addressed. The results showed that in the Changle River watershed, Nitrogen fertilizer, nitrogen air deposition and nitrogen soil pool were the prominent pollution sources, which contributed 35%, 32% and 25% to the river TN loading, respectively. There were spatial-temporal variations in the critical sources for NPS TN export to the river. Natural sources, such as soil nitrogen pool and atmospheric nitrogen deposition, should be targeted as the critical sources for river TN pollution during the rainy seasons. Chemical nitrogen fertilizer application should be targeted as the critical sources for river TN pollution during the crop growing season. Chemical nitrogen fertilizer application, soil nitrogen pool and atmospheric nitrogen deposition were the main sources for TN exported from the garden plot, forest and residential land, respectively. However, they were the main sources for TN exported both from the upland and paddy field. These results revealed that NPS pollution controlling rules should focus on the spatio-temporal distribution of NPS pollution sources.

  11. Abatement vs. treatment for efficient diffuse source water pollution management in terrestrial-marine systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roebeling, P C; Cunha, M C; Arroja, L; van Grieken, M E

    2015-01-01

    Marine ecosystems are affected by water pollution originating from coastal catchments. The delivery of water pollutants can be reduced through water pollution abatement as well as water pollution treatment. Hence, sustainable economic development of coastal regions requires balancing of the marginal costs from water pollution abatement and/or treatment and the associated marginal benefits from marine resource appreciation. Water pollution delivery reduction costs are, however, not equal across abatement and treatment options. In this paper, an optimal control approach is developed and applied to explore welfare maximizing rates of water pollution abatement and/or treatment for efficient diffuse source water pollution management in terrestrial-marine systems. For the case of diffuse source dissolved inorganic nitrogen water pollution in the Tully-Murray region, Queensland, Australia, (agricultural) water pollution abatement cost, (wetland) water pollution treatment cost and marine benefit functions are determined to explore welfare maximizing rates of water pollution abatement and/or treatment. Considering partial (wetland) treatment costs and positive water quality improvement benefits, results show that welfare gains can be obtained, primarily, through diffuse source water pollution abatement (improved agricultural management practices) and, to a minor extent, through diffuse source water pollution treatment (wetland restoration).

  12. Potential effects of emission taxes on CO2 emissions in the OECD and LDCs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Messner, S.; Strubegger, M.

    1991-01-01

    A set of existing optimization models, which represent the energy systems of the OECD and LDCs (less developed countries excluding centrally planned economies) with a time horizon to 2020, has been applied to derive first-order estimates of the techno-economic potential for emission reduction. The driving force for the introduction of reduction measures is a scheme of taxes levied on the emission of six pollutants, including the greenhouse gases CO 2 and methane. The tax levels introduced are based on taxes discussed by the Swedish government: they are the break-even point to test which measures are cost-effective and which emission levels can be reached at these costs. The regional models include the following alternatives: (i) reduction of final energy demand by supplying the requested services by other means (i.e., conservation); (ii) substitution of new fuels for polluting fuels; (iii) introduction of clean technologies for the same purposes; (iv) additions of pollution-reduction technologies. Alternative scenarios with emission taxes are compared with a base scenario without taxes related to pollutant emissions. The results indicate that an increase in CO 2 emissions in the OECD and LDC regions of 47% over the next 30 yr in the base scenario would be changed to stable levels to 2010 by tax-induced measures. Thereafter, energy-consumption growth in the LDCs reverses this trend. (author)

  13. Variations of pollution sources of Cu in Jiaozhou Bay 1982-1986

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Dongfang; Li, Haixia; Wang, Qi; Ding, Jun; Zhang, Longlei

    2017-12-01

    Cu pollution in marine bays has been one of the critical environmental issues in the whole world, and understanding the variations of the pollution sources is essential to environmental protection. This paper identified the sources of Cu in Jiaozhou Bay during 1982-1986, and revealed the variations of the sources. Results showed that there were five Cu sources during study years including marine current, stream flow, island top, overland runoff and marine traffic, respectively, whose source strengths were varying from 0.39-20.60 μg L-1, 0.37-10.57 μg L-1, 0.77-4.86 μg L-1, 2.28-3.56 μg L-1, 9.48 μg L-1, respectively. These findings were helpful information in decision-making of pollution control and environmental remediation practice.

  14. On the use of coprostanol to identify source of nitrate pollution in groundwater

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakagawa, Kei; Amano, Hiroki; Takao, Yuji; Hosono, Takahiro; Berndtsson, Ronny

    2017-07-01

    Investigation of contaminant sources is indispensable for developing effective countermeasures against nitrate (NO3-) pollution in groundwater. Known major nitrogen (N) sources are chemical fertilizers, livestock waste, and domestic wastewater. In general, scatter diagrams of δ18O and δ15N from NO3- can be used to identify these pollution sources. However, this method can be difficult to use for chemical fertilizers and livestock waste sources due to the overlap of δ18O and δ15N ranges. In this study, we propose to use coprostanol as an indicator for the source of pollution. Coprostanol can be used as a fecal contamination indicator because it is a major fecal sterol formed by the conversion of cholesterol by intestinal bacteria in the gut of higher animals. The proposed method was applied to investigate NO3- pollution sources for groundwater in Shimabara, Nagasaki, Japan. Groundwater samples were collected at 33 locations from March 2013 to November 2015. These data were used to quantify relationships between NO3-N, δ15N-NO3-, δ18O-NO3-, and coprostanol. The results show that coprostanol has a potential for source identification of nitrate pollution. For lower coprostanol concentrations (conventional diagrams of isotopic ratios cannot distinguish pollution sources, coprostanol may be a useful tool.

  15. The relationship between alcohol taxes and binge drinking: evaluating new tax measures incorporating multiple tax and beverage types

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xuan, Ziming; Chaloupka, Frank J.; Blanchette, Jason G.; Nguyen, Thien H.; Heeren, Timothy C.; Nelson, Toben F.; Naimi, Timothy S.

    2015-01-01

    Aims U.S. studies contribute heavily to the literature about the tax elasticity of demand for alcohol, and most U.S. studies have relied upon specific excise (volume-based) taxes for beer as a proxy for alcohol taxes. The purpose of this paper was to compare this conventional alcohol tax measure with more comprehensive tax measures (incorporating multiple tax and beverage types) in analyses of the relationship between alcohol taxes and adult binge drinking prevalence in U.S. states. Design Data on U.S. state excise, ad valorem and sales taxes from 2001 to 2010 were obtained from the Alcohol Policy Information System and other sources. For 510 state-year strata, we developed a series of weighted tax-per-drink measures that incorporated various combinations of tax and beverage types, and related these measures to state-level adult binge drinking prevalence data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System surveys. Findings In analyses pooled across all years, models using the combined tax measure explained approximately 20% of state binge drinking prevalence, and documented more negative tax elasticity (−0.09, P=0.02 versus −0.005, P=0.63) and price elasticity (−1.40, Ptax. In analyses stratified by year, the R-squares for models using the beer combined tax measure were stable across the study period (P=0.11), while the R-squares for models rely only on volume-based tax declined (Ptax measures, combined tax measures (i.e. those incorporating volume-based tax and value-based taxes) yield substantial improvement in model fit and find more negative tax elasticity and price elasticity predicting adult binge drinking prevalence in U.S. states. PMID:25428795

  16. Identification of Pollution Patterns and Sources in a Semi-Arid Urban Stream

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vassiliki Markogianni

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available The impact and occurrence of human-induced pollution sources have been investigated in one of the few remaining urban streams located in Attica, Greece. Baseline information is provided on the presence and concentration of physicochemical parameters, nutrients, total coliforms, hydrocarbons and phenols in 12 key points along the Pikrodafni stream. The aim was to evaluate the relative importance of key water quality variables and their sources. Indicator substances (i.e. concentrations of nitrate, ammonium, phosphate and total coliforms in certain stations indicating wastewater exposure; PAHs indicating petroleum sources successfully related the water quality variables to pollution sources. Furthermore, a pollution pressure map has been developed with the activities identified from in-situ visits and Google Earth surveys, while the statistical analysis (CA and PCA has contributed to the further exploration of the relative magnitude of pollution sources effects. Our results underline initially the importance of diffuse pollution management accompanied by the necessity for continuous environmental monitoring and the application of legal and environmental restoration actions if water quality is to be improved according to WFD 2000/60/EC.

  17. Energy taxes and industrial competitiveness: the case of Italian carbon tax

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bardazzi, Rossella; Pazienza, Maria Grazia

    2005-01-01

    An international debate on which economic instrument should be used to reduce pollutant emissions has begun since the nineties when the awareness of climatic risks aroused and first attempts to introduce a European carbon tax were made. Although this project failed, several national programmes of carbon/energy taxes have been developed with a common concern for industrial competitiveness of energy and/or carbon-intensive firms. Therefore, double dividend schemes have been applied to reduce existing distorsive taxes while introducing a higher burden on energy products. This paper reviews the most important European case studies and analyses the effects of the introduction of a carbon tax in Italy on energy expenditure and economic profitability of Italian manufacturing enterprises. This tax has been introduced in 1998 and should have progressively increased up to the final tax rates in 2005. However, this process halted in the year 2000 - as the world energy prices increased - and the ultimate rates have never been applied. Nonetheless, our analysis offers relevant insights both because energy excises are a major instrument in environmental policy and because industrial activities affected by energy taxes will also be affected by the tradable permits scheme recently adopted by the European Union. The study is performed with a micro simulation model to simulate changes, in energy excises and the associated reduction of social contributions to achieve the double dividends. Existing empirical analyses have usually been carried out at aggregate or sectoral level, but the effects on costs both of carbon tax and of compensative measures differ at the firm level, thus it is significant to study the impact on economic profitability on individual units of analysis. The data show that energy expenditure as a component of intermediate costs varies by economic activity as well as the energy mix used in the production process, thus suggesting possible competitiveness problems

  18. Ecological taxes in some European countries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Filipović Sanja

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available Production and consumption of fossil fuels is one of the major causes of the green house effect, which is in economics known as a form of ecological externality. Fiscal solution, as one way of internalization of externalities, is based on polluters-pay principle and the imposition of tax on emission. Although the implementation of ecological tax was intensified during the previous decade, fiscal revenues are modest and account for only 5% of the total fiscal revenues of the European Union. Taxes on energetic products, accounting for 76%, are dominant among ecological taxes. Since the EU Directive 82/92 imposes minimum excise rates on oil products, during the last decade Central Eastern European countries have increased excise rates on fossil fuels and fully engaged in the field of ecological policy.

  19. Petroleum tax and financial decisions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stensland, G.; Sunnevaag, K.

    1993-03-01

    The work presented in this report focuses on tax motivated financial incentives in the Norwegian petroleum tax system. Of particular concern is the effects of the reserve fund requirement in the Joint Stock Companies Act. Our prime concern is the Norwegian petroleum tax system as applicable from January 1992, but for the sake of comparison, we have also examined the ''old'' Norwegian petroleum tax system. The findings presented in this report can be divided in two parts. Based on an overview over the development in debt and equity for the major part of companies operating on the Norwegian continental shelf it seems reasonable to divide the companies in three groups. The first group is companies which is not in a tax paying position, both ''foreign'' and domestic. These companies seem to use debt as their most important capital source. The second group is Norwegian companies in a tax paying position. These companies also seem to use debt as the most important capital source. The last group is ''foreign'' companies in a tax paying position. This is a group of companies that mainly use equity to finance their investments in the offshore sector. The second part of the report tries to explain these observations. In the report we compare the incentive effects in the new petroleum tax system to the old tax system. The incentives to finance investments with debt is stronger in the new tax system. Several explanations emerge. Firstly, in the old tax system the investor got an effective tax deduction of 12.8% for dividends. This is removed in the new system. Secondly, in the new system 78% tax is included in the financial statements after tax profit calculation and the maximum dividend calculation, while in the old tax system the withholding tax was excluded. 31 refs., 13 figs. 2 tabs

  20. The animal feed mineral phosphorus tax in Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Mikael Skou

    2017-01-01

    Denmark’s tax on animal feed phosphorus came into effect in 2005 with a tax rate of DKK 4 (EUR 0.53) per kg of phosphorus. It targets commercial animal feed phosphate and aims to reduce the saturation of soils with phosphorus, and leaching to surface waters. Consumption of mineral phosphate...... in animal feeds has been reduced by about 2,000 tonnes (or 15%) since the introduction of the tax, although the tax rate has not been adjusted with inflation. The tax is believed to have improved overall efficiency in the use of animal feed. Farmer organisations did not oppose the tax and accepted...... it as part of a broader package deal on measures to reduce nutrient leaching and pollution of surface waters. Environmental NGOs voiced concerns about impacts on organic farms, and were not strong advocates of the tax. The tax arose from efforts to identify the most cost-effective means for reducing nutrient...

  1. Energy taxes and subsidies downstream: transparency and dissemination

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aissaour, A.

    2001-01-01

    The reasons why governments levy taxes are discussed with special reference to the energy sector. The article focuses on the quantitative aspect of policies and gives a guide to the relevant statistical sources. It summarises the basis of taxes and subsidies and discusses the incidence of energy taxation together with the structure of taxes and subsidies in energy downstream. It reviews the main sources of data and issues highlighted by published statistics and the impact of taxes levied on the consumption of energy products and other taxes (e.g. VAT) which directly affect end-user prices. Production-based levies such as royalties, petroleum revenue taxes, windfall taxes and import and export taxes on fuels are not discussed. The paper is presented under the sub-headings of (i) theoretical foundations in a nutshell; (ii) the incidence of taxation; (iii) the structure and main features of energy taxation (iv) base rate and level of taxation (v) sources of data and methods and (vi) observability and comparability

  2. METHODOLOGY OF INTRODUCTION OFCAPITAL GAIN TAX IN CHAPTER 23 OFTHE RUSSIAN TAX CODE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vladimir V. Gromov

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The article concerns personal income tax in relation to income, source of which is a capital gain of taxpayers. Some countries impose this tax as a separate payment because capital gain cannot be identified with other types of income by the reason of its nature. There is no capital gain tax in Russia, and capital gain is taxed under the rules of chapter 23 of the Russian Tax Code. In this regard the article contains the analysis of features of introduction of capital gain tax in this chapter of the code, reflects the shortcomings inherent in methodology of its fixing in it, and offers on elimination of the revealed problems.

  3. Loading functions for assessment of water pollution from nonpoint sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    McElroy, A.D.; Chiu, S.Y.; Nebgen, J.W.; Aleti, A.; Bennett, F.W.

    1976-05-01

    Methods for evaluating the quantity of water pollutants generated from nonpoint sources including agriculture, silviculture, construction, mining, runoff from urban areas and rural roads, and terrestrial disposal are developed and compiled for use in water quality planning. The loading functions, plus in some instances emission values, permit calculation of nonpoint source pollutants from available data and information. Natural background was considered to be a source and loading functions were presented to estimate natural or background loads of pollutants. Loading functions/values are presented for average conditions, i.e., annual average loads expressed as metric tons/hectare/year (tons/acre/year). Procedures for estimating seasonal or 30-day maximum and minimum loads are also presented. In addition, a wide variety of required data inputs to loading functions, and delineation of sources of additional information are included in the report. The report also presents an evaluation of limitations and constraints of various methodologies which will enable the user to employ the functions realistically

  4. Symmetric tax competition under formula apportionment

    OpenAIRE

    Eggert, Wolfgang; Schjelderup, Guttorm

    2002-01-01

    This paper compares property taxation to a corporate income tax based on formula apportionment in a model where identical countries compete to attract capital. We find that if countries can pair a residence-based capital tax with a property tax (source tax on capital) the tax equilibrium is efficient. In contrast, the use of a 2-factor FA scheme based on sales and capital combined with a residence-based capital tax leads to an inefficient outcome.

  5. Health effects and sources of indoor air pollution. Part I

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Samet, J.M.; Marbury, M.C.; Spengler, J.D.

    1987-01-01

    Since the early 1970s, the health effects of indoor air pollution have been investigated with increasing intensity. Consequently, a large body of literature is now available on diverse aspects of indoor air pollution: sources, concentrations, health effects, engineering, and policy. This review begins with a review of the principal pollutants found in indoor environments and their sources. Subsequently, exposure to indoor air pollutants and health effects are considered, with an emphasis on those indoor air quality problems of greatest concern at present: passive exposure to tobacco smoke, nitrogen dioxide from gas-fueled cooking stoves, formaldehyde exposure, radon daughter exposure, and the diverse health problems encountered by workers in newer sealed office buildings. The review concludes by briefly addressing assessment of indoor air quality, control technology, research needs, and clinical implications. 243 references

  6. Green taxes in EU and Denmark; Groenne skatter og afgifter i EU og Danmark

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dyck-Madsen, S.

    2000-12-01

    One of the most essential means to reach an increased sustainability in the world is to increase the use of economical means and hereby extend the polluter-pay-principle. The EU-commission, OECD and other governments in the EU-countries recommend an increased use of green taxes. This book takes as its starting point the implementation of a green tax reform, where the taxation is moved from tax on manpower to tax on resource consumption and pollution. Hereby both the environmental effort and the economic development are strengthened. The book briefly examines the different definitions of sustainability and outlines the principles for a green tax reform. The elaboration of green taxes, the reversing entry to environmental aims or to the Exchequer, the relation to the social distribution, the financing of the welfare state, the development of the green taxes in the EU countries, removal of environmentally damaging subsidies and the positive effect of the existing green taxes are subjects treated in the book. Finally the book presents a proposal for some Danish possibilities to increase existing green taxes or to introduce new Danish green taxes. (EHS)

  7. Tackling non-point source water pollution in British Columbia : an action plan

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1999-03-01

    British Columbia`s approach to water quality management is discussed. The BC efforts include regulating `end of pipe` point discharges from industrial and municipal outfalls. The major remaining cause of water pollution is from non-point sources (NPS). NPS water pollution is caused by the release of pollutants from different and diffuse sources, mostly unregulated and associated with urbanization, agriculture and other forms of land development. The importance of dealing with such problems on an immediate basis to avoid a decline in water quality in the province is emphasized. Major sources of water pollution in British Columbia include: land development, agriculture, storm water runoff, onsite sewage systems, forestry, atmospheric deposition, and marine activities. 3 tabs.

  8. Assessment of the impact of point source pollution from the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Assessment of the impact of point source pollution from the Keiskammahoek Sewage ... Water SA. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search ... Also, significant pollution of the receiving Keiskamma River was indicated for ...

  9. Montana fuel tax refunds : draft final report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-11-01

    "The primary source of funding for transportation infrastructure is the taxes that are imposed on motor fuels. One aspect of fuel tax collections is the process that requires consumers to apply for refunds of taxes paid on fuels used for tax-exempt p...

  10. Currents trends in the application of IBA techniques to air pollution source fingerprinting and source apportionment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cohen, David; Stelcer, Ed.; Atanacio, Armand; Crawford, Jagoda

    2013-01-01

    Full text: IBA techniques have been used for many years to characterise fine particle air pollution. This is not new the techniques are well established. Typically 2-3 MeV protons are used to bombard thin filter papers and up to four simultaneous techniques like PIXE, PIGE, RBS and ERDA will be applied to obtain (μg/g) concentrations for elements from hydrogen to lead. Generally low volume samplers are used to sample between 20-30 m 3 of air over a 24 hour period, this together with IBA's sensitivity means that concentrations down to 1 ng/m 3 of air sampled can be readily achieved with only a few minutes of proton irradiation. With these short irradiation times and low sensitivities for a broad range of elements in the periodic table, large numbers of samples can be obtained and analysed very quickly and easily. At ANSTO we have used IBA methods to acquire a database of over 50,000 filters from 85 different sites through Australia and Asia, each filter has been analysed for more than 21 different chemical species. Large databases extending over many years means that modern statistical techniques like positive matrix factorisation (PMF) can be used to define well characterised source fingerprints and source contributions for a range of different fine particle air pollutants. In this paper we will discuss these PMF techniques and show how they identify both natural sources like sea spray and windblown soils as well as anthropogenic sources like automobiles, biomass burning, coal-fired power stations and industrial emissions. These data are particularly useful for Governments, EPA's and managers of pollution to better understanding pollution sources and their relative contributions and hence to better manage air pollution. Current trends are to take these IBA and PMF techniques a step further and to combine them with wind speed and back trajectory data to better pin point and identify emission sources. We show how this is now being applied on both a local

  11. Currents trends in the application of IBA techniques to air pollution source fingerprinting and source apportionment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cohen, David; Stelcer, Ed.; Atanacio, Armand; Crawford, Jagoda [Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, Kirrawee DC (Australia)

    2013-07-01

    Full text: IBA techniques have been used for many years to characterise fine particle air pollution. This is not new the techniques are well established. Typically 2-3 MeV protons are used to bombard thin filter papers and up to four simultaneous techniques like PIXE, PIGE, RBS and ERDA will be applied to obtain (μg/g) concentrations for elements from hydrogen to lead. Generally low volume samplers are used to sample between 20-30 m{sup 3} of air over a 24 hour period, this together with IBA's sensitivity means that concentrations down to 1 ng/m{sup 3} of air sampled can be readily achieved with only a few minutes of proton irradiation. With these short irradiation times and low sensitivities for a broad range of elements in the periodic table, large numbers of samples can be obtained and analysed very quickly and easily. At ANSTO we have used IBA methods to acquire a database of over 50,000 filters from 85 different sites through Australia and Asia, each filter has been analysed for more than 21 different chemical species. Large databases extending over many years means that modern statistical techniques like positive matrix factorisation (PMF) can be used to define well characterised source fingerprints and source contributions for a range of different fine particle air pollutants. In this paper we will discuss these PMF techniques and show how they identify both natural sources like sea spray and windblown soils as well as anthropogenic sources like automobiles, biomass burning, coal-fired power stations and industrial emissions. These data are particularly useful for Governments, EPA's and managers of pollution to better understanding pollution sources and their relative contributions and hence to better manage air pollution. Current trends are to take these IBA and PMF techniques a step further and to combine them with wind speed and back trajectory data to better pin point and identify emission sources. We show how this is now being applied on both

  12. Detection and monitoring of pollutant sources with Lidar/Dial techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gaudio, P; Gelfusa, M; Malizia, A; Parracino, S; Richetta, M; De Leo, L; Perrimezzi, C; Bellecci, C

    2015-01-01

    It's well known that air pollution due to anthropogenic sources can have adverse effects on humans and the ecosystem. Therefore, in the last years, surveying large regions of the atmosphere in an automatic way has become a strategic objective of various public health organizations for early detection of pollutant sources in urban and industrial areas.The Lidar and Dial techniques have become well established laser based methods for the remote sensing of the atmosphere. They are often implemented to probe almost any level of the atmosphere and to acquire information to validate theoretical models about different topics of atmospheric physics. They can also be used for environment surveying by monitoring particles, aerosols and molecules.The aim of the present work is to demonstrate the potential of these methods to detect pollutants emitted from local sources (such as particulate and/or chemical compounds) and to evaluate their concentration. This is exemplified with the help of experimental data acquired in an industrial area in the south of Italy by mean of experimental campaign by use of pollutants simulated source. For this purpose, two mobile systems Lidar and Dial have been developed by the authors. In this paper there will be presented the operating principles of the system and the results of the experimental campaign. (paper)

  13. Regional environmental tax reform in a fiscal federalism setting

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. CIASCHINI

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available The increasing attention to climate changes have led national Governments to design environmental tax policies able to face environmental problems and their associated economic consequences as a negative change of GDP. The environmental taxation in particular is considered a powerful instrument of pollution control. More important, it provides public revenue that can be recycled both at State level and Local level in order to attain the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and the regional double dividend. In this respect, we use a Computable General Equilibrium (CGE model with imperfect labour market, to assess the regional effects of an environmental fiscal reform designed with the aim of reducing the CO2 emissions in a fiscal federalism setting. In particular, we introduce a local green tax on commodities output with a progressive structure. The tax burden depends on the commodity polluting power and the tax revenue is collected by the Local Government. According to the fiscal federalism principles the Central Government reduces the transfers to the Local Government by the same amount of the tax revenue and compensates the transfer reduction with a cut in Households income tax. The application is done on a bi-regional Social Accounting Matrix for Italy and the results highlights the distributional effects of the reform on macroeconomic variables into the bi-regional income circular flow.

  14. Characterization and indentification of air pollution sources in Metro Manila

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Santos, Flora L.; Pabroa, Preciosa Corazon B.; Racho, Joseph Michael D.; Morco, Ryan P.; Bautista VII, Angel T.; Bucal, Camille Grace D.

    2010-01-01

    Air particulates matter (PM 1 0 and PM 2 .5) is a mixture of different pollutant sources which can be of anthropogenic and/or natural origin. Identification and apportionment of pollutant sources is important to be able to have better understanding of prevailing conditions in the area and thus better air quality management can be applied. Results have shown that in all the sampling sites, a major fraction of pollutant sources come from vehicular or traffic-oriented sources, comprising more than 30% of PM 2 .5. Of particular great concern especially in the residents of the area are the high Pb levels in Valenzuela City. In 2005, the annual mean level of PM 1 0 Pb in Valenzuela was 0.267 μg/m 3 while the other PNRI sampling sites registered annual mean levels between 0033 to 0.085 μ/m 3 . The high Pb condition is reflected in the source apportionment studies with Pb sources showing up in both the coarse (PM 1 0-2.5) and the fine fractions (PM 2 .5). The CPF analysis plots of 2008 Pb levels in both the coarse and the fine fractions show patterns for probable sources in 2008. Further study of the location of battery recycling facilities and other possible sources of lead is needed to validate the results of the CPF determination. (author)

  15. BEPS: IS INTERNATIONAL TAX PLANNING OVER?

    OpenAIRE

    A. CONTRINO

    2014-01-01

    The consequences of the definition of “aggressive” tax planning, the source of BEPS. – . The consequences of the definition of “aggressive” tax planning, the source of BEPS. – The effectiveness and the “side effects”, in the Italian experience, of the tools against BEPS.

  16. Laser Gas-Analyser for Monitoring a Source of Gas Pollution

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V. A. Gorodnichev

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Currently, the problem of growing air pollution of the Earth is of relevance. Many countries have taken measures to protect the environment in order to limit the negative anthropogenic impacts.In such a situation an objective information on the actual content of pollutants in the atmosphere is of importance. For operational inspection of the pollutant concentrations and for monitoring pollution sources, it is necessary to create high-speed high-sensitivity gas analysers.Laser meters are the most effective to provide operational remote and local inspection of gas pollution of the Earth atmosphere.Laser meter for routine gas analysis should conduct operational analysis of the gas mixture (air. For this a development of appropriate information support is required.Such information support should include a database with absorption coefficients of pollutants (specific to potential sources of pollution at possible measuring wavelengths (holding data for a particular emitter of the laser meter and an efficient algorithms to search the measuring wavelengths and conduct a quantitative analysis of gas mixtures.Currently, the issues, important for practice and related to the development of information support for the laser gas analyzer to conduct important for practice routine measurements remain unclear.In this paper we develop an algorithm to provide an operational search of the measuring wavelengths of laser gas analyser and an algorithm to recover quantitively the gaseous component concentrations of controlled gas mixture from the laser multi-spectral measurements that take into account a priori information about the source-controlled gas pollution and do not require a large amount of computation. The method of mathematical simulation shows the effectiveness of the algorithms described both for seach of measuring wavelengths and for quantitative analysis of gas releases.

  17. Tax Administration Systems and Tax Consciousness of Income Tax and Consumption Tax

    OpenAIRE

    横山, 直子

    2015-01-01

    Tax compliance costs of consumption tax are relatively high. Tax compliance costs for self-assessment taxpayers are high, and for withholding income taxpayers, the compliance costs are small. That is to say, characteristics of tax compliance costs for income tax and consumption tax are various. And also characteristics of tax consciousness for income tax and consumption tax are many and various. The features of this paper are to clarify characteristics of tax compliance costs and tax consciou...

  18. 48 CFR 29.101 - Resolving tax problems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    .... (d) Before purchasing goods or services from a foreign source, the contracting officer should consult... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Resolving tax problems. 29... CONTRACTING REQUIREMENTS TAXES General 29.101 Resolving tax problems. (a) Contract tax problems are...

  19. Pollutants in drinking water - sources, harmful effects and removal procedures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qadeer, R.

    2005-01-01

    The underground water resources available for human consumption are being continuously contaminated by the natural sources and anthropogenic activities. The pollutants include toxic microorganism, inorganic and organic chemicals and radionuclide etc. This is an acute problem in our country, where free style way of disposal of industrial effluents into the natural water bodies contaminates the surface and ground water. These contaminants make their way into human body through contaminated drinking water, which leads to the malfunctioning of the body organs. Details of some pollutants present in drinking water, their source and harmful effects on human beings are reviewed in this communication Merits and demerits of methods used to remove the pollutants from drinking water are also discussed. (author)

  20. Applications of lead isotope rations for identification and apportionment on pollution sources in food

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhao Duoyong; Wei Yimin; Guo Boli; Wei Shuai

    2011-01-01

    Lead is one of the toxic heavy metals which can accumulate to an adverse effect level in human bodies through ingestion, inhalation or other pathways. Because of the persistent lead contamination in farmland environment, large risk exists in the primary stage of 'from farm to table' chain. Environmental media such as soils, atmospheric aerosols were the possible lead sources of agro-food. To pinpoint the pollution sources exactly, cut off the contamination pathways in time, and reduce the risk of hazard, pollution sources tracing was very important. Lead isotope ratio combined with certain models is an effective method to discriminate correctly pollution sources and calculate the individual source contributions. In this review, to provide theoretical and technical reference for controlling lead pollution in environment and food, lead pollution sources in food, tracing principle and methods of lead isotope ratios, and its applications on vegetable, tea, wine, cereal and other food products were concerned. (authors)

  1. Sources, factors, mechanisms and possible solutions to pollutants in marine ecosystems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mostofa, Khan M.G.; Liu, Cong-Qiang; Vione, Davide; Gao, Kunshan; Ogawa, Hiroshi

    2013-01-01

    Algal toxins or red-tide toxins produced during algal blooms are naturally-derived toxic emerging contaminants (ECs) that may kill organisms, including humans, through contaminated fish or seafood. Other ECs produced either naturally or anthropogenically ultimately flow into marine waters. Pharmaceuticals are also an important pollution source, mostly due to overproduction and incorrect disposal. Ship breaking and recycle industries (SBRIs) can also release various pollutants and substantially deteriorate habitats and marine biodiversity. Overfishing is significantly increasing due to the global food crisis, caused by an increasing world population. Organic matter (OM) pollution and global warming (GW) are key factors that exacerbate these challenges (e.g. algal blooms), to which acidification in marine waters should be added as well. Sources, factors, mechanisms and possible remedial measures of these challenges to marine ecosystems are discussed, including their eventual impact on all forms of life including humans. -- Review of sources, factors, mechanisms and possible remedial measures of key pollutants (contaminants, toxins, ship breaking, overfishing) in marine ecosystems

  2. 'More is less'. The tax effects of ignoring flow externalities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sandal, Leif K.; Steinshamn, Stein Ivar; Grafton, R. Quentin

    2003-01-01

    Using a model of non-linear, non-monotone decay of the stock pollutant, and starting from the same initial conditions, the paper shows that an optimal tax that corrects for both stock and flow externalities may result in a lower tax, fewer cumulative emissions (less decay in emissions) and higher output at the steady state than a corrective tax that ignores the flow externality. This 'more is less' result emphasizes that setting a corrective tax that ignores the flow externality, or imposing a corrective tax at too low a level where there exists only a stock externality, may affect both transitory and steady-state output, tax payments and cumulative emissions. The result has important policy implications for decision makers setting optimal corrective taxes and targeted emission limits whenever stock externalities exist

  3. Parking taxes : evaluating options and impacts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Litman, T.A.

    2006-01-01

    In addition to encouraging the use of alternative modes of transport, parking taxes can help to reduce congestion, air pollution, and urban sprawl. Various types of parking taxes were evaluated in this paper, as well as their impacts on parking supply, prices and travel patterns. Examples of various parking tax programs in major cities in Canada, Europe, the United States and Australia were presented. Parking tax programs were divided into 2 main categories: (1) per-space parking levies which distribute cost burdens and encourage property owners to manage parking supply more efficiently and (2) commercial parking taxes on parking rental transactions which discourage the pricing of parking and concentrate impacts in limited areas. Worksite parking levies were discussed, as well stormwater fees and employee parking as a taxable benefit. Typical parking facility financial costs were reviewed and best practices for structuring and implementing parking taxes to increase public acceptability were outlined. It was suggested that the tax base should be broad and well-defined. Local governments should increase parking prices to market rates before imposing special parking taxes, and taxes and fees should be structured to avoid undesirable land use. Parking tax reforms should be part of an overall parking and mobility management program. Stakeholders should be consulted to insure that regulations, administrative procedures and enforcement policies are efficient and fair. The establishment of an evaluation program to determine tax impacts on parking supply and pricing, economic activity, traffic and spillover problems was also recommended. 42 refs., 4 tabs., 1 fig

  4. Mobile source pollution control in the United States and China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Menz, Fredric C

    2002-01-01

    This paper reviews policies for the control of mobile source pollution and their potential application in China. The first section of the paper reviews the U.S. experience with mobile source pollution control since regulations were first established in the Clean Air Act of 1970. Highlights in the policy and trends in vehicle emissions over the 1970 to 2000 time period are discussed. The second section of the paper discusses the range of policy instruments that could be used to control vehicle pollution, ranging from traditional direct regulations to market-based instruments. Experiences with the use of economic incentives in the United States and elsewhere are also discussed. The third section of the paper discusses possible implications of the U.S. experience for controlling vehicle pollution in China. While market-based instruments might be particularly appropriate for use in several aspects of China's pollution control policies, important differences between the institutional structures in China and the United States suggest that they should be phased in gradually. The paper closes with concluding remarks. (author)

  5. Mobile source pollution control in the United States and China

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Menz, Fredric C

    2002-07-01

    This paper reviews policies for the control of mobile source pollution and their potential application in China. The first section of the paper reviews the U.S. experience with mobile source pollution control since regulations were first established in the Clean Air Act of 1970. Highlights in the policy and trends in vehicle emissions over the 1970 to 2000 time period are discussed. The second section of the paper discusses the range of policy instruments that could be used to control vehicle pollution, ranging from traditional direct regulations to market-based instruments. Experiences with the use of economic incentives in the United States and elsewhere are also discussed. The third section of the paper discusses possible implications of the U.S. experience for controlling vehicle pollution in China. While market-based instruments might be particularly appropriate for use in several aspects of China's pollution control policies, important differences between the institutional structures in China and the United States suggest that they should be phased in gradually. The paper closes with concluding remarks. (author)

  6. R and D Policies, Carbon Tax and Green Paradox

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bermudez Neubauer, Mauricio; Grimaud, Andre; Rouge, Luc

    2016-01-01

    We study an economy in which a final good is produced by two sectors. One uses a non-renewable and polluting resource, the other a renewable and clean resource. A specific type of research is associated with each sector. The public authorities levy a carbon tax and simultaneously subsidise both research sectors. We study the impact of such a policy scheme on the rate of resource extraction and emissions. In the clean sector, the research subsidy and the carbon tax have opposite effects. If the tax creates a green paradox, the subsidy moderates it; if the tax slows resource extraction, then the subsidy generates a green paradox

  7. On the Role of Green Taxes in Social Accounting

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Backlund, K.

    2003-01-01

    This paper addresses social accounting numerically in a dynamic general equilibrium model. The main purposes are to study: (1) whether emission taxes based on static willingness to pay information can be used to improve the welfare level, and; (2) whether these taxes provide close enough approximations of the correct Pigouvian emission tax to be useful in the context of social accounting. The results indicate that, if environmental quality is relatively linear with respect to pollution, the approximation of the Pigouvian emission tax will bring the economy close to the socially optimal solution and, at the same time, provide a close approximation of the value of net investments in environmental capital

  8. An Analysis of Air Pollution in Makkah - a View Point of Source Identification

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Turki M. Habeebullah

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Makkah is one of the busiest cities in Saudi Arabia and remains busy all year around, especially during the season of Hajj and the month of Ramadan when millions of people visit this city. This emphasizes the importance of clean air and of understanding the sources of various air pollutants, which is vital for the management and advanced modeling of air pollution. This study intends to identify the major sources of air pollutants in Makkah, near the Holy Mosque (Al-Haram using a graphical approach. Air pollutants considered in this study are nitrogen oxides (NOx, nitrogen dioxide (NO2, nitric oxide (NO, carbon monoxide (CO, sulphur dioxide (SO2, ozone (O3 and particulate matter with aero-dynamic diameter of 10 um or less (PM10. Polar plots, time variation plots and correlation analysis are used to analyse the data and identify the major sources of emissions. Most of the pollutants demonstrate high concentrations during the morning traffic peak hours, suggesting road traffic as the main source of emission. The main sources of pollutant emissions identified in Makkahwere road traffic, re-suspended and windblown dust and sand particles. Further investigation on detailedsource apportionment is required, which is part of the ongoing project.

  9. Tax Evasion and Swiss Bank Deposits

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Johannesen, Niels

    Bank deposits in jurisdictions with banking secrecy constitute an effective tool to evade taxes on interest income. A recent EU reform reduces the scope for this type of tax evasion by introducing a source tax on interest income earned by EU residents in Switzerland and several other jurisdictions...

  10. Tax Evasion and Inequality

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Alstadsæter, Annette; Johannesen, Niels; Zucman, Gabriel

    2017-01-01

    .01% of the wealth distribution, a group that includes households with more than $45 million in net wealth. A simple model of the supply of tax evasion services can explain why evasion rises steeply with wealth. Taking tax evasion into account increases the rise in inequality seen in tax data since the 1970s......This paper attempts to estimate the size and distribution of tax evasion in rich countries. We combine random audits—the key source used to study tax evasion so far—with new micro-data leaked from large offshore financial institutions—HSBC Switzerland (“Swiss leaks”) and Mossack Fonseca (“Panama...... Papers”)—matched to population-wide wealth records in Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. We find that tax evasion rises sharply with wealth, a phenomenon random audits fail to capture. On average about 3% of personal taxes are evaded in Scandinavia, but this figure rises to close to 30% in the top 0...

  11. Tax Policy in Action: 2016 Tax Amnesty Experience of the Republic of Indonesia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Emmiryzan Wasrinil Said

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Tax amnesty programs are often used by governments to improve tax compliance and to increase tax revenue. However, the policy choice to provide a tax amnesty often results in adverse consequences, including the violation of other legal rules. For this reason, the policy choice to offer a tax amnesty (‘tax amnesty policy’ is often controversial. The tax amnesty policy and resulting program offered by the Government of Indonesia has been criticized both because it is considered to be unfair and because it favors the perpetrators of tax evasion. In particular, the tax amnesty law offered special treatment to taxpayers who participated in the program, such as no checking of the source of funds, no checking of the financial statements reported by law enforcers, protection from punishment on the financial reports provided to the Director General of Taxation, and the requirement to pay only a small penalty. Tax amnesty programs also provide the potential for money laundering. This is certainly the case in Indonesia. In addition, tax amnesty programs weaken law enforcement in Indonesia; in particular, in the areas of corruption and money laundering. This is because law enforcement officers cannot investigate the perpetrators of white-collar crime that benefit from the tax amnesty program. Under the terms of the tax amnesty program, the financial data is not accessible by them.

  12. Assessment of air, water and land-based sources of pollution in the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    A quantitative assessment of air, water and land-based sources of pollution to the coastal zone of the Accra-Tema Metropolitan Area of Ghana was conducted by making an emission inventory from information on industrial, commercial and domestic activities. Three sources of air pollution were analysed, viz, emission from ...

  13. A Study on Water Pollution Source Localization in Sensor Networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jun Yang

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The water pollution source localization is of great significance to water environment protection. In this paper, a study on water pollution source localization is presented. Firstly, the source detection is discussed. Then, the coarse localization methods and the localization methods based on diffusion models are introduced and analyzed, respectively. In addition, the localization method based on the contour is proposed. The detection and localization methods are compared in experiments finally. The results show that the detection method using hypotheses testing is more stable. The performance of the coarse localization algorithm depends on the nodes density. The localization based on the diffusion model can yield precise localization results; however, the results are not stable. The localization method based on the contour is better than the other two localization methods when the concentration contours are axisymmetric. Thus, in the water pollution source localization, the detection using hypotheses testing is more preferable in the source detection step. If concentration contours are axisymmetric, the localization method based on the contour is the first option. And, in case the nodes are dense and there is no explicit diffusion model, the coarse localization algorithm can be used, or else the localization based on diffusion models is a good choice.

  14. Lead isotopes as an environmental indicator of pollution sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aaberg, G.; Pacyna, J.; Stray, H.

    1997-02-01

    An interesting question when determining and quantifying pollution is the characterisation of the sources. Also, is the pollution locally derived or is it longtransported? Analyses of Pb isotope ratios and Pb concentrations on airfilter from Oslo, Norway, together with analyses of coal of different origin and wood, show that the decrease in total Pb in the first half of the 1990's is not due only to the reduction of leaded petrol but that there are other important sources for the pollution which have been cut down. The reduction in emissions from coal burning in Europe can be seen on airfilter from Oslo and also the following reduction in leaded petrol. An isotopic study of lead on airfilter from the countryside outside Oslo implies that the finer particles have been atmospherically long transported while the coarser particles are of a more local origin, e.g. from domestic burning of wood. The above results show that the use of a natural isotopic system like Pb is a powerful tool for e.g. the determination of pollution, routes of its transportation, for the monitoring of processes of the present, and for provenance determinations. 7 refs., 8 figs., 2 tabs

  15. Assessment of the Environmental Tax System in Latvia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jurušs Māris

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Environmental taxes should play an important part in environmental policy as they help to internalize externalities, reduce damage, and increase the quality of life; besides they allow raising revenue for national and local governments. The aim of this paper is to evaluate environmental effectiveness, economic efficiency, equity impact, administrative feasibility and cost, and political acceptability of environmental (energy, transport, and natural-resource taxes in Latvia. The study is based on desk research. The results demonstrate little evidence that existing environmental taxes lead to a significant reduction in environmental pollution and waste flows, but they have a significant fiscal effect. Most of the environmental taxes in Latvia apply direct and indirect subsidies, but most of the revenue comes from taxes on energy and transport. Environmental tax rates in Latvia are the result of political compromise and are not backed by the research on environmental costs of the particular activity. This paper fills the gap in environmental policy evaluation by looking at the performance and effectiveness of environmental taxes in Latvia.

  16. Identifying sources of soil inorganic pollutants on a regional scale using a multivariate statistical approach: Role of pollutant migration and soil physicochemical properties

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang Changbo; Wu Longhua; Luo Yongming; Zhang Haibo; Christie, Peter

    2008-01-01

    Principal components analysis (PCA) and correlation analysis were used to estimate the contribution of four components related to pollutant sources on the total variation in concentrations of Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, As, Se, Hg, Fe and Mn in surface soil samples from a valley in east China with numerous copper and zinc smelters. Results indicate that when carrying out source identification of inorganic pollutants their tendency to migrate in soils may result in differences between the pollutant composition of the source and the receptor soil, potentially leading to errors in the characterization of pollutants using multivariate statistics. The stability and potential migration or movement of pollutants in soils must therefore be taken into account. Soil physicochemical properties may offer additional useful information. Two different mechanisms have been hypothesized for correlations between soil heavy metal concentrations and soil organic matter content and these may be helpful in interpreting the statistical analysis. - Principal components analysis with Varimax rotation can help identify sources of soil inorganic pollutants but pollutant migration and soil properties can exert important effects

  17. Identifying the contribution of different urban highway air pollution sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Peace, H.; Owen, B.; Raper, D.W.

    2004-01-01

    This paper describes the methodology and results, and draws conclusions from a large-scale source apportionment study undertaken in a large urban conurbation in the northwest of England. Annual average oxides of nitrogen (NOx) emission and ambient air pollution contributions have been estimated for road traffic sources. Ground level air pollution concentrations were estimated over a 1552-km 2 area with a resolution of up to 20 m, using emissions estimates and the second generation ADMS-Urban Gaussian dispersion model. Road traffic emissions were split into car and motorcycles; heavy and light goods vehicles; and buses to represent domestic users; commercial users and bus companies. Car related emissions were split further in to journey lengths under 3 km; journeys between 3 and 8 km; and journeys over 8 km to represent journeys which could be either walked or cycled; journeys for which a bus can easily be used and other journeys. These source sections were chosen so that the relevant authorities could target key groups in terms of reducing air pollution. The results confirm that the areas most likely to exceed air quality objectives are typically close to main arterial routes and close to urban centres and that the major culprits of road traffic related air pollution are goods vehicles and car journeys over 8 km. The paper also discusses the implications of the results and suggests how these can be used in the assessment of actions to reduce air pollution concentrations

  18. Identifying the contribution of different urban highway air pollution sources.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peace, H; Owen, B; Raper, D W

    2004-12-01

    This paper describes the methodology and results, and draws conclusions from a large-scale source apportionment study undertaken in a large urban conurbation in the northwest of England. Annual average oxides of nitrogen (NOx) emission and ambient air pollution contributions have been estimated for road traffic sources. Ground level air pollution concentrations were estimated over a 1552-km(2) area with a resolution of up to 20 m, using emissions estimates and the second generation ADMS-Urban Gaussian dispersion model. Road traffic emissions were split into car and motorcycles; heavy and light goods vehicles; and buses to represent domestic users; commercial users and bus companies. Car related emissions were split further in to journey lengths under 3 km; journeys between 3 and 8 km; and journeys over 8 km to represent journeys which could be either walked or cycled; journeys for which a bus can easily be used and other journeys. These source sections were chosen so that the relevant authorities could target key groups in terms of reducing air pollution. The results confirm that the areas most likely to exceed air quality objectives are typically close to main arterial routes and close to urban centres and that the major culprits of road traffic related air pollution are goods vehicles and car journeys over 8 km. The paper also discusses the implications of the results and suggests how these can be used in the assessment of actions to reduce air pollution concentrations.

  19. Correlation between co-exposures to noise and air pollution from traffic sources.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Davies, H.W.; Vlaanderen, J.J.; Henderson, S.E.; Brauer, M.

    2009-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Both air and noise pollution associated with motor vehicle traffic have been associated with cardiovascular disease. Similarities in pollution source and health outcome mean that there is potential for noise to confound studies of air pollution and cardiovascular disease, and vice versa,

  20. Could targeted food taxes improve health?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mytton, Oliver; Gray, Alastair; Rayner, Mike; Rutter, Harry

    2007-08-01

    To examine the effects on nutrition, health and expenditure of extending value added tax (VAT) to a wider range of foods in the UK. A model based on consumption data and elasticity values was constructed to predict the effects of extending VAT to certain categories of food. The resulting changes in demand, expenditure, nutrition and health were estimated. Three different tax regimens were examined: (1) taxing the principal sources of dietary saturated fat; (2) taxing foods defined as unhealthy by the SSCg3d nutrient scoring system; and (3) taxing foods in order to obtain the best health outcome. Consumption patterns and elasticity data were taken from the National Food Survey of Great Britain. The health effects of changing salt and fat intake were from previous meta-analyses. (1) Taxing only the principal sources of dietary saturated fat is unlikely to reduce the incidence of cardiovascular disease because the reduction in saturated fat is offset by a rise in salt consumption. (2) Taxing unhealthy foods, defined by SSCg3d score, might avert around 2,300 deaths per annum, primarily by reducing salt intake. (3) Taxing a wider range of foods could avert up to 3,200 cardiovascular deaths in the UK per annum (a 1.7% reduction). Taxing foodstuffs can have unpredictable health effects if cross-elasticities of demand are ignored. A carefully targeted fat tax could produce modest but meaningful changes in food consumption and a reduction in cardiovascular disease.

  1. http://www.revistadestatistica.ro/index.php/effective-management-of-resources-for-environmental-protection-using-taxes-in-the-environmental-policy/

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Claudia CĂPĂŢÎNĂ

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Establishment of environmental taxes, called green taxes or eco-taxes, are ways to internalize the environmental costs in the prices of goods or services, causing producers and consumers to use resources more efficiently and sustainably. Green taxes or Pigovian taxes, named after their inventor, Arthur Pigou are known as sin taxes and when are applied to the “sin” of pollution they may be called environmental taxes or eco-taxes. Sustainable development can not be sustained without the existence of adequate measures and effective for protection of the environment. The polluter pays principle is a principle embraced by all countries from the desire do not deplete environmental resources, some of which being non-renewable resources, to be used by future generations. Polluters are both individuals and legal entities who must to respond in one way or another for their irresponsible actions, compensating damages, protecting the environment and paying damages for any casualties. Green taxes can generate a tax reform. Any responsible person will try to manage in another way the resources when has to bear consequences. In this regard, the environment can be protected more effectively and more cost effective for citizens. The effects of irresponsible actions of some of us not only affect the environment but also all animals and vegetable bodies inclusive people.

  2. Tax Policy: What Does SMEs Say?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nuswantara Dian Anita

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available Tax is one of the main sources of government revenue in Indonesia. Unfortunately the enormous population has not been able to make tax revenues so great. The cost to issue a new policy package should be accompanied by increased taxpayer compliance, as indicated by tax revenue. But until now the increase in tax revenue is due to the higher the value of money. Based on the above, it needs to be studied and analysed on how the critical analysis of income tax policy for individual taxpayers of small and medium enterprises (SMEs.

  3. Revealing transboundary and local air pollutant sources affecting Metro Manila through receptor modeling studies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pabroa, Preciosa Corazon B.; Bautista VII, Angel T.; Santos, Flora L.; Racho, Joseph Michael D.

    2011-01-01

    Ambient fine particulate matter (PM 2 .5) levels at the Metro Manila air sampling stations of the Philippine Nuclear Research Research Institute were found to be above the WHO guideline value of 10 μg m 3 indicating, in general, very poor air quality in the area. The elemental components of the fine particulate matter were obtained using the energy-dispersive x-ray fluorescence spectrometry. Positive matrix factorization, a receptor modelling tool, was used to identify and apportion air pollution sources. Location of probable transboundary air pollutants were evaluated using HYSPLIT (Hybrid Single Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory Model) while location of probable local air pollutant sources were determined using the conditional probability function (CPF). Air pollutant sources can either be natural or anthropogenic. This study has shown natural air pollutant sources such as volcanic eruptions from Bulusan volcano in 2006 and from Anatahan volcano in 2005 to have impacted on the region. Fine soils was shown to have originated from China's Mu US Desert some time in 2004. Smoke in the fine fraction in 2006 show indications of coming from forest fires in Sumatra and Borneo. Fine particulate Pb in Valenzuela was shown to be coming from the surrounding area. Many more significant air pollution impacts can be evaluated with the identification of probable air pollutant sources with the use of elemental fingerprints and locating these sources with the use of HYSPLIT and CPF. (author)

  4. Unused energy sources inducing minimal pollution

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Voss, A [Inst. fur Reaktorentwicklung, Kernforschungsanlage Julich GmbH, German Federal Republic

    1974-01-01

    The contribution of hydroelectricity to the growing worldwide energy demand is not expected to exceed 6%. As the largest amount of hydroelectric potential is located in developing nations, it will find its greatest development outside the currently industrialized sphere. The potential of 60 GW ascribed to tidal and geothermal energy is a negligible quantity. Solar energy represents an essentially inexhaustible source, but technological problems will preclude any major contribution from it during this century. The environmental problems caused by these 'new' energy sources are different from those engendered by fossil and nuclear power plants, but they are not negligible. It is irresponsible and misleading to describe them as pollution-free.

  5. Thoughts on a comprehensive tax reform

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Li Wanfu

    2015-01-01

    "The Decision on Several Major Issues Regarding the Deepening of Reform" adopted by the Third Plenum of the Eighteenth Session of the CPC Central Committee gave a new position to the next round of tax reform,and proposed its objectives,tone,mission,and core tasks.The new round of tax reform should cover a wide range of issues,including state governance,tax legislation,economic reform and development,social management,globalization,ecological and environmental protection,improvement of tax collection,as well as other related issues.Particular attention should be paid to replacing business tax with VAT,completing legislation on VAT,adjusting the scope,collection mechanisms,and rates of consumption tax;strengthening regulation and control,implementing a personal income tax system that considers both aggregate income and income by source,promoting real estate tax legislation,expanding the ad valorem natural resource tax,accelerating the gradual replacement of fees with taxes,and introducing legislation on environmental protection taxes.

  6. On - road mobile source pollutant emissions : identifying hotspots and ranking roads.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-12-30

    A considerable amount of pollution to the air in the forms of hydrocarbons, carbon : monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate matter (PM) and air toxics comes : from the on-road mobile sources. Estimation of the emissions of these pollutants...

  7. Pollution source localization in an urban water supply network based on dynamic water demand.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yan, Xuesong; Zhu, Zhixin; Li, Tian

    2017-10-27

    Urban water supply networks are susceptible to intentional, accidental chemical, and biological pollution, which pose a threat to the health of consumers. In recent years, drinking-water pollution incidents have occurred frequently, seriously endangering social stability and security. The real-time monitoring for water quality can be effectively implemented by placing sensors in the water supply network. However, locating the source of pollution through the data detection obtained by water quality sensors is a challenging problem. The difficulty lies in the limited number of sensors, large number of water supply network nodes, and dynamic user demand for water, which leads the pollution source localization problem to an uncertainty, large-scale, and dynamic optimization problem. In this paper, we mainly study the dynamics of the pollution source localization problem. Previous studies of pollution source localization assume that hydraulic inputs (e.g., water demand of consumers) are known. However, because of the inherent variability of urban water demand, the problem is essentially a fluctuating dynamic problem of consumer's water demand. In this paper, the water demand is considered to be stochastic in nature and can be described using Gaussian model or autoregressive model. On this basis, an optimization algorithm is proposed based on these two dynamic water demand change models to locate the pollution source. The objective of the proposed algorithm is to find the locations and concentrations of pollution sources that meet the minimum between the analogue and detection values of the sensor. Simulation experiments were conducted using two different sizes of urban water supply network data, and the experimental results were compared with those of the standard genetic algorithm.

  8. Investigating the effects of point source and nonpoint source pollution on the water quality of the East River (Dongjiang) in South China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Yiping; Chen, Ji

    2013-01-01

    Understanding the physical processes of point source (PS) and nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is critical to evaluate river water quality and identify major pollutant sources in a watershed. In this study, we used the physically-based hydrological/water quality model, Soil and Water Assessment Tool, to investigate the influence of PS and NPS pollution on the water quality of the East River (Dongjiang in Chinese) in southern China. Our results indicate that NPS pollution was the dominant contribution (>94%) to nutrient loads except for mineral phosphorus (50%). A comprehensive Water Quality Index (WQI) computed using eight key water quality variables demonstrates that water quality is better upstream than downstream despite the higher level of ammonium nitrogen found in upstream waters. Also, the temporal (seasonal) and spatial distributions of nutrient loads clearly indicate the critical time period (from late dry season to early wet season) and pollution source areas within the basin (middle and downstream agricultural lands), which resource managers can use to accomplish substantial reduction of NPS pollutant loadings. Overall, this study helps our understanding of the relationship between human activities and pollutant loads and further contributes to decision support for local watershed managers to protect water quality in this region. In particular, the methods presented such as integrating WQI with watershed modeling and identifying the critical time period and pollutions source areas can be valuable for other researchers worldwide.

  9. Arsenic pollution sources.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garelick, Hemda; Jones, Huw; Dybowska, Agnieszka; Valsami-Jones, Eugenia

    2008-01-01

    Arsenic is a widely dispersed element in the Earth's crust and exists at an average concentration of approximately 5 mg/kg. There are many possible routes of human exposure to arsenic from both natural and anthropogenic sources. Arsenic occurs as a constituent in more than 200 minerals, although it primarily exists as arsenopyrite and as a constituent in several other sulfide minerals. The introduction of arsenic into drinking water can occur as a result of its natural geological presence in local bedrock. Arsenic-containing bedrock formations of this sort are known in Bangladesh, West Bengal (India), and regions of China, and many cases of endemic contamination by arsenic with serious consequences to human health are known from these areas. Significant natural contamination of surface waters and soil can arise when arsenic-rich geothermal fluids come into contact with surface waters. When humans are implicated in causing or exacerbating arsenic pollution, the cause can almost always be traced to mining or mining-related activities. Arsenic exists in many oxidation states, with arsenic (III) and (V) being the most common forms. Similar to many metalloids, the prevalence of particular species of arsenic depends greatly on the pH and redox conditions of the matrix in which it exists. Speciation is also important in determining the toxicity of arsenic. Arsenic minerals exist in the environment principally as sulfides, oxides, and phosphates. In igneous rocks, only those of volcanic origin are implicated in high aqueous arsenic concentrations. Sedimentary rocks tend not to bear high arsenic loads, and common matrices such as sands and sandstones contain lower concentrations owing to the dominance of quartz and feldspars. Groundwater contamination by arsenic arises from sources of arsenopyrite, base metal sulfides, realgar and orpiment, arsenic-rich pyrite, and iron oxyhydroxide. Mechanisms by which arsenic is released from minerals are varied and are accounted for by

  10. Environmental taxes and quotas in the presence of distorting taxes in factor markets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Parry, Ian W.H.

    1997-01-01

    Environmental quotas tend to compound the welfare cost of pre-existing tax distortions in the labor market. Under plausible parameters, this source of welfare loss can easily be large enough to outweigh the entire partial equilibrium welfare gain from the quota. Environmental taxes induce the same interaction effect, however they also raise government revenues. If the revenues are used to reduce distortionary taxes, then most of this interaction effect can be offset. Therefore, revenue-raising can be a necessary condition for environmental policies to increase welfare

  11. MOTOR FUEL TAXES AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

    OpenAIRE

    Michal Ptak

    2011-01-01

    Motor fuel taxes are primarily revenue-raising taxes. However, due to high fuel consumption these taxes can be quite an efficient source of general budget revenue in many countries. It seems that the taxes on motor fuels may also be useful instruments for environmental policy or climate change policy. Environmental objectives can be achieved through change of behavior of drivers. The paper presents theoretical basis for taxes levied on motor fuels. Attention is paid to the problem of external...

  12. International Treaties Tax Law in Brazilian Law

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Milena Zampieri Sellmann

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available International agreements are the primary source of obligations internationally, whi- ch generate reflections in national law. They have been extremely used in tax harvest because they avoid double taxation and reduce tax burden in international trade. They are formal sources of tax law, which the legislature is expressly recognized in Article 96 of the National Tax Code to set the “tax legislation” expression. Article 98 of the Code determines the supremacy of international tax agreements over national law. Against the odds, international tax agreements do not revoke or modify the national legislation, just limit the effectiveness of national law incompatible with them, with supra-legal hierarchy and infra-constitution. They are above national law, either after or before it is created, and are below the Federal Constitution, so agreements incompatible with it should not be approved by Congress and, if so, they will be subject to declaration of unconstitutionality by the Supreme Court. It is a reporting case the international agreement’s unconstitutio- nality after it is celebrated.

  13. From taxes to permits? The Norwegian climate policy debate

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bretteville, Camilla; Soefting, Guri Bang

    2000-09-01

    Taxation as an instrument for environmental policy (green taxes) has been a topic of heated debate in Norway for almost 30 years. The subject of environmental taxes has time after time inflamed both policy makers and scholars alike. The suitability of green taxes as a policy instrument was first discussed in the 1970s. The 1980s introduced the idea that income from green taxes would make reductions in other taxes possible: a green tax reform. In the 1990s, the tax discussion boiled down to whether or not all polluters should face the same carbon tax. Lately, however, the discussion around the Kyoto Protocol has led to increased interest around the alternative of introducing a system of tradable emission quotas. Environmental taxation might thus be a declining policy instrument in Norway. This is contrary to recent developments in several other European countries such as the United Kingdom, Germany, and the Netherlands. This paper explores why the idea of a green tax reform never got off the ground in Norway by providing an overview of Norwegian environmental policy in the period from 1972 to early 2000. (author)

  14. Green gold. 15 tax proposals for a green and innovative economy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Van Engelen, D.; Wit, R.; Blaauw, K.; Winckers, J.

    2010-06-01

    This publication contains 15 proposals for green taxes in the Dutch economy. The benefit of these 15 proposals is over 11 billion euros per year and leads to a reduction of CO2 emissions of at least 12.5 megatons per year. Greening taxes involves a budget neutral shift from taxing labor and profits to taxing environmental pollution and the depletion of natural resources. The proposals reward businesses and citizens which invest in the development and application of innovative green solutions. This leads to an improvement of climate, environment and nature as well as the competitiveness of the Dutch economy. [nl

  15. Pollutants in drinking water: their sources, harmful effects and removal procedures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qadeer, R.

    2004-01-01

    The underground water resources available for human consumption are being continuously contaminated by the natural sources and anthropogenic activities. The pollutants include toxic microorganism, inorganic and organic chemical and radionuclide etc. this is an acute problem in our country, where free style way of disposal of industrial effluents into the natural water bodies contaminates the surface and ground water. These contaminants make their way into human body through contaminated drinking water, which leads to the malfunctioning of the body organs. Details of some pollutants present in drinking water, their source and harmful effects on human beings are reviewed in this communication. Merits and demerits of methods used to remove the pollutants from drinking water are also discussed. (author)

  16. Summary of pollutant emissions from individual sources in the Republic of Macedonia (air pollution)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Davkova, Katica; Simeva, Radmila

    1995-01-01

    The air pollution is one of the heaviest and one of the most actual problems in the industrial developed countries. The sudden development of the cities, industry and automobile traffic brings to the atmosphere natural composition disturbance, which means that the environment, material goods and the whole ecosystem are endangered. This paper presents the results from the measurements taken in the territory of the Macedonia, from 1989-1993. 95 measuring objects, more exactly 156 individual measuring pollutants emission sources are encompassed. The main air pollutants, as a result of the solid as well as liquid fuels combustion, are SO 2 , Co 2 , No x as well as ashes. The measuring results are given tabular. 3 tabs., 6 figs., 1 ill

  17. Evaluation of the Agricultural Non-point Source Pollution in Chongqing Based on PSR Model

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Hanwen; ZHANG; Xinli; MOU; Hui; XIE; Hong; LU; Xingyun; YAN

    2014-01-01

    Through a series of exploration based on PSR framework model,for the purpose of building a suitable Chongqing agricultural nonpoint source pollution evaluation index system model framework,combined with the presence of Chongqing specific agro-environmental issues,we build a agricultural non-point source pollution assessment index system,and then study the agricultural system pressure,agro-environmental status and human response in total 3 major categories,develope an agricultural non-point source pollution evaluation index consisting of 3 criteria indicators and 19 indicators. As can be seen from the analysis,pressures and responses tend to increase and decrease linearly,state and complex have large fluctuations,and their fluctuations are similar mainly due to the elimination of pressures and impact,increasing the impact for agricultural non-point source pollution.

  18. Timing Tax Evasion

    OpenAIRE

    Dirk Niepelt

    2004-01-01

    Standard models of tax evasion implicitly assume that evasion is either fully detected, or not detected at all. Empirically, this is not the case, casting into doubt the traditional rationales for interior evasion choices. I propose two alternative, dynamic explanations for interior tax evasion rates: Fines depending on the duration of an evasion spell, and different vintages of income sources subject to aggregate risk and fixed costs when switched between evasion states. The dynamic approach...

  19. Distributed Water Pollution Source Localization with Mobile UV-Visible Spectrometer Probes in Wireless Sensor Networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Junjie; Meng, Fansheng; Zhou, Yuexi; Wang, Yeyao; Shi, Ping

    2018-02-16

    Pollution accidents that occur in surface waters, especially in drinking water source areas, greatly threaten the urban water supply system. During water pollution source localization, there are complicated pollutant spreading conditions and pollutant concentrations vary in a wide range. This paper provides a scalable total solution, investigating a distributed localization method in wireless sensor networks equipped with mobile ultraviolet-visible (UV-visible) spectrometer probes. A wireless sensor network is defined for water quality monitoring, where unmanned surface vehicles and buoys serve as mobile and stationary nodes, respectively. Both types of nodes carry UV-visible spectrometer probes to acquire in-situ multiple water quality parameter measurements, in which a self-adaptive optical path mechanism is designed to flexibly adjust the measurement range. A novel distributed algorithm, called Dual-PSO, is proposed to search for the water pollution source, where one particle swarm optimization (PSO) procedure computes the water quality multi-parameter measurements on each node, utilizing UV-visible absorption spectra, and another one finds the global solution of the pollution source position, regarding mobile nodes as particles. Besides, this algorithm uses entropy to dynamically recognize the most sensitive parameter during searching. Experimental results demonstrate that online multi-parameter monitoring of a drinking water source area with a wide dynamic range is achieved by this wireless sensor network and water pollution sources are localized efficiently with low-cost mobile node paths.

  20. Chromatographic fingerprint similarity analysis for pollutant source identification

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xie, Juan-Ping; Ni, Hong-Gang

    2015-01-01

    In the present study, a similarity analysis method was proposed to evaluate the source-sink relationships among environmental media for polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), which were taken as the representative contaminants. Chromatographic fingerprint analysis has been widely used in the fields of natural products chemistry and forensic chemistry, but its application to environmental science has been limited. We established a library of various sources of media containing contaminants (e.g., plastics), recognizing that the establishment of a more comprehensive library allows for a better understanding of the sources of contamination. We then compared an environmental complex mixture (e.g., sediment, soil) with the profiles in the library. These comparisons could be used as the first step in source tracking. The cosine similarities between plastic and soil or sediment ranged from 0.53 to 0.68, suggesting that plastic in electronic waste is an important source of PBDEs in the environment, but it is not the only source. A similarity analysis between soil and sediment indicated that they have a source-sink relationship. Generally, the similarity analysis method can encompass more relevant information of complex mixtures in the environment than a profile-based approach that only focuses on target pollutants. There is an inherent advantage to creating a data matrix containing all peaks and their relative levels after matching the peaks based on retention times and peak areas. This data matrix can be used for source identification via a similarity analysis without quantitative or qualitative analysis of all chemicals in a sample. - Highlights: • Chromatographic fingerprint analysis can be used as the first step in source tracking. • Similarity analysis method can encompass more relevant information of pollution. • The fingerprints strongly depend on the chromatographic conditions. • A more effective and robust method for identifying similarities is required

  1. Behavior of pollutants from the instantaneous sources in mine airways

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Abuel-Kassem, M. [Assiut Univ. (Egypt)

    1993-12-31

    The air quality management of roadway tunnels is an important task; that is the roadway tunnels either natural or mechanical ventilation is required to keep air quality within the acceptable levels for pollutants. The main objective of this paper is to study the behavior of pollutants from the blasting operation during tunneling as an instantaneous source in mines based on the diffusion modeling. Diffusion models are modified and applied to estimate the concentration of pollutants using a computer program. (Author). 9 refs., 3 figs., 2 tabs.

  2. Potential Sources and Formations of the PM2.5 Pollution in Urban Hangzhou

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jian Wu

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Continuous measurements of meteorological parameters, gaseous pollutants, particulate matters, and the major chemical species in PM2.5 were conducted in urban Hangzhou from 1 September to 30 November 2013 to study the potential sources and formations of PM2.5 pollution. The average PM2.5 concentration was 69 µg·m−3, ~97% higher than the annual concentration limit in the national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS of China. Relative humidity (RH and wind speed (WS were two important factors responsible for the increase of PM2.5 concentration, with the highest value observed under RH of 70%–90%. PM2.5 was in good correlation with both NO2 and CO, but not with SO2, and the potential source contribution function (PSCF results displayed that local emissions were important potential sources contributing to the elevated PM2.5 and NO2 in Hangzhou. Thus, local vehicle emission was suggested as a major contribution to the PM2.5 pollution. Concentrations of NO2 and CO significantly increased in pollution episodes, while the SO2 concentration even decreased, implying local emission rather than region transport was the major source contributing to the formation of pollution episodes. The sum of SO42−, NO3−, and NH4+ accounted for ~50% of PM2.5 in mass in pollution episodes and the NO3−/EC ratios were significantly elevated, revealing that the formation of secondary inorganic species, particularly NO3−, was an important contributor to the PM2.5 pollution in Hangzhou. This study highlights that controlling local pollution emissions was essential to reduce the PM2.5 pollution in Hangzhou, and the control of vehicle emission in particular should be further promoted in the future.

  3. Car indoor air pollution - analysis of potential sources

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Müller Daniel

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract The population of industrialized countries such as the United States or of countries from the European Union spends approximately more than one hour each day in vehicles. In this respect, numerous studies have so far addressed outdoor air pollution that arises from traffic. By contrast, only little is known about indoor air quality in vehicles and influences by non-vehicle sources. Therefore the present article aims to summarize recent studies that address i.e. particulate matter exposure. It can be stated that although there is a large amount of data present for outdoor air pollution, research in the area of indoor air quality in vehicles is still limited. Especially, knowledge on non-vehicular sources is missing. In this respect, an understanding of the effects and interactions of i.e. tobacco smoke under realistic automobile conditions should be achieved in future.

  4. Ship-source oil pollution fund : annual report 1997-1998

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1998-01-01

    The Ship-source Oil Pollution Fund (SOPF) receives reports of oil pollution caused by ships in Canadian waters. The reports come from a variety of sources, including individuals who wish to be advised whether they are entitled for consideration under the Canada Shipping Act as potential claimants as a result of oil pollution damage and expenses they have suffered. The SOPF fully investigates all such reports and inquiries. A summary of each investigation that fall within the SOPF purview is provided in this report. This recitation includes a number of references to incidents dating as far back as the 1970s, providing for each incident the name of the ship, a summary of the incident, the damage caused, and the claims received and paid out by the fund. The balance of the SOPF on March 31, 1998 was just over $268 million. As of April 1, 1998 the maximum liability of the SOPF is about $128 million for all claims in respect of any one oil spill. The amount of liability is indexed annually to the consumer price index. 1 fig., 1 tab

  5. Non-conventional fuel tax credit

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Soeoet, P.M.

    1988-01-01

    Coal-seam methane, along with certain other non-conventional fuels, is eligible for a tax credit. This production tax credit allowed coal-seam methane producers to receive $0.7526 per million Btu of gas sold during 1986. In 1987, this credit rose to $0.78 per million Btu. The tax credit is a very significant element of the economic analysis of current coal-seam methane projects. In today's spot market, gas prices are around $1.50 per million Btu. Allowing for costs of production, the gas producer will net more income from the tax credit than from the sale of the gas. The Crude Oil Windfall Profit Tax Act of 1980 is the source of this tax credit. There were some minor changes made by subsequent legislation, but most of the tax credit has remained intact. Wells must be drilled by 1990 to qualify for the tax credit but the production from such wells is eligible for the tax credit until 2001. Projections have been made, showing that the tax credit should increase to $0.91 per million Btu for production in 1990 and $1.34 per million Btu in 2000. Variables which may decrease the tax credit from these projections are dramatically lower oil prices or general economic price deflation

  6. Activity patterns of Californians: Use of and proximity to indoor pollutant sources

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jenkins, Peggy L.; Phillips, Thomas J.; Mulberg, Elliot J.; Hui, Steve P.

    The California Air Resources Board funded a statewide survey of activity patterns of Californians over 11 years of age in order to improve the accuracy of exposure assessments for air pollutants. Telephone interviews were conducted with 1762 respondents over the four seasons from fall 1987 through summer 1988. In addition to completing a 24-h recall diary of activities and locations, participants also responded to questions about their use of and proximity to potential pollutant sources. Results are presented regarding time spent by Californians in different activities and locations relevant to pollutant exposure, and their frequency of use of or proximity to pollutant sources including cigarettes, consumer products such as paints and deodorizers, combustion appliances and motor vehicles. The results show that Californians spend, on average, 87% of their time indoors, 7% in enclosed transit and 6% outdoors. At least 62% of the population over 11 years of age and 46% of nonsmokers are near others' tobacco smoke at some time during the day. Potential exposure to different pollutant sources appears to vary among different gender and age groups. For example, women are more likely to use or be near personal care products and household cleaning agents, while men are more likely to be exposed to environmental tobacco smoke, solvents and paints. Data from this study can be used to reduce significantly the uncertainty associated with risk assessments for many pollutants.

  7. Sources of Indoor Air Pollution and Respiratory Health in Preschool Children

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Leonarte, V.F.; Ballester, F.; Leonarte, V.F.; Ballester, F.; Tenias, J.M.; Tenias, J.M.

    2010-01-01

    We carried out bibliographic searches in Pub Med and Embase.com for the period from 1996 to 2008 with the aim of reviewing the scientific literature on the relationship between various sources of indoor air pollution and the respiratory health of children under the age of five. Those studies that included adjusted correlation measurements for the most important confounding variables and which had an adequate population size were considered to be more relevant. The results concerning the relationship between gas energy sources and children's respiratory health were heterogeneous. Indoor air pollution from biomass combustion in the poorest countries was found to be an important risk factor for lower respiratory tract infections. Solvents involved in redecorating, DY work, painting, and so forth, were found to be related to an increased risk for general respiratory problems. The distribution of papers depending on the pollution source showed a clear relationship with life-style and the level of development.

  8. Sources of Indoor Air Pollution and Respiratory Health in Preschool Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Virginia Fuentes-Leonarte

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available We carried out bibliographic searches in PubMed and Embase.com for the period from 1996 to 2008 with the aim of reviewing the scientific literature on the relationship between various sources of indoor air pollution and the respiratory health of children under the age of five. Those studies that included adjusted correlation measurements for the most important confounding variables and which had an adequate population size were considered to be more relevant. The results concerning the relationship between gas energy sources and children's respiratory health were heterogeneous. Indoor air pollution from biomass combustion in the poorest countries was found to be an important risk factor for lower respiratory tract infections. Solvents involved in redecorating, DYI work, painting, and so forth, were found to be related to an increased risk for general respiratory problems. The distribution of papers depending on the pollution source showed a clear relationship with life-style and the level of development.

  9. Urban air pollution control in Peru

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2006-12-20

    Our central health cost estimate from particulate matter (PM) concentrations in larger Peruvian cities is approximately USD 790 million/year. More than 60 percent of these costs occur in Lima-Callao. Diesel vehicles are the most important emission source. Various abatement actions could yield health benefits of around USD 50 million in 2008 and USD 185 million after 2010. Some of the most important cost effective actions would be an inspection and maintenance (I&M) program for vehicles (planned to start in 2006) and introduction of low sulphur diesel (<50 ppm) from 2010. When low sulphur diesel is available, installing retrofit particle control technology on existing vehicles could be very cost effective. Some actions towards stationary sources could also be cost effective. In addition a mixture of several measures like tax incentives to promote use of gasoline cars at the expense of diesel cars, accelerated scrapping of old, polluting vehicles, ban on the use of some diesel vehicles and import restrictions on used cars could be chosen to yield short and long term air pollution benefits.

  10. Raising money with tax incentives: an overview of how U.S. tax credits are marketed

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rotroff, A.S.; Sanderson, G.A.

    1997-01-01

    This article outlines a method for using certain U.S. income tax credits to raise investment capital. With proper structuring, these tax credits can essentially be ''sold'' to outside investors. A project which may not have sufficient income to take advantage of tax benefits, such as the 29 alternative fuel credit, may sell an interest in the project to commercial investors who can use tax credits. The investors provide cash for the project in return for the tax credits, as well as a portion of the income generated by the project. This article outlines how this type of arrangement can be structured and which tax credits are available for ''sale''. It also identifies possible sources of investment money, issues that an investor will likely consider before investing in such a project, and the potential pitfalls of such a project. (author)

  11. Loading functions for assessment of water pollution from nonpoint sources. Final report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    McElroy, A.D.; Chiu, S.Y.; Nebgen, J.W.; Aleti, A.; Bennett, F.W.

    1976-05-01

    Methods for evaluating the quantity of water pollutants generated from nonpoint sources including agriculture, silviculture, construction, mining, runoff from urban areas and rural roads, and terrestrial disposal are developed and compiled for use in water quality planning. The loading functions, plus in some instances emission values, permit calculation of nonpoint source pollutants from available data and information. Natural background was considered to be a source and loading functions were presented to estimate natural or background loads of pollutants. Loading functions/values are presented for average conditions, i.e., annual average loads expressed as metric tons/hectare/year (tons/acre/year). Procedures for estimating seasonal or 30-day maximum and minimum loads are also presented. In addition, a wide variety of required data inputs to loading functions, and delineation of sources of additional information are included in the report. The report also presents an evaluation of limitations and constraints of various methodologies which will enable the user to employ the functions realistically

  12. 76 FR 4155 - National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Source Categories: Gasoline...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-01-24

    ... 63 National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Source Categories: Gasoline Distribution Bulk Terminals, Bulk Plants, and Pipeline Facilities; and Gasoline Dispensing Facilities; Final...] RIN 2060-AP16 National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Source Categories: Gasoline...

  13. Reflections on the Scandinavian model: some insights into energy-related taxes in Denmark and Sweden

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Mikael Skou

    2015-01-01

    This article describes how excise taxes on energy products and electricity have been combined with taxes on CO2 emissions and air pollution in the Nordic countries. The methods and principles employed in this region may be of interest to other countries considering how to tax fossil fuels as part...... of their transition to low-carbon energy systems....

  14. Reflections on the Scandinavian Model: Some Insights into Energy-Related Taxes in Denmark and Sweden

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Mikael Skou

    2016-01-01

    This chapter describes how excise taxes on energy products and electricity have been combined with taxes on CO2 emissions and air pollution in the Nordic countries. The methods and principles employed in this region may be of interest to other countries considering how to tax fossil fuels as part...... of their transition to low-carbon energy systems....

  15. Should there be an EC carbon/energy tax?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Helm, D.

    1993-01-01

    The European Commission has suggested that an EC-wide carbon/energy tax should be introduced to meet the Community's commitment to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, and to bear down on criticisms of sulphur dioxide and other harmful energy externalities. The UK government to data has pursued at best an agnostic position. Although the White Paper, This Common Inheritance, (DOE, 1990) gave prominence to the use of market-based instruments in advancing environmental objectives, their use in air pollution has been limited to the tax differential on unleaded petrol, the commitment to increase petrol tax in real terms in successive budgets and the imposition of VAT on domestic fuel in a phased series of stages. (Author)

  16. Should there be an EC carbon/energy tax

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Helm, D. (New College, Oxford (United Kingdom))

    1993-12-01

    The European Commission has suggested that an EC-wide carbon/energy tax should be introduced to meet the Community's commitment to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, and to bear down on criticisms of sulphur dioxide and other harmful energy externalities. The UK government to data has pursued at best an agnostic position. Although the White Paper, This Common Inheritance, (DOE, 1990) gave prominence to the use of market-based instruments in advancing environmental objectives, their use in air pollution has been limited to the tax differential on unleaded petrol, the commitment to increase petrol tax in real terms in successive budgets and the imposition of VAT on domestic fuel in a phased series of stages. (Author)

  17. Reducing mortality risk by targeting specific air pollution sources: Suva, Fiji.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Isley, C F; Nelson, P F; Taylor, M P; Stelcer, E; Atanacio, A J; Cohen, D D; Mani, F S; Maata, M

    2018-01-15

    Health implications of air pollution vary dependent upon pollutant sources. This work determines the value, in terms of reduced mortality, of reducing ambient particulate matter (PM 2.5 : effective aerodynamic diameter 2.5μm or less) concentration due to different emission sources. Suva, a Pacific Island city with substantial input from combustion sources, is used as a case-study. Elemental concentration was determined, by ion beam analysis, for PM 2.5 samples from Suva, spanning one year. Sources of PM 2.5 have been quantified by positive matrix factorisation. A review of recent literature has been carried out to delineate the mortality risk associated with these sources. Risk factors have then been applied for Suva, to calculate the possible mortality reduction that may be achieved through reduction in pollutant levels. Higher risk ratios for black carbon and sulphur resulted in mortality predictions for PM 2.5 from fossil fuel combustion, road vehicle emissions and waste burning that surpass predictions for these sources based on health risk of PM 2.5 mass alone. Predicted mortality for Suva from fossil fuel smoke exceeds the national toll from road accidents in Fiji. The greatest benefit for Suva, in terms of reduced mortality, is likely to be accomplished by reducing emissions from fossil fuel combustion (diesel), vehicles and waste burning. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  18. Distributed Water Pollution Source Localization with Mobile UV-Visible Spectrometer Probes in Wireless Sensor Networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Junjie Ma

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available Pollution accidents that occur in surface waters, especially in drinking water source areas, greatly threaten the urban water supply system. During water pollution source localization, there are complicated pollutant spreading conditions and pollutant concentrations vary in a wide range. This paper provides a scalable total solution, investigating a distributed localization method in wireless sensor networks equipped with mobile ultraviolet-visible (UV-visible spectrometer probes. A wireless sensor network is defined for water quality monitoring, where unmanned surface vehicles and buoys serve as mobile and stationary nodes, respectively. Both types of nodes carry UV-visible spectrometer probes to acquire in-situ multiple water quality parameter measurements, in which a self-adaptive optical path mechanism is designed to flexibly adjust the measurement range. A novel distributed algorithm, called Dual-PSO, is proposed to search for the water pollution source, where one particle swarm optimization (PSO procedure computes the water quality multi-parameter measurements on each node, utilizing UV-visible absorption spectra, and another one finds the global solution of the pollution source position, regarding mobile nodes as particles. Besides, this algorithm uses entropy to dynamically recognize the most sensitive parameter during searching. Experimental results demonstrate that online multi-parameter monitoring of a drinking water source area with a wide dynamic range is achieved by this wireless sensor network and water pollution sources are localized efficiently with low-cost mobile node paths.

  19. Energy sources taxes. 1989-1992 Plan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pery, J.P.

    1990-12-01

    Owing to the development of nuclear power industry and energy conservation, the french energy independence has well progressed since 1973. But french imports are still higher than 50 percent of energy consumption in the country and important uncertainties exist such the cost of energy supply or the risks of supply disruption. This paper describes energy fiscal policy and taxes in France and its development possibilities

  20. Eco-Technology Licensing under Emission Tax: Royalty vs. Fixed-Fee

    OpenAIRE

    Seung-Leul Kim; Sang-Ho Lee

    2014-01-01

    This article considers the licensing strategies of eco-technology when an innovator provides pollution abatement goods to oligopolistic polluting firms that produce consumption goods and emit environmental pollutants. In the presence of emission tax, two types of licensing contracts, royalty and fixed-fee, are examined to analyze market equilibrium and to compare their welfare consequences. We show that an eco-innovator provides a non-exclusive license under a royalty contract while it might ...

  1. Measuring Behavioral Responses to the Property Tax

    OpenAIRE

    John Deskins; William Fox

    2008-01-01

    This paper focuses on excise effects of the property tax system. The excise effects are, of course, only one element in determining the role that property taxes should play as a revenue source and tell us only part of the story on the tax’s ability to generate revenues, the incidence of the tax and other concerns. In addition to direct excise tax effects, such as on land use and city structure, the tax can indirectly affect choices such as between private and public schools. Some of these eff...

  2. Simultaneous identification of unknown groundwater pollution sources and estimation of aquifer parameters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Datta, Bithin; Chakrabarty, Dibakar; Dhar, Anirban

    2009-09-01

    Pollution source identification is a common problem encountered frequently. In absence of prior information about flow and transport parameters, the performance of source identification models depends on the accuracy in estimation of these parameters. A methodology is developed for simultaneous pollution source identification and parameter estimation in groundwater systems. The groundwater flow and transport simulator is linked to the nonlinear optimization model as an external module. The simulator defines the flow and transport processes, and serves as a binding equality constraint. The Jacobian matrix which determines the search direction in the nonlinear optimization model links the groundwater flow-transport simulator and the optimization method. Performance of the proposed methodology using spatiotemporal hydraulic head values and pollutant concentration measurements is evaluated by solving illustrative problems. Two different decision model formulations are developed. The computational efficiency of these models is compared using two nonlinear optimization algorithms. The proposed methodology addresses some of the computational limitations of using the embedded optimization technique which embeds the discretized flow and transport equations as equality constraints for optimization. Solution results obtained are also found to be better than those obtained using the embedded optimization technique. The performance evaluations reported here demonstrate the potential applicability of the developed methodology for a fairly large aquifer study area with multiple unknown pollution sources.

  3. Monitoring Lead (Pb) Pollution and Identifying Pb Pollution Sources in Japan Using Stable Pb Isotope Analysis with Kidneys of Wild Rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakata, Hokuto; Nakayama, Shouta M M; Oroszlany, Balazs; Ikenaka, Yoshinori; Mizukawa, Hazuki; Tanaka, Kazuyuki; Harunari, Tsunehito; Tanikawa, Tsutomu; Darwish, Wageh Sobhy; Yohannes, Yared B; Saengtienchai, Aksorn; Ishizuka, Mayumi

    2017-01-10

    Although Japan has been considered to have little lead (Pb) pollution in modern times, the actual pollution situation is unclear. The present study aims to investigate the extent of Pb pollution and to identify the pollution sources in Japan using stable Pb isotope analysis with kidneys of wild rats. Wild brown ( Rattus norvegicus , n = 43) and black ( R. rattus , n = 98) rats were trapped from various sites in Japan. Mean Pb concentrations in the kidneys of rats from Okinawa (15.58 mg/kg, dry weight), Aichi (10.83), Niigata (10.62), Fukuoka (8.09), Ibaraki (5.06), Kyoto (4.58), Osaka (4.57), Kanagawa (3.42), and Tokyo (3.40) were above the threshold (2.50) for histological kidney changes. Similarly, compared with the previous report, it was regarded that even structural and functional kidney damage as well as neurotoxicity have spread among rats in Japan. Additionally, the possibility of human exposure to a high level of Pb was assumed. In regard to stable Pb isotope analysis, distinctive values of stable Pb isotope ratios (Pb-IRs) were detected in some kidney samples with Pb levels above 5.0 mg/kg. This result indicated that composite factors are involved in Pb pollution. However, the identification of a concrete pollution source has not been accomplished due to limited differences among previously reported values of Pb isotope composition in circulating Pb products. Namely, the current study established the limit of Pb isotope analysis for source identification. Further detailed research about monitoring Pb pollution in Japan and the demonstration of a novel method to identify Pb sources are needed.

  4. Lead pollution sources and Impacts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El-Haggar, S.M.; Saad, S.G.; Saleh, S.K.; El-Kady, M.A.

    1996-01-01

    Despite the medical awareness of lead toxicity, and despite legislation designed to reduce environmental contamination, lead is one of the most widely used heavy metals. Significant human exposure occurs from automobile exhaust fumes, cigarette smoking, lead-based paints and plumbing systems lead spread in the environment can take place in several ways, the most important of which is through the lead compounds released in automobile exhaust as a direct result of the addition of tetraethyl or tetraethyl lead to gasoline as octane boosting agents. Of special is the effect of lead pollution on children, which affects their behavioral and educational attributes considerably. The major channel through through which lead is absorbed is through inhalation of lead compounds in the atmosphere. Lead is a heavy metal characterized its malleability, ductility and poor conduction of electricity. So, it has a wide range of applications ranging from battery manufacturing to glazing ceramics. It is rarely found free in nature but is present in several minerals and compounds. The aim of this paper is to discuss natural and anthropogenic sources of lead together with its distribution and trends with emphasis on egypt. The effects of lead pollution on human health, vegetation and welfare are also presented. It could be concluded that, the excessive release of lead into the environment, especially through the atmosphere, can produce many detrimental and sometimes fatal effects on human, agriculture and zoological life. Besides, it is very plain that there is a serious problem of pollution lead in egypt and specially in cairo. 7 figs

  5. SOPHIE, a European data base on indoor air pollution sources: Marketing and organisational matters

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bluyssen, P.M.; Oliveira Fernandes, E. de; Molina, J.L.

    1999-01-01

    As an outcome of a former project of the JOULE programme of the European Commission, the Database SOPHIE (Sources of Pollution for a Healthy and Comfortable Indoor Environment) represents an attempt to contribute to an objective, permanent and dynamic documentation of indoor air pollution sources.

  6. Local Option Taxes and the New Subregionalism in Transportation Planning

    OpenAIRE

    Goldman, Todd Mitchel

    2005-01-01

    This dissertation examines the planning processes for new local option transportation taxes. Typically, these are temporary, voter-approved, single-county sales taxes linked to legally binding expenditure plans. In many states, they increasingly dominate transportation planning and finance. Because they bypass the federally-mandated metropolitan planning process, they appear to place at risk important policy goals (e.g. reducing air pollution) that it is intended to address. Yet they can also...

  7. Welfare Analysis of an Optimal Carbon Tax in Chile

    OpenAIRE

    Cristian Espinosa; Jorge Fornero

    2014-01-01

    We analyze a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model which includes a negative externality that arises from fossil fuels burnings. The carbon released to the atmosphere by electricity producers is the main driver of climate change. We adapt the optimal tax derived by Golosov et al. (2011) to a small open economy to force polluters to internalize their damages. The results show that the tax benefits outweigh their costs; yet welfare gains seem to be marginal under plausible parameters. We...

  8. Institute a modest carbon tax to reduce carbon emissions, finance clean energy technology development, cut taxes, and reduce the deficit

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Muro, Mark; Rothwell, Jonathan

    2012-11-15

    The nation should institute a modest carbon tax in order to help clean up the economy and stabilize the nation’s finances. Specifically, Congress and the president should implement a $20 per ton, steadily increasing carbon excise fee that would discourage carbon dioxide emissions while shifting taxation onto pollution, financing energy efficiency (EE) and clean technology development, and providing opportunities to cut taxes or reduce the deficit. The net effect of these policies would be to curb harmful carbon emissions, improve the nation’s balance sheet, and stimulate job-creation and economic renewal.

  9. Isotope ratios of lead as pollutant source indicators

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chow, T.J.; Snyder, C.B.; Earal, J.L.

    1975-01-01

    Each lead ore deposit has its characteristic isotope ratios which are fixed during mineral ore genesis, and this unique property can be used to indicate the source of lead pollutants in the environment. The wolld production of primary lead is tabulated, and the geochemical significances of lead isotope ratios are discussed. The manufacture of lead alkyl additives for gasoline, which is the major source of lead pollutants, utilizes about 10% of the world annual consumption of lead. The isotope ratios of lead in gasoline, aerosols, soils and plants are correlated. Lead additives in various brands of gasoline sold in one region do not have the same isotope ratios. Regional variations in isotope ratios of lead additives were observed. This reflects the fact that petroleum refineries obtained the additives from various lead alkyl manufacturers which utilized lead from different mining districts. A definite changing trend of isotope ratios of lead pollutants in the San Diego, California (USA), area was detected. The lead shows a gradual increase in its radiogenic components during the past decade. This trend can be explained by the change of lead sources used by the additive manufacturers: Lead isotope ratios of the mid-1960's gasoline additives in the United States of America reflected those of less radiogenic leads imported from Canada, Australia, Peru and Mexico. Since then, the U.S. lead production has doubled-mainly from the Missouri district of highly radiogenic lead. Meanwhile, there has been a decrease in total lead imports. These combined effects result in changes in isotope ratios, from the less to more radiogenic, of the pooled lead. (aothor)

  10. Reduction of the environmental concentration of air pollutants by proper geometrical orientation of industrial line sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tadmor, J.

    1980-01-01

    An account is given of an Israeli study of two line sources, one composed of 10 and the other of 20 individual sources. The height of release ranged from 15.7 to 39.6 m, with a uniform rate of release of a gaseous pollutant of 1 Ci/s for each source. Average pollutant concentration was plotted as a function of the rotation angle of the line sources. Reduction of pollutant concentration by a particular rotation of the line sources attained values of up to 50%. At certain rotation angles of the line sources, the environmental concentration was lower even as compared with a single high source. Results also depended on atmospheric conditions. It is suggested that considering the increase in cost of augmenting the height of release as a means of reducing the air pollutant concentration, determination of the optimum geometric orientation of the line sources should be considered as an economical means of improving environmental air quality. (U.K.)

  11. Sources of fluoride pollution in Kasur district, Pakistan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Khan, I.H.; Haq, M.M.I.

    2005-01-01

    Serious bone problems were reported in certain localities in Pakistan due to contamination of drinking water by fluoride pollution. Against WHO recommended threshold limit of 0.7 mg/L, about 40 mg/L of fluoride is determined by ion chromatographic technique of HPLC. The compositions of pollutants were investigated in the present study by examination the chemical and mineralogical studies of water and soil samples. It is found that main problem in Manga Mandi area of District Kasur, was caused due to the decomposition of phosphorus containing minerals in soil under acidic conditions. The other sources of fluoride contamination in different areas of Pakistan is being investigated. (author)

  12. Revenue stream: How state taxes fund public services, amenities

    OpenAIRE

    Brye Steeves

    2009-01-01

    Each state has a portfolio with a varying assortment of revenue sources, such as income tax and sales tax, which are affected by the health of the economy. In down times, services get cut or taxes are raised.

  13. Report on air quality and contribution of individual sources on its pollution in the Slovak Republic, 2002

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mitosinkova, M.; Kozakovic, L.; Zavodsky, D.; Sajtakova, E.; Szemesova, J.; Pukancikova, K.

    2003-01-01

    A report on air quality and contribution of individual sources on its pollution in the Slovak Republic in 2002 is presented. This report consists of two parts: (1) Pollutants part and (2) Emission part. Pollutants part is divided into the following chapters: Regional air pollution and quality of rainfall waters; Local air pollution; Atmospheric ozone. Emission part is divided into the following chapters: Inventory control of emissions and sources of pollution, Emission of greenhouse gases.

  14. Report on air quality and contribution of individual sources on its pollution in the Slovak Republic, 2004

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mitosinkova, M.; Kozakovic, L.; Zavodsky, D.; Sajtakova, E.; Szemesova, J.; Pukancikova, K.

    2005-01-01

    A report on air quality and contribution of individual sources on its pollution in the Slovak Republic in 2004 is presented. This report consists of two parts: (1) Pollutants part and (2) Emission part. Pollutants part is divided into the following chapters: Regional air pollution and quality of rainfall waters; Local air pollution; Atmospheric ozone. Emission part is divided into the following chapters: Inventory control of emissions and sources of pollution, Emission of greenhouse gases

  15. Report on air quality and contribution of individual sources on its pollution in the Slovak Republic, 2003

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mitosinkova, M.; Kozakovic, L.; Zavodsky, D.; Sajtakova, E.; Szemesova, J.; Pukancikova, K.

    2004-01-01

    A report on air quality and contribution of individual sources on its pollution in the Slovak Republic in 2003 is presented. This report consists of two parts: (1) Pollutants part and (2) Emission part. Pollutants part is divided into the following chapters: Regional air pollution and quality of rainfall waters; Local air pollution; Atmospheric ozone. Emission part is divided into the following chapters: Inventory control of emissions and sources of pollution, Emission of greenhouse gases

  16. Taxing Electricity Sector Carbon Emissions at Social Cost

    OpenAIRE

    Paul, Anthony; Beasley, Blair; Palmer, Karen

    2013-01-01

    Concerns about budget deficits, tax reform, and climate change are fueling discussions about taxing carbon emissions to generate revenue and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Imposing a carbon tax on electricity production based on the social cost of carbon (SCC) could generate between $21 and $82 billion in revenues in 2020 and would have important effects on electricity markets. The sources of emissions reductions in the sector depend on the level of the tax. A carbon tax based on lower SCC ...

  17. Redealing the cards: How an eco-industry modifies the political economy of environmental taxes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Canton, Joan

    2008-01-01

    This article presents a combined economic-political model of environmental taxation setting. The model introduces a third lobby group - the lobby of an eco-industry - in addition to the traditional lobbies of polluting firms and environmentalists. Pressure groups interact to influence the environmental tax chosen by a regulator maximizing its chances of being reelected. The eco-industry lobby adds a new political contribution toward a higher environmental tax. The imperfectly competitive structure of the eco-industry also modifies the incentives of the usual lobbies. When the foreign environmental policy is constant, environmentalists can be in favor of a decrease in the local tax in order to reduce foreign pollution. We also discuss the formation of alliances between the eco-industry and one of the other lobbies and their potential impact. In general, the impact of lobbying activities on the politically optimal tax is ambiguous and depends on the relative concentration of each pressure group. (author)

  18. Receptor model-based source apportionment of particulate pollution in Hyderabad, India.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guttikunda, Sarath K; Kopakka, Ramani V; Dasari, Prasad; Gertler, Alan W

    2013-07-01

    Air quality in Hyderabad, India, often exceeds the national ambient air quality standards, especially for particulate matter (PM), which, in 2010, averaged 82.2 ± 24.6, 96.2 ± 12.1, and 64.3 ± 21.2 μg/m(3) of PM10, at commercial, industrial, and residential monitoring stations, respectively, exceeding the national ambient standard of 60 μg/m(3). In 2005, following an ordinance passed by the Supreme Court of India, a source apportionment study was conducted to quantify source contributions to PM pollution in Hyderabad, using the chemical mass balance (version 8.2) receptor model for 180 ambient samples collected at three stations for PM10 and PM2.5 size fractions for three seasons. The receptor modeling results indicated that the PM10 pollution is dominated by the direct vehicular exhaust and road dust (more than 60%). PM2.5 with higher propensity to enter the human respiratory tracks, has mixed sources of vehicle exhaust, industrial coal combustion, garbage burning, and secondary PM. In order to improve the air quality in the city, these findings demonstrate the need to control emissions from all known sources and particularly focus on the low-hanging fruits like road dust and waste burning, while the technological and institutional advancements in the transport and industrial sectors are bound to enhance efficiencies. Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board utilized these results to prepare an air pollution control action plan for the city.

  19. Nonpoint source water pollution abatement and the feasibility of voluntary programs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sawicki, David S.; Judd, Lynne B.

    1983-09-01

    This article details a case study of a voluntary, decentralized institutional arrangement for nonpint source water pollution control used in the Root River watershed in southeastern Wisconsin. This watershed was chosen because of its mix of urban, agricultural, and urbanizing land uses. The project objectives were to monitor and draw conclusions about the effectiveness of a voluntary, decentralized institutional system, to specify deficiencies of the approach and suggest means to correct them, and to use the conclusions to speculate about the need for regulations regarding nonpoint source pollution control or the appropriateness of financial incentives for nonpoint source control. Institutional factors considered include diversity of land uses in the watershed, educational needs, economic conditions, personality, water quality, number of agencies involved, definition of authority, and bureaucratic requirements

  20. Efficiency inducing taxation for polluting oligopolists: the irrelevance of privatization

    OpenAIRE

    Denis Claude; Mabel Tidball

    2010-01-01

    International audience; This paper studies the optimal environmental policy in a mixed market when pollution accumulates over time. Specifically, we assume quantity competition between several private firms and one partially privatized firm. The optimal emission tax is shown to be independent of the weight the privatized firm puts on social welfare. The optimal tax rule, the accumulated stock of pollution, firms' production paths and profit streams are identical irrespective of the public fir...

  1. The application of IBA techniques to air pollution source fingerprinting and source apportionment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cohen, D.D., E-mail: dcz@ansto.gov.au; Stelcer, E.; Atanacio, A.; Crawford, J.

    2014-01-01

    IBA techniques have been used to measure elemental concentrations of more than 20 different elements found in fine particle (PM2.5) air pollution. These data together with their errors and minimum detectable limits were used in Positive Matrix Factorisation (PMF) analyses to quantitatively determine source fingerprints and their contributions to the total measured fine mass. Wind speed and direction back trajectory data from the global HYSPLIT codes were then linked to these PMF fingerprints to quantitatively identify the location of the sources.

  2. Report on air quality and contribution of individual sources on its pollution in the Slovak Republic, 2001

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mitosinkova, M.; Kozakovic, L.; Zavodsky, D.; Sajtakova, E.; Mareckova, K.; Pukancikova, K.

    2002-01-01

    A report on air quality and contribution of individual sources on its pollution in the Slovak Republic in 2001 is presented. This report consists of two parts: (1) Pollutants part and (2) Emission part. Pollutants part is divided into the following chapters: Regional air pollution and quality of precipitation; Local air pollution; Atmospheric ozone. Emission part is divided into the following chapters: Inventory control of emissions and sources of pollution, Emission of greenhouse gases. Emission limits are included

  3. Reflections on the Scandinavian Model: Some Insights into Energy-Related Taxes in Denmark and Sweden

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Mikael Skou

    2017-01-01

    This article describes how excise taxes on energy products and electricity have been combined with taxes on CO2 emissions and air pollution in the Nordic countries. The methods and principles employed in this region may be of interest to other countries considering how to tax fossil fuels as part...... of their transition to low-carbon energy systems. (Reprint from European Taxation 55(6) 235–44)....

  4. Introduction of a 'carbon tax' and its effects on competitiveness in France and in Europe

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gras, Ombeline

    2010-07-01

    The implementation of a 'carbon tax' that is debated in France, following the Pigouvian principle of the 'polluter pays' and within a European framework, led us to examine more in depth the functioning of such a measure and the effects to foresee on French, and European, industrial competitiveness. While the controversy is focused on its apparent cost, we explain the virtuous spin-off effects and mechanisms of the internalisation of the carbon price by producers. The latter would indeed be incentivized to engage in an efficient substitution process across sources of energy and to intensify technological progress. Moreover, the 'double - even triple - dividend' of environmental taxation is a guarantee of the social acceptability of a tax that might be, in the long run, implemented under alternative forms. (author)

  5. Indirect Taxes in Romania – an Econometric Analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniela Penu

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Indirect taxes have a significant weight in the GDP. Statistical data reveals that the new states that joined the EU in its funding sources to the greatest extent through indirect taxes. They reveal, on the one hand, reducing the tax burden on the producer, and on the other hand, the difficulty faced by the country in direct tax collection, but also some problems of social nature. This article proposes an econometric analysis of the relationship between indirect taxes and household final consumption expenditure.

  6. Pollution assessment and source apportionment of heavy metals in contaminated site soils

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Hongbo; Ma, Yan

    2018-03-01

    Pollution characteristics of heavy metals in soil were analyzed with a typical contaminated site as the case area. The pollution degree of the element was evaluated by indexes of geoaccumulation (Igeo). The potential ecological risk of heavy metals was assessed with potential ecological risk index model. Principal component analysis (PCA) model was simultaneously carried out to identify the main sources of heavy metals in topsoils. The results indicated that: 1. Mean values of 11 kinds of metals in topsoils were greater than respective soil background values, following the order: Zn>Pb>V>Cr>Cu>Ni>Co>As>Sb>Cd>Hg. Heavy metals with a certain accumulation in the research area were significantly affected by external factors. 2. Igeo results showed that Cd and Zn reached strongly polluted degree, while Pb with moderately to strongly polluted, Sb and Hg with moderately polluted, Cu, Co, Ni and Cr with unpolluted to moderately polluted, V and As with un-polluted. 3. Potential ecological risk assessment showed the degree of ecological risk with Cd at very high risk, Hg at high risk, Pb at moderate risk and others at low risk. The comprehensive risk of all the metals was very high. 4. PCA got three main sources with contributions, including industrial activities (44.18%), traffic and burning dust (26.68%) and soil parent materials (12.20%).

  7. Application of genetic algorithm for the simultaneous identification of atmospheric pollution sources

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cantelli, A.; D'Orta, F.; Cattini, A.; Sebastianelli, F.; Cedola, L.

    2015-08-01

    A computational model is developed for retrieving the positions and the emission rates of unknown pollution sources, under steady state conditions, starting from the measurements of the concentration of the pollutants. The approach is based on the minimization of a fitness function employing a genetic algorithm paradigm. The model is tested considering both pollutant concentrations generated through a Gaussian model in 25 points in a 3-D test case domain (1000m × 1000m × 50 m) and experimental data such as the Prairie Grass field experiments data in which about 600 receptors were located along five concentric semicircle arcs and the Fusion Field Trials 2007. The results show that the computational model is capable to efficiently retrieve up to three different unknown sources.

  8. Potential effects of emission taxes on CO2 emissions in OECD and LDC countries. Working paper

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Messner, S.; Strubegger, M.

    1990-12-01

    A set of existing optimization models representing the energy systems of the OECD and LDC countries (the LDC region covers all less developed countries excluding centrally planned economies) with a time horizon up to 2020 was applied to derive first-order estimates of the techno-economic potential for emission reduction. The driving force for the introduction of reduction measures was a scheme of taxes levied on the emissions of 6 relevant pollutants-including the greenhouse gases CO 2 and methane. The tax levels introduced are based on the taxes discussed by the Swedish government administration; they are the break-even point to test which measures are cost-effective and which emission levels can be reached at these costs. The regional models offer the choice between the following alternatives as response to increases in expenditures caused by emission taxes: (*) Reduction of final energy demand by supplying the requested services by other means (i.e., conservation). (*) Substitution of 'dirty' fuels by fuels entailing less pollution. (*) Introduction of 'clean' technologies for the same purposes (e.g., a combined cycle based on coal gasification is a much cleaner process for electricity generation from coal than conventional coal power plants). (*) For SO 2 and NO x emissions pollution reduction technologies (i.e., scrubbers and catalysts) can be added to existing technologies in order to reduce emissions. Alternative scenarios with emission taxes are compared to a base scenario without taxes related to pollutant emissions. The results indicate that an increase in CO 2 emissions in the OECD and LDC regions of 47% over the next 30 years in the base scenario would be changed into stabilization up to 2010 by measures induced by the tax levels introduced. Thereafter, however, energy consumption growth in the LDC area, in conjunction with the exhaustion of economically viable emission reduction measures, reverse this trend: CO 2 emissions start to increase again after

  9. Would Tax Evasion and Tax Avoidance Undermine a National Retail Sales Tax?

    OpenAIRE

    Murray, Matthew N.

    1997-01-01

    Argues that shifting to an indirect tax system (a national sales tax) will not necessarily reduce tax avoidance and tax evasion behavior by businesses and individuals, particularly if the tax rate is set high to maintain revenue neutrality. Lack of experience in administering a high-rate, indirect tax system precludes definitive statements regarding the likely extent of tax base erosion under a national sales tax.

  10. Cultural Norms, the Persistence of Tax Evasion, and Economic Growth

    OpenAIRE

    Dimitrios Varvarigos

    2015-01-01

    I study the effects of tax evasion on economic growth by focusing on the cultural aspects of tax compliance and their effect on the extensive margin of tax evasion. A cultural norm that determines the contemptibility of tax dodging practices links the past incidence of tax evasion with the tax payers’ current incentives to conceal sources of income. This dynamic complementarity may lead to multiple equilibria in the evolution of tax evasion. Due to the latter’s effect on capital accumulation,...

  11. Urban nonpoint source pollution buildup and washoff models for simulating storm runoff quality in the Los Angeles County.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Long; Wei, Jiahua; Huang, Yuefei; Wang, Guangqian; Maqsood, Imran

    2011-07-01

    Many urban nonpoint source pollution models utilize pollutant buildup and washoff functions to simulate storm runoff quality of urban catchments. In this paper, two urban pollutant washoff load models are derived using pollutant buildup and washoff functions. The first model assumes that there is no residual pollutant after a storm event while the second one assumes that there is always residual pollutant after each storm event. The developed models are calibrated and verified with observed data from an urban catchment in the Los Angeles County. The application results show that the developed model with consideration of residual pollutant is more capable of simulating nonpoint source pollution from urban storm runoff than that without consideration of residual pollutant. For the study area, residual pollutant should be considered in pollutant buildup and washoff functions for simulating urban nonpoint source pollution when the total runoff volume is less than 30 mm. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. National Management Measures to Control Nonpoint Source Pollution from Forestry

    Science.gov (United States)

    This report helps forest owners protect lakes and streams from polluted runoff that can result from forestry activities. The report will also help states to implement their nonpoint source control programs.

  13. The sources of trace element pollution of dry depositions nearby a drinking water source.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guo, Xinyue; Ji, Hongbing; Li, Cai; Gao, Yang; Ding, Huaijian; Tang, Lei; Feng, Jinguo

    2017-02-01

    Miyun Reservoir is one of the most important drinking water sources for Beijing. Thirteen atmospheric PM sampling sites were established around this reservoir to analyze the mineral composition, morphological characteristics, element concentration, and sources of atmospheric PM pollution, using transmission electron microscope, X-ray diffraction, and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry analyses. The average monthly dry deposition flux of aerosols was 15.18 g/m 2 , with a range of 5.78-47.56 g/m 2 . The maximum flux season was winter, followed by summer, autumn, and spring. Zn and Pb pollution in this area was serious, and some of the sample sites had Cr, Co, Ni, and Cu pollution. Deposition fluxes of Zn/Pb in winter and summer reached 99.77/143.63 and 17.04/33.23 g/(hm 2 month), respectively. Principal component analysis showed two main components in the dry deposition; the first was Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, and Zn, and the other was Pb and Cd. Principal sources of the trace elements were iron mining and other anthropogenic activities in the surrounding areas and mountainous area north of the reservoir. Mineralogy analysis and microscopic conformation results showed many iron minerals and some unweathered minerals in dry deposition and atmospheric particulate matter, which came from an iron ore yard in the northern mountainous area of Miyun County. There was possible iron-rich dry deposition into Miyun Reservoir, affecting its water quality and harming the health of people living in areas around the reservoir and Beijing.

  14. Tax avoidance, tax evasion, and tax flight: Do legal differences matter?

    OpenAIRE

    Schneider, Friedrich; Kirchler, Erich; Maciejovsky, Boris

    2001-01-01

    Although from an economic point of view, legal considerations apart, tax avoidance, tax evasion and tax flight have similar effects, namely a reduction of revenue yields, and are based on the same desire to reduce the tax burden, it is likely that individuals perceive them as different and as unequally fair. Overall, 252 fiscal officers, business students, business lawyers, and entrepreneurs produced spontaneous associations to a scenario either describing tax avoidance, tax evasion, or tax f...

  15. The Effect of Emission Permits and Pigouvian Taxes on Market Structure

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bunuel, M.

    2001-07-01

    Differently from Pigouvian taxes and direct regulation, tradable emission permits can decrease competition in a polluting industry under certain circumstances. Assume a potential entrant who can buy every permit. When permits are given free to current polluters, monopolization occurs if not every polluter foresees it. If foreseen, polluters want to free ride on the entrant's market power, but entry can still occur, although not with certainty. Considering a symmetric, mixed-strategy equilibrium with unconditional bids, the probability of entry decreases as the number of polluters increase. When permits are sold initially, monopolization occurs without more requirements than polluters being financially constrained. (Author)

  16. Tax Compliance Inventory: TAX-I Voluntary tax compliance, enforced tax compliance, tax avoidance, and tax evasion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kirchler, Erich; Wahl, Ingrid

    2010-01-01

    Surveys on tax compliance and non-compliance often rely on ad hoc formulated items which lack standardization and empirical validation. We present an inventory to assess tax compliance and distinguish between different forms of compliance and non-compliance: voluntary versus enforced compliance, tax avoidance, and tax evasion. First, items to measure voluntary and enforced compliance, avoidance, and evasion were drawn up (collected from past research and newly developed), and tested empirically with the aim of producing four validated scales with a clear factorial structure. Second, findings from the first analyses were replicated and extended to validation on the basis of motivational postures. A standardized inventory is provided which can be used in surveys in order to collect data which are comparable across research focusing on self-reports. The inventory can be used in either of two ways: either in its entirety, or by applying the single scales independently, allowing an economical and fast assessment of different facets of tax compliance. PMID:20502612

  17. Tax Compliance Inventory: TAX-I Voluntary tax compliance, enforced tax compliance, tax avoidance, and tax evasion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kirchler, Erich; Wahl, Ingrid

    2010-06-01

    Surveys on tax compliance and non-compliance often rely on ad hoc formulated items which lack standardization and empirical validation. We present an inventory to assess tax compliance and distinguish between different forms of compliance and non-compliance: voluntary versus enforced compliance, tax avoidance, and tax evasion. First, items to measure voluntary and enforced compliance, avoidance, and evasion were drawn up (collected from past research and newly developed), and tested empirically with the aim of producing four validated scales with a clear factorial structure. Second, findings from the first analyses were replicated and extended to validation on the basis of motivational postures. A standardized inventory is provided which can be used in surveys in order to collect data which are comparable across research focusing on self-reports. The inventory can be used in either of two ways: either in its entirety, or by applying the single scales independently, allowing an economical and fast assessment of different facets of tax compliance.

  18. Using ensemble models to identify and apportion heavy metal pollution sources in agricultural soils on a local scale

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, Qi; Xie, Zhiyi; Li, Fangbai

    2015-01-01

    This study aims to identify and apportion multi-source and multi-phase heavy metal pollution from natural and anthropogenic inputs using ensemble models that include stochastic gradient boosting (SGB) and random forest (RF) in agricultural soils on the local scale. The heavy metal pollution sources were quantitatively assessed, and the results illustrated the suitability of the ensemble models for the assessment of multi-source and multi-phase heavy metal pollution in agricultural soils on the local scale. The results of SGB and RF consistently demonstrated that anthropogenic sources contributed the most to the concentrations of Pb and Cd in agricultural soils in the study region and that SGB performed better than RF. - Highlights: • Ensemble models including stochastic gradient boosting and random forest are used. • The models were verified by cross-validation and SGB performed better than RF. • Heavy metal pollution sources on a local scale are identified and apportioned. • Models illustrate good suitability in assessing sources in local-scale agricultural soils. • Anthropogenic sources contributed most to soil Pb and Cd pollution in our case. - Multi-source and multi-phase pollution by heavy metals in agricultural soils on a local scale were identified and apportioned.

  19. Intra-urban biomonitoring: Source apportionment using tree barks to identify air pollution sources.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moreira, Tiana Carla Lopes; de Oliveira, Regiani Carvalho; Amato, Luís Fernando Lourenço; Kang, Choong-Min; Saldiva, Paulo Hilário Nascimento; Saiki, Mitiko

    2016-05-01

    It is of great interest to evaluate if there is a relationship between possible sources and trace elements using biomonitoring techniques. In this study, tree bark samples of 171 trees were collected using a biomonitoring technique in the inner city of São Paulo. The trace elements (Al, Ba, Ca, Cl, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, P, Rb, S, Sr and Zn) were determined by the energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) spectrometry. The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was applied to identify the plausible sources associated with tree bark measurements. The greatest source was vehicle-induced non-tailpipe emissions derived mainly from brakes and tires wear-out and road dust resuspension (characterized with Al, Ba, Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn), which was explained by 27.1% of the variance, followed by cement (14.8%), sea salt (11.6%) and biomass burning (10%), and fossil fuel combustion (9.8%). We also verified that the elements related to vehicular emission showed different concentrations at different sites of the same street, which might be helpful for a new street classification according to the emission source. The spatial distribution maps of element concentrations were obtained to evaluate the different levels of pollution in streets and avenues. Results indicated that biomonitoring techniques using tree bark can be applied to evaluate dispersion of air pollution and provide reliable data for the further epidemiological studies. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Evolutionary Game Analysis of Government Regulation and Enterprise Emission from the Perspective of Environmental Tax

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mai, Yazong

    2017-12-01

    In the context of the upcoming implementation of the environmental tax policy, there is a need for a focus on the relationship between government regulation and corporate emissions. To achieve the real effect of environmental tax policy, government need to regulate the illegal emissions of enterprises. Based on the hypothesis of bounded rationality, this paper analyses the strategic set of government regulators and polluting enterprises in the implementation of environmental tax policy. By using the evolutionary game model, the utility function and payoff matrix of the both sides are constructed, and the evolutionary analysis and strategy adjustment of the environmental governance target and the actual profit of the stakeholders are carried out. Thus, the wrong behaviours could be corrected so that the equilibrium of the evolutionary system can be achieved gradually, which could also get the evolutionary stable strategies of the government and the polluting enterprises in the implementation of environmental tax policy.

  1. Assessing the effectiveness of Denmark's waste tax

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Mikael Skou

    1998-01-01

    By the mid-l980s, Denmark had a serious waste disposal problem: Its per capita generation of waste was among the highest in Europe and rising; it was running out of landfill space, with Copenhagen set to exhaust its landfill capacity in a short time; and there was a great deal of concern about air...... pollution from incinerators. Denmark responded to this situation by adopting a comprehensive waste management policy that included an innovative tax on waste designed to promote the reuse and recycling of many types of waste. Now that the tax has been in place for a decade, there is enough data to assess...

  2. Climate change : the case for a carbon tariff/tax

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Courchene, T.J.; Allan, J.R.

    2008-01-01

    Canada's ratification of the Kyoto Protocol will not adequately address the country's contribution to global climatic change. This paper proposed a 2-tier system consisting of internationally imposed carbon import tariffs combined with an equivalent domestic carbon tax. The approach was designed to engage global exporters and importers, while also involving governments and policy commitments related to emissions and cap-and-trade systems. Although a carbon tax on emissions is preferable to an opting-in approach, Canadian government has rejected carbon taxes due to the suspicion that Canadian companies will easily circumvent regulations. It is anticipated that many companies in carbon tax compliant countries will outsource production to non-compliant countries. The proposed approach required that carbon taxes will be applied to all domestically produced and consumed products, while tariffs will be levied against products from exporting firms. Outsourcing to take advantage of lax environmental policies in pollution havens will be subject to a carbon footprint tariff. The tariff will also serve to reduce the carbon content of exports. Proceeds of the tax can be used in a variety of ways to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. It was concluded that Canada will need to supplement domestic carbon taxes with a proposed carbon import tariff. 1 fig

  3. Ship-Source Oil Pollution Fund annual report, 1991-1992

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1992-01-01

    The activities of the Ship-Source Oil Pollution Fund (SOPC) are reviewed for the fiscal year commencing 1 April 1991 and ending 31 March 1992. Topics covered include the Canadian compensation regime, activities of the International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund (to which the SOPC contributes), amendments to the Canada Shipping Act, United States legislation, the Haven incident, and the status of the fund. Twenty-three oil spill incidents are described along with actions taken, if any, by the SOPC and details of any claims paid by the SOPC or the international fund. 4 figs., 1 tab

  4. A multi-criteria approach to Great Barrier Reef catchment (Queensland, Australia) diffuse-source pollution problem.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greiner, R; Herr, A; Brodie, J; Haynes, D

    2005-01-01

    This paper presents a multi-criteria based tool for assessing the relative impact of diffuse-source pollution to the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) from the river basins draining into the GBR lagoon. The assessment integrates biophysical and ecological data of water quality and pollutant concentrations with socio-economic information pertaining to non-point source pollution and (potential) pollutant impact. The tool generates scores for each river basin against four criteria, thus profiling the basins and enabling prioritization of management alternatives between and within basins. The results support policy development for pollution control through community participation, scientific data integration and expert knowledge contributed by people from across the catchment. The results specifically provided support for the Reef Water Quality Protection Plan, released in October 2003. The aim of the plan is to provide a framework for reducing discharge of sediment, nutrient and other diffuse-source loads and (potential) impact of that discharge and for prioritising management actions both between and within river basins.

  5. Taxing carbon in fuels

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arnold, Rob

    2000-01-01

    It is argued that both the Climate Change Levy and the fuel duty tax are outdated even before they are implemented. Apparently, the real problems are not in the bringing of road fuels into the scope of the Climate Change Levy but in introducing reforms to improve integration of greenhouse gases and taxation. Both fuel duty and the Levy are aimed at maximising efficiency and reducing air pollution. The system as it stands does not take into account the development of a market where the management and trading of carbon and greenhouse gases may jeopardise the competitiveness of UK businesses. It is argued that an overhaul of climate and emissions-related law is necessary. The paper is presented under the sub-headings of (i) a fixation on energy; (ii) no focus on CO 2 ; (iii) carbon markets - beyond the levy and (iv) tax structure. (UK)

  6. Source attribution and mitigation strategies for air pollution in Delhi

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kiesewetter, Gregor; Purohit, Pallav; Schoepp, Wolfgang; Liu, Jun; Amann, Markus; Bhanarkar, Anil

    2017-04-01

    Indian cities, and the megacity of Delhi in particular, have suffered from high air pollution for years. Recent observations show that ambient concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in Delhi strongly exceed the Indian national ambient air quality standards as well as the World Health Organization's interim target levels. At the same time, India is experiencing strong urbanization, and both Delhi's emissions as well as the exposed population are growing. Therefore the question arises how PM2.5 concentrations will evolve in the future, and how they can be improved efficiently. In the past, typical responses of the Delhi government to high pollution episodes have been restrictions on motorized road traffic, on power plant operations and on construction activities. However, to design sustainable and efficient pollution mitigation measures, the contribution of different source sectors and spatial scales needs to be quantified. Here we combine the established emission calculation scheme of the Greenhouse Gas - Air Pollution Interactions and Synergies (GAINS) model with regional chemistry-transport model simulations (0.5° resolution) as well as local particle dispersion (2 × 2 km resolution) to arrive at a source attribution of ambient PM2.5 in Delhi. Calculated concentrations compare well to observations. We find that roughly 60% of total population-weighted PM2.5 originates from sources outside the national capital territory of Delhi itself. Consequently, mitigation strategies need to involve neighboring states and address the typical sources there. We discuss the likely evolution of ambient concentrations under different scenarios which assume either current emission control legislation, or application of a Clean Air Scenario foreseeing additional regulations in non-industrial sectors which are often overlooked, such as phase-out of solid fuel cookstoves, and road paving. Only in the case where the Clean Air Scenario is applied both in Delhi as well as in

  7. The electric power stations viewed as a source of local and transfrontier pollution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Motiu, C.; Sandu, I.

    1994-01-01

    The pollutant emission of the thermal power stations may have an important contribution to the local pollution as well as to regional (transfrontier) and global pollution. Due to the impossibility at present of making continuous monitoring of the emission of pollutants it is necessary to use computational models for obtaining inventories of the pollutant sources and for studying their dispersion into atmosphere. The computational code used to simulate the pollutant diffusion in the atmosphere is a climatologic model giving the annual average concentration and the evaluation of the maximum SO 2 concentration. The paper presents the analyses for the case of 14 thermal power stations of Romania

  8. Efficient use of green taxes in the CHP sector

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Skovsgaard Nielsen, L.; Mognesen, Martin Frank; Pade, L.L.

    2007-06-01

    Since 1977 green taxes have been used in the Danish power and heat sector. Green taxes principally assure an efficient, market-based reduction of pollution by reducing the energy consumption or increasing the share of renewable energy in power and heat production. This report takes its point of departure in four potential barriers which prevent a marketbased, cost-effective increase of the proportion of renewable energy in power and heat production. We primarily concentrate on three policy measures. 5. green and lessgreen taxes; 6. mandatory combined heat and power production; 7. fuel restrictions. Furthermore, we analyse a fourth characteristic in the law: 8. high transactions costs connected to the enlargement of renewable energy. The purpose of the report is to describe how the four potential barriers contradict the theoretically efficient application of green taxes in the power and heat sector. We do this: 1) by clarifying how legislation in the power and heat sector affects the extension of renewable energy; and 2) by evaluating the theoretically efficient application of green taxes in the power and heat sector in relation to legislation. (au)

  9. Designing Green Taxes in a Political Context: From Optimal to Feasible Environmental Regulation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Daugbjerg, Carsten; Svendsen, Gert Tinggaard

    2003-01-01

    How should green taxation be designed? We argue that to design green taxes which are high enough to have the desired incentive effects, tax revenues must be reimbursed, either by earmarking them for environmental subsidies or by reducing other taxes directed at industry. If green tax schemes can...... be designed this way, industry will have little incentive to mobilise strong opposition to green taxation. However, in practice, the requirement of reimbursement may be difficult to fulfil because, with few exceptions, polluting industries are not homogeneous. This means that reimbursement will redistribute...... financial resources within industry and thus create winners and losers. Still, we demonstrate how green taxation can be used in heterogeneous industries which can be created by operating separate tax schemes for each branch of industry....

  10. IS THE VALUE ADDED TAX A SUPERIOR SALES TAX IN ALL SALES TAXES?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    MUSTAFA ALİ SARILI

    2013-05-01

    Full Text Available Value Added Tax (VAT is a tax imposed on the value added to a product at each stage of the production and distribution process. Value added is never taxed twice under VAT and thus cascading (tax on tax effects do not occur. It is a single tax on goods and services but the tax is collected multiple stages. At each of these stages, the amount of tax payable is computed by subtracting the tax previously paid on purchases from the tax charged on sales by the traders for each taxation period. In last three decades, VAT, a relatively new and better commodity taxation, has been introduced in many countries. It has replaced different types of sales taxes in such countries. This article attempts to evaluate VAT by comparing with other sales taxes.

  11. Tax penalties in SME tax compliance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Artur Swistak

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Small business tax compliance requires special attention. On the one hand small businesses are often incapable of rigorously fulfilling their tax obligations, more vulnerable to external risks and tempted to exploit opportunities to be non-compliant. On the other hand, unlike larger businesses, they are usually sole proprietors or owner-operated businesses, hence highly responsive to personal, social, cognitive and emotional factors. These attributes pave the way to a better use of measures designed to influence their behavior and choices. This paper discusses the role and effectiveness of tax penalties in enhancing tax compliance in small businesses. It argues that tax penalties, although indispensable for tax enforcement, may not be a first-choice tool in ensuring tax compliance. Too punitive a tax regime is an important barrier to business formalization and increasing severity of tax penalties does not produce the intended results. To be effective, tax penalties should deter and motivate taxpayers rather than exert repressive measures against them.

  12. Motor Fuel Excise Taxes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2015-09-01

    A new report from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) explores the role of alternative fuels and energy efficient vehicles in motor fuel taxes. Throughout the United States, it is common practice for federal, state, and local governments to tax motor fuels on a per gallon basis to fund construction and maintenance of our transportation infrastructure. In recent years, however, expenses have outpaced revenues creating substantial funding shortfalls that have required supplemental funding sources. While rising infrastructure costs and the decreasing purchasing power of the gas tax are significant factors contributing to the shortfall, the increased use of alternative fuels and more stringent fuel economy standards are also exacerbating revenue shortfalls. The current dynamic places vehicle efficiency and petroleum use reduction polices at direct odds with policies promoting robust transportation infrastructure. Understanding the energy, transportation, and environmental tradeoffs of motor fuel tax policies can be complicated, but recent experiences at the state level are helping policymakers align their energy and environmental priorities with highway funding requirements.

  13. Stochastic sensitivity analysis of nitrogen pollution to climate change in a river basin with complex pollution sources.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Xiaoying; Tan, Lit; He, Ruimin; Fu, Guangtao; Ye, Jinyin; Liu, Qun; Wang, Guoqing

    2017-12-01

    It is increasingly recognized that climate change could impose both direct and indirect impacts on the quality of the water environment. Previous studies have mostly concentrated on evaluating the impacts of climate change on non-point source pollution in agricultural watersheds. Few studies have assessed the impacts of climate change on the water quality of river basins with complex point and non-point pollution sources. In view of the gap, this paper aims to establish a framework for stochastic assessment of the sensitivity of water quality to future climate change in a river basin with complex pollution sources. A sub-daily soil and water assessment tool (SWAT) model was developed to simulate the discharge, transport, and transformation of nitrogen from multiple point and non-point pollution sources in the upper Huai River basin of China. A weather generator was used to produce 50 years of synthetic daily weather data series for all 25 combinations of precipitation (changes by - 10, 0, 10, 20, and 30%) and temperature change (increases by 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 °C) scenarios. The generated daily rainfall series was disaggregated into the hourly scale and then used to drive the sub-daily SWAT model to simulate the nitrogen cycle under different climate change scenarios. Our results in the study region have indicated that (1) both total nitrogen (TN) loads and concentrations are insensitive to temperature change; (2) TN loads are highly sensitive to precipitation change, while TN concentrations are moderately sensitive; (3) the impacts of climate change on TN concentrations are more spatiotemporally variable than its impacts on TN loads; and (4) wide distributions of TN loads and TN concentrations under individual climate change scenario illustrate the important role of climatic variability in affecting water quality conditions. In summary, the large variability in SWAT simulation results within and between each climate change scenario highlights the uncertainty of

  14. Sources and levels of concentration of metal pollutants in Kubanni dam, Zaria, Nigeria

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Butu, A.W.

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available The paper looked at the sources and levels of concentration of metal pollutants in Kubanni dam, Zaria, Nigeria. The main sources of data for the study were sediment from four different sections of the long profile of the dam. The samples were prepared in the laboratory according to standard methods and the instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA technique was adopted in the analysis using Nigeria Research Reactor – 1 (NIRR – 1. The results of the analysis showed that 29 metal pollutants; Mg, Al, Ca, Ti, V, Mn, Dy, Na, K, As, La, Sm, Yb, U, Br, Sc, Cr, Fe, Co, Rb, Zn,Cs, Ba, Eu, Lu, Hf, Ta, Sb and Th currently exist in Kubanni dam in various levels of concentrations. The results showed that most of the metal pollutants in the dam are routed to anthropogenic activities within the dam catchment area while few are routed to geologic formation. The results further revealed that metal pollutants that their sources are traceable to refuse dumps, farmlands, public drains and effluents showed higher levels of concentration in the dam than the ones that are gradually released from the soil regolith system.

  15. Tax Efficiency vs. Tax Equity – Points of View regarding Tax Optimum

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stela Aurelia Toader

    2011-10-01

    Full Text Available Objectives. Starting from the idea that tax equity requirements, administration costs and the tendency towards tax evasion determine the design of tax systems, it is important to identify a satisfactory efficiency/equity deal in order to build a tax system as close to optimum requirements as possible. Prior Work Previous studies proved that an optimum tax system is that through which it will be collected a level of tax revenues which will satisfy budgetary demands, while losing only a minimum ‘amount’ of welfare. In what degree the Romanian tax system meets these requirements? Approach We envisage analyzing the possibilities of improving Romanian tax system as to come nearest to optimum requirements. Results We can conclude fiscal system can uphold important improvements in what assuring tax equity is concerned, resulting in raising the degree of free conformation in the field of tax payment and, implicitly, the degree of tax efficiency. Implications Knowing to what extent it can be acted upon in the direction of finding that satisfactory efficiency/equity deal may allow oneself to identify the blueprint of a tax system in which the loss of welfare is kept down to minimum. Value For the Romanian institutions empowered to impose taxes, the knowledge of the possibilities of making the tax system more efficient can be important while aiming at reducing the level of evasion phenomenon.

  16. Summary of Adsorption/Desorption Experiments for the European Database on Indoor Air Pollution Sources in Buildings

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kjær, Ulla Dorte; Tirkkonen, T.

    1996-01-01

    Experimental data for adsorption/desorption in building materials. Contribution to the European Database on Indoor Air Pollution Sources in buildings.......Experimental data for adsorption/desorption in building materials. Contribution to the European Database on Indoor Air Pollution Sources in buildings....

  17. THE SUCCESS OF COMPANIES OPERATING IN THE AREA OF TAX HAVENS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    ENEA CONSTANTIN

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available What is an offshore company? It is a company operating outside the country in which it was established. What is a tax haven? It is a country or jurisdiction where companies have tax advantages usually zero tax. (eg Andorra, British Virgin Islands, Panama, Liechtenstein, Cayman Islands, Seychelles, Cyprus, Malta, etc. How do I open an offshore bank account? Opening an account is a particular problem, which is mostly open once the offshore company is established. Paradise is characterized by the absence levies tax as tax on the income of individuals or legal entities, in respect of succession duties, and of course as tax on capital. Consequently, these areas generally did not sign tax agreement designed to avoid double taxation, having nothing to negotiate in this direction; the several agreements signed disclaim reception facilities made available to foreign investors. Foreign source income will generally support the tax levy the maximum light source of local law provisions. The rule that a very low tax burden, or even an absence of tax levy, generates tax havens should be relaxed. In this paper we decided to present three main areas of interest are the old tax havens: banking and insurance companies, shipping companies and investment and development activities.

  18. Taxing the Financially Integrated Multinational Firm

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Johannesen, Niels

    partly fall on investment and thus workers in the former country. This tax exporting mechanism introduces a scope for corporate taxes, which is not present in standard models of international taxation. Accounting for the internal capital markets of multinational firms thus represents a way to resolve......This paper develops a theoretical model of corporate taxation in the presence of financially integrated multinational firms. Under the assumption that multinational firms at least partly use internal loans to finance foreign investment, we find that the optimal corporate tax rate is positive from...... the perspective of a small, open economy. This finding contrasts the standard result that the optimal source based capital tax is zero. Intuitively, to the extent that multinational firms finance investment in country i with loans from affiliates in country j, the burden of corporate taxes in the latter country...

  19. Distributional consequences of environmental taxes; Fordelingsvirkninger af energi- og miljoeafgifter

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Klinge Jacobsen, H.; Birr-Pedersen, K.; Wier, M.

    2001-11-01

    household consumption of energy and other polluting activities. Indirect effect is calculated to include the indirect tax effect from environmental taxes imposed on domestic production of goods and services that are finally consumed by domestic households. The input-output methodology is used by combing the household consumption patterns of different income and socioeconomic groups with the Danish input-output matrices. (au)

  20. Study of short time effect on health of a local air pollution source. Epidemiological approach; Etude des effets a court terme sur la sante d'une source locale de pollution atmospherique. Approche epidemiologique

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Guzzo, J.Ch. [Institut National de Veille Sanitaire, Reseau National de Sante Publique, 94 - Saint-Maurice (France)

    2000-07-01

    This document applies to health professionals who are facing with a problem of risks evaluation relative to a local source of air pollution and envisage to realize an epidemiological study. In this document, only the short term effects are considered and the situations of accidental pollution are not treated. Without being a methodological treatise it can be a tool to better understand the constraints and the limits of epidemiology to answer the difficult question of the impact evaluation on health of populations living near a local source of air pollution. (N.C.)

  1. European Union definitely introduces common taxes on energy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schoenweisner, R.

    2003-01-01

    In this paper taxes of the European Union on energy are reviewed. European Union Ministers of environment Council definitely ratified new common system of minimal energy taxes in last week. Council introduces par excellence minimal all-European size of an electricity, coal and natural gas consumption tax. New directive according to European Commission will improve operation of internal market and eliminate deformation of competitive environment among individual members as well as among mineral oils and the other energy sources. Slovak Republic taxes all motor fuel types by higher charge as is minimal level demanded by EU according to new directive after rising of consumable tax from mineral oils in August 2003. According to Minister of Finances Slovak Republic demanded European Union for a temporary 10-year period for utilizing electricity, coal, coke, and natural gas consumption tax. According to Ministry, Utilizing new taxes and rising of tax load is not in interest of started tax reform in Slovak Republic

  2. 75 FR 73166 - Publication of the Tier 2 Tax Rates

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-11-29

    ... DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Internal Revenue Service Publication of the Tier 2 Tax Rates AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service, Treasury. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: Publication of the tier 2 tax rates for...). Tier 2 taxes on railroad employees, employers, and employee representatives are one source of funding...

  3. Source apportionment of Pb pollution in saltmarsh sediments from southwest England

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iurian, Andra-Rada; Millward, Geoffrey; Taylor, Alex; Marshall, William; Rodríguez, Javier; Gil Ibarguchi, José Ignacio; Blake, William H.

    2017-04-01

    The local availability of metal resources played a crucial role in Britain's development during the industrial revolution, but centuries of mining within Cornwall and Devon (UK) have left a legacy of contamination in river basin and estuary sediments. Improved knowledge of historical heavy metal sources, emissions and pathways will result in a better understanding of the contemporary pollution conditions and a better protection of the environment from legacy contaminants. Our study aims to trace historical sources of Pb pollution in the area of east Cornwall and west Devon, UK, using a multi proxy approach for contaminants stored in saltmarsh sediment columns from 3 systems characterized by different contamination patterns. Source apportionment investigations included the determination of Pb concentration and Pb isotopic composition (204Pb, 206Pb, 207Pb, and 208Pb) for selected down-core sediment samples, and for local ore and parent rock materials. General trends in pollutant loading (e.g. Pb) could be identified, with maximum inputs occurring in the middle of the 19th century and decreasing towards the present day, while an increase in the catchment disturbance was apparent for the last decades. The isotopic ratios of Pb further indicate that sediments with higher Pb content have a less radiogenic signature, these particular inputs being derived from Pb mining and smelting sources in the catchment area. Acknowledgements: Andra-Rada Iurian acknowledges the support of a Marie Curie Fellowship (H2020-MSCA-IF-2014, Grant Agreement number: 658863) within the Horizon 2020.

  4. Fine Particulate Pollution and Source Apportionment in the Urban Centers for Africa, Asia and Latin America

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guttikunda, S. K.; Johnson, T. M.; Procee, P.

    2004-12-01

    Fossil fuel combustion for domestic cooking and heating, power generation, industrial processes, and motor vehicles are the primary sources of air pollution in the developing country cities. Over the past twenty years, major advances have been made in understanding the social and economic consequences of air pollution. In both industrialized and developing countries, it has been shown that air pollution from energy combustion has detrimental impacts on human health and the environment. Lack of information on the sectoral contributions to air pollution - especially fine particulates, is one of the typical constraints for an effective integrated urban air quality management program. Without such information, it is difficult, if not impossible, for decision makers to provide policy advice and make informed investment decisions related to air quality improvements in developing countries. This also raises the need for low-cost ways of determining the principal sources of fine PM for a proper planning and decision making. The project objective is to develop and verify a methodology to assess and monitor the sources of PM, using a combination of ground-based monitoring and source apportionment techniques. This presentation will focus on four general tasks: (1) Review of the science and current activities in the combined use of monitoring data and modeling for better understanding of PM pollution. (2) Review of recent advances in atmospheric source apportionment techniques (e.g., principal component analysis, organic markers, source-receptor modeling techniques). (3) Develop a general methodology to use integrated top-down and bottom-up datasets. (4) Review of a series of current case studies from Africa, Asia and Latin America and the methodologies applied to assess the air pollution and its sources.

  5. Optimizing the role of tax auditor in attempt to achieve tax revenue target

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mawan Setianto

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available This study aims to explain the role of Tax Auditor in KPP Madya Surabaya. This study uses a case study by collecting the data from Directorate General of Taxation official sources, either in KPP Madya Surabaya, Regional Office of Directorate General of Taxation East Java I, as well as the Directorate of Potency, Compliance, and Revenue. Researcher also conducted interviews with 12 informants consisting of Tax Auditor, Account Representative, Head of Office, as well as officials from the Directorate of Inspection and Billing. There are discrepancies between the expectations of stakeholders and what being  understood/perceived and expected by the Tax Auditor in relation to the role that must be executed. This causes the Tax Auditor to experience a role ambiguity which disrupts the optimizing the implementation of the role. Things that still impede the implementation of the role of the Tax Auditor are: rejection of the Taxpayer; intervention both from inside and outside/difficult to implement the independence in appearance and independence in fact; both physically and psychologically threats; the unclear mutation policy; promotion criteria being implemented inconsistently; and databases that have not been accurate and reliable. 

  6. Urban nonpoint source pollution buildup and washoff models for simulating storm runoff quality in the Los Angeles County

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang Long; Wei Jiahua; Huang Yuefei; Wang Guangqian; Maqsood, Imran

    2011-01-01

    Many urban nonpoint source pollution models utilize pollutant buildup and washoff functions to simulate storm runoff quality of urban catchments. In this paper, two urban pollutant washoff load models are derived using pollutant buildup and washoff functions. The first model assumes that there is no residual pollutant after a storm event while the second one assumes that there is always residual pollutant after each storm event. The developed models are calibrated and verified with observed data from an urban catchment in the Los Angeles County. The application results show that the developed model with consideration of residual pollutant is more capable of simulating nonpoint source pollution from urban storm runoff than that without consideration of residual pollutant. For the study area, residual pollutant should be considered in pollutant buildup and washoff functions for simulating urban nonpoint source pollution when the total runoff volume is less than 30 mm. - Highlights: → An improved urban NPS model was developed. → It performs well in areas where storm events have great temporal variation. → Threshold of total runoff volume for ignoring residual pollutant was determined. - An improved urban NPS model was developed. Threshold of total runoff volume for ignoring residual pollutant was determined.

  7. Environmental audits: Tax, accounting and disclosure issues

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    MacKnight, R.

    1991-01-01

    An overview is presented of the financial and legal issues associated with environmental audits, with an emphasis on tax issues. Accelerated depreciation write-offs are provided for qualified pollution control equipment, and may also qualify for tax credits. The Accounting Standards Committee recommends that provision should be made for future removal and site restoration costs and net of expected recoveries, in a rational and systematic manner by charges to income. Under the Federal Income Tax Act (ITA), future reclamation and shutdown costs will only be deductible if they pass three hurdles: a liability which requires the expenditure of funds in the future may not necessarily be an expense; if the liability can be viewed as an expense, is it incurred for the purpose of gaining or producing income; and is a deduction prohibited because it is on account of capital. A proposed solution to these problems is to adopt the US model that allows the deduction of estimated costs of reclaiming land that is disturbed during the current year at mines and waste disposal sites. Tax treatment of compliance costs, securities law disclosure, proposed federal government policies, proposed regulatory measures, and proposed fiscal measures are discussed

  8. Characterization of an old municipal landfill (Grindsted, Denmark) as a groundwater pollution source

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kjeldsen, Peter; Grundtvig, Aase; Winther, Pia

    1998-01-01

    Investigations into the pollution of groundwater from old landfill have, in most cases, focused on delineating the pollution plume rather than on the landfill as a source of groundwater pollution. Landfills often cover large areas and spatial variations in leachate composition within the landfill...... may have great impact on the location of the main pollution plume in the downstream aquifer. The history of the Grindsted Landfill in Denmark was investigated using aerial photographs and interviews. On the basis of the aerial photographs, waste volume and age of the different areas of the landfill...

  9. Electric vehicles, primary energy sources and CO2 emissions: Romanian case study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Varga, Bogdan Ovidiu

    2013-01-01

    Starting on the 24th of April, 2011, the Romanian government offered to subsidize all potential buyers of electric vehicles, both private and corporate, offering 25% off of the retail price up to 5000 euros with no pollution tax. The Romanian government encourages all governmental institutions to consider buying electric vehicles when deciding to change their existing vehicles stock. This decision is strictly related to the Romanian government's approval of a long-term Energy Strategy, building on the National Energy Strategy for the Medium Term. The government's strategy emphasizes increasing energy efficiency and boosting renewable energy use. The first electric vehicles distributed in the Romanian market are the Citroen-C-Zero, the Mitsubishi i-MiEV, the Renault Kangoo Z.E. and the Renault Fluence Z.E. The energy consumption of these vehicles was analyzed, considering the CO 2 generation characteristics of a Romanian electric power plant. -- Highlights: ► Tax and governmental support for electrical vehicles in Romania. ► Evaluate the CO 2 pollution of the electrical vehicles in Romania's case. ► Comprehensive understanding of the influence of primary energy source over the pollution of an electrical vehicle. ► Approach to decrees the pollution of the electrical vehicles.

  10. CO2 Tax or Fee as a Single Economic Instrument for Climate Protection Policy Promoting Renewable Energy Sources and Enhancing Energy Efficiency

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Granic, G.; Horvath, L.; Jelavic, B.; Juric, Z.; Kulisic, B.; Vuk, B.

    2013-01-01

    This paper presents the analysis of the current implementation of the policy to reduce CO 2 emissions through four practically independent processes: energy market, emission market, support for renewable energy sources through feed-in tariffs (FIT) and support scheme for enhancing energy efficiency. The conclusion is that in this system, some elements of which appear to be controversial, it is not possible to reach the goal - a radical reduction of CO 2 emissions by 80% in total and 95% in electricity production until 2050, which the EU has set as emission reduction targets for this period. Therefore, a new system is now proposed that is based on a single objective function, CO 2 emissions. The process would be managed through taxes or fees on CO 2 , while the raised revenues would be returned to projects aimed at reducing CO 2 emissions, projects for enhancing energy efficiency, renewable energy sources projects and projects reducing emissions from fossil fuels. The paper outlines the basis of the concept of CO 2 tax or fee as a key measure to stimulate the lowering of emissions and gives an analysis of the impact of different rates of tax or fee on CO 2 emissions on the energy price. A critical analysis of the new model's impact on development of renewable energy sources and on improving energy efficiency in buildings was carried out. Also, there is an analysis of the impact of the new model on transport development. The introduction of the new model should clear the energy market from administrative limitations and privileged positions of renewable sources and should bring all back in the frame of market economy, no matter what source of energy for production of electricity we are dealing with. One limitation to the new model is translation of the current situation in to the new system, especially in the field of renewable energy sources and their protected position under the already concluded long-term contracts. The paper also elaborates the basis for the

  11. Tackling non-point source water pollution in British Columbia: An action plan

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1998-01-01

    Efforts to protect British Columbia water quality by regulating point discharges from municipal and industrial sources have generally been successful, and it is recognized that the major remaining cause of water pollution in the province is from non-point sources. These sources are largely unregulated and associated with urbanization, agriculture, and other forms of land development. The first part of this report reviews the provincial commitment to clean water, the effects of non-point-source (NPS) pollution, and the management of NPS in the province. Part 2 describes the main causes of NPS in British Columbia: Land development, agriculture, stormwater runoff, on-site sewage systems, forestry and range activities, atmospheric deposition, and boating/marine activities. Finally, it presents key components of the province's NPS action plan: Education and training, prevention at site, land use planning and co-ordination, assessment and reporting, economic incentives, legislation and regulation, and implementation.

  12. 76 FR 71623 - Publication of the Tier 2 Tax Rates

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-11-18

    ... DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Internal Revenue Service Publication of the Tier 2 Tax Rates AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Treasury. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: Publication of the tier 2 tax rates for...). Tier 2 taxes on railroad employees, employers, and employee representatives are one source of funding...

  13. 78 FR 71039 - Publication of the Tier 2 Tax Rates

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-11-27

    ... DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Internal Revenue Service Publication of the Tier 2 Tax Rates AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Treasury. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: Publication of the tier 2 tax rates for...). Tier 2 taxes on railroad employees, employers, and employee representatives are one source of funding...

  14. An novel identification method of the environmental risk sources for surface water pollution accidents in chemical industrial parks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peng, Jianfeng; Song, Yonghui; Yuan, Peng; Xiao, Shuhu; Han, Lu

    2013-07-01

    The chemical industry is a major source of various pollution accidents. Improving the management level of risk sources for pollution accidents has become an urgent demand for most industrialized countries. In pollution accidents, the released chemicals harm the receptors to some extent depending on their sensitivity or susceptibility. Therefore, identifying the potential risk sources from such a large number of chemical enterprises has become pressingly urgent. Based on the simulation of the whole accident process, a novel and expandable identification method for risk sources causing water pollution accidents is presented. The newly developed approach, by analyzing and stimulating the whole process of a pollution accident between sources and receptors, can be applied to identify risk sources, especially on the nationwide scale. Three major types of losses, such as social, economic and ecological losses, were normalized, analyzed and used for overall consequence modeling. A specific case study area, located in a chemical industry park (CIP) along the Yangtze River in Jiangsu Province, China, was selected to test the potential of the identification method. The results showed that there were four risk sources for pollution accidents in this CIP. Aniline leakage in the HS Chemical Plant would lead to the most serious impact on the surrounding water environment. This potential accident would severely damage the ecosystem up to 3.8 km downstream of Yangtze River, and lead to pollution over a distance stretching to 73.7 km downstream. The proposed method is easily extended to the nationwide identification of potential risk sources.

  15. Control of emissions from stationary combustion sources: Pollutant detection and behavior in the atmosphere

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Licht, W.; Engel, A.J.; Slater, S.M.

    1979-01-01

    Stationary combustion resources continue to be significant sources of NOx and SOx pollutants in the ambient atmosphere. This volume considers four problem areas: (1) control of emissions from stationary combustion sources, particularly SOx and NOx (2) pollutant behavior in the atmosphere (3) advances in air pollution analysis and (4) air quality management. Topics of interest include carbon slurries for sulfur dioxide abatement, mass transfer in the Kellogg-Weir air quality control system, oxidation/inhibition of sulfite ion in aqueous solution, some micrometeorological methods of measuring dry deposition rates, Spanish moss as an indicator of airborne metal contamination, and air quality impacts from future electric power generation in Texas

  16. Designing green taxes in a political context: From optimal to feasible environmental regulation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Daugbjerg, C.; Tinggaard Svendsen, G.

    2001-01-01

    How should green taxation be designed so that it accommodates producer interests? We argue that to design green taxes which are high enough to have the desired incentive effects, tax revenues must be reimbursed, either by earmarking them for environmental subsidies or by reducing other taxes directed at industry. If green tax schemes can be designed this way, industry will have little incentive to mobilise strong opposition to green taxation. However, in practice, the requirement of reimbursement may be difficult to fulfil because, with few exceptions, polluting industries are not homogeneous. This means that reimbursement will redistribute financial resources within industry and thus create winners and losers. Still, green taxes can be used in heterogeneous industries which can be created by operating separate tax schemes for each branch of industry. The Danish case of pesticide taxation demonstrates that relatively high tax levels can be implemented if an equal relationship between the tax object and the object determining the level of refunds exists throughout the sector. This means that revenues can be reimbursed without creating redistribution within producer communities. (au)

  17. Designing green taxes in a political context: From optimal to feasible environmental regulation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Daugbjerg, C; Tinggaard Svendsen, G

    2001-07-01

    How should green taxation be designed so that it accommodates producer interests? We argue that to design green taxes which are high enough to have the desired incentive effects, tax revenues must be reimbursed, either by earmarking them for environmental subsidies or by reducing other taxes directed at industry. If green tax schemes can be designed this way, industry will have little incentive to mobilise strong opposition to green taxation. However, in practice, the requirement of reimbursement may be difficult to fulfil because, with few exceptions, polluting industries are not homogeneous. This means that reimbursement will redistribute financial resources within industry and thus create winners and losers. Still, green taxes can be used in heterogeneous industries which can be created by operating separate tax schemes for each branch of industry. The Danish case of pesticide taxation demonstrates that relatively high tax levels can be implemented if an equal relationship between the tax object and the object determining the level of refunds exists throughout the sector. This means that revenues can be reimbursed without creating redistribution within producer communities. (au)

  18. 2013 Annual Global Tax Competitiveness Ranking: Corporate Tax Policy at a Crossroads

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Duanjie Chen

    2013-11-01

    businesses may win votes in the short term, but they come at significant costs. Yet, there are politicians calling for still higher taxes on corporations. The federal Opposition leader, Thomas Mulcair, of the New Democratic Party, wants to raise the federal corporate income tax rate from 15 to 22 per cent, making Canada’s combined federal-provincial tax rate (over 33 per cent one of the highest in the world. Such proposals promise an easy source of new revenue at no cost to individual taxpayers. In reality, the cost to taxpayers is lost competitiveness, resulting in a shrinking corporate tax base that will only leave Canadians with a weaker economy, profit-shifting to other countries leading to little additional revenue available to Canadian governments and, inevitably, a larger tax burden to bear individually. The right direction for Canada is the other way: improving tax competitiveness and enhancing tax neutrality by broadening the corporate tax base to further fund rate reduction. The harmonization of provincial sales taxes with the federal GST, in those provinces that have yet to do so, would substantially improve Canada’s tax competitiveness, as would the elimination of economically inefficient tax breaks for favoured business activities. And Canadian governments should continue to lower corporate taxes across the board, whenever possible. Canada’s edge as a globally competitive investment destination has been hard won over many years. It would be a pity to now see it squandered by reckless populist politics.

  19. Flows of Air Pollution, Ill Health and Welfare

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huhtala, A.; Samakovlis, E.

    2007-01-01

    We provide a theoretical framework for measuring welfare when pollution influences economic growth by impairing health and driving up defensive medical expenditures. We demonstrate the usefulness of our framework in practice by applying it to data from Swedish valuation studies designed according to the accounting principles suggested here. We estimate that the negative health effects of nitrogen dioxide emissions amount to 0.6% of GDP in Sweden. We also show that a corrective Pigouvian tax should internalize the direct disutility, reduced labor productivity, and increased healthcare expenditures caused by pollution. According to our calculations, harmful health impacts alone (excluding ecosystem effects) justify 65% of the current Swedish tax on nitrogen dioxide

  20. Practical Application of Aptamer-Based Biosensors in Detection of Low Molecular Weight Pollutants in Water Sources

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wei Zhang

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available Water pollution has become one of the leading causes of human health problems. Low molecular weight pollutants, even at trace concentrations in water sources, have aroused global attention due to their toxicity after long-time exposure. There is an increased demand for appropriate methods to detect these pollutants in aquatic systems. Aptamers, single-stranded DNA or RNA, have high affinity and specificity to each of their target molecule, similar to antigen-antibody interaction. Aptamers can be selected using a method called Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment (SELEX. Recent years we have witnessed great progress in developing aptamer selection and aptamer-based sensors for low molecular weight pollutants in water sources, such as tap water, seawater, lake water, river water, as well as wastewater and its effluents. This review provides an overview of aptamer-based methods as a novel approach for detecting low molecular weight pollutants in water sources.

  1. Spatio-Temporal Patterns and Source Identification of Water Pollution in Lake Taihu (China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yan Chen

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Various multivariate methods were used to analyze datasets of river water quality for 11 variables measured at 20 different sites surrounding Lake Taihu from 2006 to 2010 (13,200 observations, to determine temporal and spatial variations in river water quality and to identify potential pollution sources. Hierarchical cluster analysis (CA grouped the 12 months into two periods (May to November, December to the next April and the 20 sampling sites into two groups (A and B based on similarities in river water quality characteristics. Discriminant analysis (DA was important in data reduction because it used only three variables (water temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO and five-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5 to correctly assign about 94% of the cases and five variables (petroleum, volatile phenol, dissolved oxygen, ammonium nitrogen and total phosphorus to correctly assign >88.6% of the cases. In addition, principal component analysis (PCA identified four potential pollution sources for Clusters A and B: industrial source (chemical-related, petroleum-related or N-related, domestic source, combination of point and non-point sources and natural source. The Cluster A area received more industrial and domestic pollution-related agricultural runoff, whereas Cluster B was mainly influenced by the combination of point and non-point sources. The results imply that comprehensive analysis by using multiple methods could be more effective for facilitating effective management for the Lake Taihu Watershed in the future.

  2. Tax Havens: International Tax Avoidance and Evasion

    OpenAIRE

    Gravelle, Jane G.

    2009-01-01

    The federal government loses both individual and corporate income tax revenue from the shifting of profits and income into low-tax countries, often referred to as tax havens. Tax havens are located around the world with concentrations in the Caribbean and Europe. Corporate profit shifting may cost up to $60 billion in revenue and remedies are likely to involve tax law changes. Individual income tax losses more often arise from tax evasion, and are facilitated by the lack of information report...

  3. Source-Flux-Fate Modelling of Priority Pollutants in Stormwater Systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vezzaro, Luca

    quality management. The thesis provides a framework for the trustworthy application of models to estimate PP fluxes from their sources, and through stormwater drainage systems, and to the sink. This fills a knowledge gap regarding stormwater PP and it supplies urban water managers with modelling tools......The increasing focus on management of stormwater Priority Pollutants (PP) enhances the role of mathematical models as support for the assessment of stormwater quality control strategies. This thesis investigates and presents modelling approaches that are suitable to simulate PP fluxes across...... stormwater systems, supporting the development of pollution control strategies. This is obtained by analyzing four study areas: (i) catchment characterization, (ii) pollutant release and transport models, (iii) stormwater treatment models, and (iv) combination of the above into an integrated model. Given...

  4. Atmospheric dispersion and inverse modelling for the reconstruction of accidental sources of pollutants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Winiarek, Victor

    2014-01-01

    Uncontrolled releases of pollutant in the atmosphere may be the consequence of various situations: accidents, for instance leaks or explosions in an industrial plant, or terrorist attacks such as biological bombs, especially in urban areas. In the event of such situations, authorities' objectives are various: predict the contaminated zones to apply first countermeasures such as evacuation of concerned population; determine the source location; assess the long-term polluted areas, for instance by deposition of persistent pollutants in the soil. To achieve these objectives, numerical models can be used to model the atmospheric dispersion of pollutants. We will first present the different processes that govern the transport of pollutants in the atmosphere, then the different numerical models that are commonly used in this context. The choice between these models mainly depends of the scale and the details one seeks to take into account. We will then present several inverse modeling methods to estimate the emission as well as statistical methods to estimate prior errors, to which the inversion is very sensitive. Several case studies are presented, using synthetic data as well as real data such as the estimation of source terms from the Fukushima accident in March 2011. From our results, we estimate the Cesium-137 emission to be between 12 and 19 PBq with a standard deviation between 15 and 65% and the Iodine-131 emission to be between 190 and 380 PBq with a standard deviation between 5 and 10%. Concerning the localization of an unknown source of pollutant, two strategies can be considered. On one hand parametric methods use a limited number of parameters to characterize the source term to be reconstructed. To do so, strong assumptions are made on the nature of the source. The inverse problem is hence to estimate these parameters. On the other hand nonparametric methods attempt to reconstruct a full emission field. Several parametric and nonparametric methods are

  5. TAX RESEARCH Financial Accounting versus Tax Accounting - Tax Rules’ Impact on Investment Decisions

    OpenAIRE

    Dr.Sc. Skender Ahmeti; Dr.Sc. Muhamet Aliu; MSc. Alban Elshani; Yllka Ahmeti

    2014-01-01

    This paper provides guidance for all those interested in research related to tax. In the study are included three main areas dealing with taxes and about taxes: (1) the role of information in corporation tax expenditures under the rules and laws of the country against financial statements according to international accounting standards, (2) case study PTK; how much effective tax and tax on extra profit has it paid (3) the impact of tax rules on investment decisions - the reasons and profits o...

  6. Water Quality Assessment of River Soan (Pakistan) and Source Apportionment of Pollution Sources Through Receptor Modeling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nazeer, Summya; Ali, Zeshan; Malik, Riffat Naseem

    2016-07-01

    The present study was designed to determine the spatiotemporal patterns in water quality of River Soan using multivariate statistics. A total of 26 sites were surveyed along River Soan and its associated tributaries during pre- and post-monsoon seasons in 2008. Hierarchical agglomerative cluster analysis (HACA) classified sampling sites into three groups according to their degree of pollution, which ranged from least to high degradation of water quality. Discriminant function analysis (DFA) revealed that alkalinity, orthophosphates, nitrates, ammonia, salinity, and Cd were variables that significantly discriminate among three groups identified by HACA. Temporal trends as identified through DFA revealed that COD, DO, pH, Cu, Cd, and Cr could be attributed for major seasonal variations in water quality. PCA/FA identified six factors as potential sources of pollution of River Soan. Absolute principal component scores using multiple regression method (APCS-MLR) further explained the percent contribution from each source. Heavy metals were largely added through industrial activities (28 %) and sewage waste (28 %), nutrients through agriculture runoff (35 %) and sewage waste (28 %), organic pollution through sewage waste (27 %) and urban runoff (17 %) and macroelements through urban runoff (39 %), and mineralization and sewage waste (30 %). The present study showed that anthropogenic activities are the major source of variations in River Soan. In order to address the water quality issues, implementation of effective waste management measures are needed.

  7. Concept of Tax Advising Within Tax Optimization

    OpenAIRE

    Svitlana Bychkova; Makarova Nadiya

    2013-01-01

    Tax advising is strictly individual service requiring knowledge in the fields of law, tax and accounting. Tax advising includes not only advising on taxation models depending on the economic entity type of activity, but it also deals with issues of tax optimization. In the article the authors have offered their views on the concept of tax consulting in the area of tax optimization (tax planning). The subject matter has been a set of the most rational and important settings that allow you to u...

  8. The three hurdles of tax planning: How business context, aims of tax planning, and tax manager power affect tax

    OpenAIRE

    Feller, Anna; Schanz, Deborah

    2014-01-01

    The question of why some companies pay more taxes than others is a widely investigated topic of interest. One of the famous suspect explanations is a phenomenon called tax avoidance. We develop a holistic theoretical concept of influences on corporate tax planning through a series of 19 in-depth German tax expert interviews. Our findings show that three distinct hurdles in the tax planning process can explain different levels of tax expense across companies. Those three hurdles are which tax ...

  9. TAX COMPOSITION AND ECONOMIC GROWTH. A PANEL-MODEL APPROACH FOR EASTERN EUROPE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    MURA PETRU-OVIDIU

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, we investigate the impact of tax composition on economic growth, based on a panel-model approach. The dataset includes six East-European countries and covers the period 1995-2012. Specifically, the study explores the relative impact of different components of tax revenue (direct and indirect tax revenue, as percentage of total tax revenue on economic growth. The paper adds marginally to the empirical literature, showing how the two types of tax revenue influence economic growth in Eastern Europe, under an extended set of economic and sociopolitical control variables. The most important empirical output, for the 6 investigated East-European countries during 1995-2012, suggests that direct taxes are significant and negatively correlated with economic growth, while indirect taxes exert a positive influence on the dependent variable, though insignificant. As for the control variables, it seems that only freedom from corruption and political stability have a significant impact on economic growth. The study suggests that the design of tax systems in Eastern European countries is in accordance with the Commission’s priorities regarding its growth-friendliness. As for policy implications, governments should continue shifting the tax burden away from labour on to tax bases linked to consumption, property, and combating pollution, with potential positive effects both for growth and for fighting against tax evasion.

  10. Non point source pollution modelling in the watershed managed by Integrated Conctructed Wetlands: A GIS approach.

    OpenAIRE

    Vyavahare, Nilesh

    2008-01-01

    The non-point source pollution has been recognised as main cause of eutrophication in Ireland (EPA Ireland, 2001). Integrated Constructed Wetland (ICW) is a management practice adopted in Annestown stream watershed, located in the south county of Waterford in Ireland, used to cleanse farmyard runoff. Present study forms the annual pollution budget for the Annestown stream watershed. The amount of pollution from non-point sources flowing into the stream was simulated by using GIS techniques; u...

  11. Ship-Source Oil Pollution Fund annual report, 1992-1993

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1993-01-01

    The activities of the Ship-Source Oil Pollution Fund (SOPC) are reviewed for the fiscal year commencing 1 April 1992 and ending 31 March 1993. Topics covered include the Canadian compensation regime, activities of the International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund (to which the SOPC contributes), amendments to the Canada Shipping Act, major international incidents, the International Conference on the Revision of the 1969 Civil Liability Convention and the 1971 Fund Convention, the 1993 Oil Spill Conference, and the status of the fund. Twenty-nine oil spill incidents are described along with actions taken, if any, by the SOPC and details of any claims paid by the SOPC or the international fund. 3 figs

  12. 77 FR 71481 - Publication of the Tier 2 Tax Rates

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-11-30

    ... DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Internal Revenue Service Publication of the Tier 2 Tax Rates AGENCY... tax rates for calendar year 2013 as required by section 3241(d) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 3241). Tier 2 taxes on railroad employees, employers, and employee representatives are one source of...

  13. [Characterization and source apportionment of pollutants in urban roadway runoff in Chongqing].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Qian-Qian; Wang, Xiao-Ke; Hao, Li-Ling; Hou, Pei-Qiang; Ouyang, Zhi-Yun

    2012-01-01

    By investigating surface runoff from urban roadway in Chongqing, we assessed the characteristics of surface runoff pollution and the effect of rainfall intensity and antecedent dry weather period on water quality. Using multivariate statistical analysis of data of runoff quality, potential pollutants discharged from urban roadway runoff were identified. The results show that the roadway runoff has high levels of COD, TP and TN, the EMC were 60.83-208.03 mg x L(-1), 0.47-1.01 mg x L(-1) and 2.07-5.00 mg x L(-1) respectively, being the main pollutants; The peaks of pollutant concentration are ahead of or synchronous with the peak of runoff volume; the peaks of pollutant concentrations are mostly occurred within 10 minutes of rainfall. The heavy metal concentrations fluctuate dentately during runoff proceeding. Two potential pollution sources to urban roadway runoff apportioned by using principal component analysis are: vehicle's traffic loss and atmospheric dry and wet deposition, and municipal wastes.

  14. Does More Progressive Tax Make Tax Discipline Weaker?

    OpenAIRE

    Tatiana Damjanovic

    2005-01-01

    This paper investigates the relationship between the disparity in tax base and tax collection. I address the tax collection problem with traditional industrial organization approach. Thus, I model the "tax minimization" industry where the supplier helps taxpayers to avoid their tax liability. I find that lower income inequality as well as a less progressive tax code may result in a smaller number of tax payers committing to their tax duties. Finally, I question the reduction in the highest ta...

  15. Use of lidar for the evaluation of traffic-related urban pollution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eichinger, William E.; Cooper, D. I.; Buttler, William T.; Cottingame, William; Tellier, Larry

    1994-03-01

    Lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) is demonstrated as a tool for the detection and tracking of sources of aerosol pollution. Existing elastic lidars have been used to demonstrate the potential of the application of this technology in urban areas. Data from several experiments is shown along with analysis methods used for interpretation of the data. The goal of the project is to develop a light-weight, low-cost, lidar system and data analysis methods which can be used by urban planners and local air quality managers. The ability to determine the sources, i.e., causes, of non-attainment may lead to more effective use of tax dollars. Future directions for the project are also discussed.

  16. Higher fuel prices are associated with lower air pollution levels.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barnett, Adrian G; Knibbs, Luke D

    2014-05-01

    Air pollution is a persistent problem in urban areas, and traffic emissions are a major cause of poor air quality. Policies to curb pollution levels often involve raising the price of using private vehicles, for example, congestion charges. We were interested in whether higher fuel prices were associated with decreased air pollution levels. We examined an association between diesel and petrol prices and four traffic-related pollutants in Brisbane from 2010 to 2013. We used a regression model and examined pollution levels up to 16 days after the price change. Higher diesel prices were associated with statistically significant short-term reductions in carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides. Changes in petrol prices had no impact on air pollution. Raising diesel taxes in Australia could be justified as a public health measure. As raising taxes is politically unpopular, an alternative political approach would be to remove schemes that put a downward pressure on fuel prices, such as industry subsidies and shopping vouchers that give fuel discounts. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. Environmental and economic results achieved by Cornare in implementing the remunerative tax in eastern Antioquia 1997 - 2005

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Quintero V, John Fredy

    2008-01-01

    A summary of the development was carried out that has had since 1995 and even the 2005 the program of remunerative tax executed by CORNARE, in which the environmental management in the process of implementation is visualized, evolution and environmental as economic results, through the reduction of the load contaminant poured to the superficial water sources in terms of DBO 5 and SST, like in the destination of the resources obtained by this tax that elevate to the 11.600 million pesos in the period evaluated, and that in their great majority they were destined to finance jointly projects of saneamiento basic municipal. It will be able to be observed how in the private sector better results in the reduction of the polluting load have been had, whereas the policeman represents the greater load generated and spilled without treatment, in special the municipalities or regions with population and absence of PTAR, as they are some from the pertaining ones to the river basin of the Negro River. In general, comparing the year of 1997 with the 2005, was relative a semester reduction of polluting load for all the region of CORNARE of 24% for DBO 5 and 35% for SST

  18. The Probability of Tax Charges for Industrial Emission of Carbon Dioxide

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arief-Goeritno

    2000-01-01

    Generally, although all industrial by product can be toxic and non-toxic pollutant that have potential hazard for human being and environmental. One of these pollutants is carbon dioxide that has potential contribution for greenhouse effect. Although carbon dioxide can be absorbed by plants at the forest but quantity of this emission more higher than quantity of forest area. For this reason rehabilitation of the forest and diversifications and energy saving can be used for decreasing of greenhouse effect. The synergy action such as economical instrumentation (specially microeconomics) can be implemented base on regulators, taxing and incentive and effluent charge by deeper assessment on environmental economics. By identification of quality and quantity fossil fuels that was burned in the industrial process so with stoichiometry calculation will be found quantity of carbon dioxide emission and the taxes can be estimated. (author)

  19. Cosmetic Functional Ingredients from Botanical Sources for Anti-Pollution Skincare Products

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Claudia Juliano

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available Air pollution is a rising problem in many metropolitan areas around the world. Airborne contaminants are predominantly derived from anthropogenic activities, and include carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds, ozone and particulate matter (PM; a mixture of solid and liquid particles of variable size and composition, able to absorb and delivery a large number of pollutants. The exposure to these air pollutants is associated to detrimental effects on human skin, such as premature aging, pigment spot formation, skin rashes and eczema, and can worsen some skin conditions, such as atopic dermatitis. A cosmetic approach to this problem involves the topical application of skincare products containing functional ingredients able to counteract pollution-induced skin damage. Considering that the demand for natural actives is growing in all segments of global cosmetic market, the aim of this review is to describe some commercial cosmetic ingredients obtained from botanical sources able to reduce the impact of air pollutants on human skin with different mechanisms, providing a scientific rationale for their use.

  20. SWOC ANALYSIS OF GOODS AND SERVICES TAX (GST): IMPLEMENTATION IN INDIA

    OpenAIRE

    Raghavendra Holla

    2016-01-01

    Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a type of indirect tax and it is one of biggest reform in Indian tax structure. The Goods and Service Tax Bill or GST Bill, officially known as The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Second Amendment) Bill, 2014. 16 years wait is almost finished when Rajya Sabha and Lokh Sabha passed ’The Goods and Service Tax Bill’ in the month of August, 2017. Good and Service tax is also known as ‘National Value Added Tax’. India is a developing country; the main source fo...

  1. Deferred Tax Assets and Deferred Tax Expense Against Tax Planning Profit Management

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Warsono

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this study is to examine the probability of earnings management performed by Property and Real Estate companies listed in Indonesia Stock Exchange (BEI in the period 2011-2015. How to do the management to influence the accounting numbers can be either profit management through deferred tax assets, deferred tax expense and tax planning in the financial statements. This paper examines the effect of deferred tax assets deferred tax burden, and tax planning to earnings management conducted by the company. Data of the research is to use secondary data from company financial statements that were downloaded from the official website of Indonesia Stock Exchange. Using sampling technique is performed by purposive sampling. The study population is the Property and Real Estate companies listed in Indonesia Stock Exchange in the period 2011-2015. The study take sample as many as 34 companies Property and Real Estate in the Stock Exchange in 2011-2015. Hypothesis testing uses multiple regressions with SPSS software version 22. The result shows that the Deferred Tax Assets positive and significant effect on earnings management; while deferred tax expense and tax planning significant negative effect on earnings management.

  2. Spatiotemporal patterns and source attribution of nitrogen pollution in a typical headwater agricultural watershed in Southeastern China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Wenjun; He, Bin; Nover, Daniel; Duan, Weili; Luo, Chuan; Zhao, Kaiyan; Chen, Wen

    2018-01-01

    Excessive nitrogen (N) discharge from agriculture causes widespread problems in aquatic ecosystems. Knowledge of spatiotemporal patterns and source attribution of N pollution is critical for nutrient management programs but is poorly studied in headwaters with various small water bodies and mini-point pollution sources. Taking a typical small watershed in the low mountains of Southeastern China as an example, N pollution and source attribution were studied for a multipond system around a village using the Hydrological Simulation Program-Fortran (HSPF) model. The results exhibited distinctive spatio-seasonal variations with an overall seriousness rank for the three indicators: total nitrogen (TN) > nitrate/nitrite nitrogen (NO x - -N) > ammonia nitrogen (NH 3 -N), according to the Chinese Surface Water Quality Standard. TN pollution was severe for the entire watershed, while NO x - -N pollution was significant for ponds and ditches far from the village, and the NH 3 -N concentrations were acceptable except for the ponds near the village in summer. Although food and cash crop production accounted for the largest source of N loads, we discovered that mini-point pollution sources, including animal feeding operations, rural residential sewage, and waste, together contributed as high as 47% of the TN and NH 3 -N loads in ponds and ditches. So, apart from eco-fertilizer programs and concentrated animal feeding operations, the importance of environmental awareness building for resource management is highlighted for small farmers in headwater agricultural watersheds. As a first attempt to incorporate multipond systems into the process-based modeling of nonpoint source (NPS) pollution, this work can inform other hydro-environmental studies on scattered and small water bodies. The results are also useful to water quality improvement for entire river basins.

  3. On the calculation of atmospheric thermal pollution resulted from a flat area source

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Perkauskas, D.Ch.; Senuta, K.A.

    1984-01-01

    A spatial distribution of thermal atmospheric pollution from a flat area source - a great city or a lake-cooler of NPP was investigated. The numerical solution obtained lets to evaluate the horizontal and vertical spreading of the thermal atmospheric pollution by the different wind velocities in dependence of the inhomogeneities in humidity of the earth's surface

  4. Distribution and origin sources of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) pollution in sediment of Sarawak coastal area

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mohd Shuhaimi Elias; Abdul Khalik Wood; Zaleha Hashim; Mohd Suhaimi Hamzah; Shamsiah Abdul Rahman; Nazaratul Ashifa Abdullah Salim

    2010-01-01

    Alkyl and parent Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) compounds in marine sediment sample collected from ten locations along Sarawak coastal areas were extracted and analyzed by using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The source identification of PAH pollution in marine sediment of Sarawak coastal areas were identify by ratios technique of An/ An+phen, Fl/ Fl +Py, B[a]A/ (B[a]A+Chry) and total Methyl Phen/ Phen. The total alkyl and parent PAHs concentration varies from 36.5 - 277.4 ng/ g dry weight (d.w.) with a mean concentration of 138.2 ng/ g d.w. The ratio values of PAHs pollution in marine sediment of Sarawak coastal areas are clearly indicating the PAHs pollutions are originated from petroleum (petrogenic) and petroleum combustion (pyrolytic). However, the origin sources of PAHs pollution in a few stations were uncertain due to mixing sources of PAHs. (author)

  5. [Urban non-point source pollution control by runoff retention and filtration pilot system].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bai, Yao; Zuo, Jian-E; Gan, Li-Li; Low, Thong Soon; Miao, Heng-Feng; Ruan, Wen-Quan; Huang, Xia

    2011-09-01

    A runoff retention and filtration pilot system was designed and the long-term purification effect of the runoff was monitored. Runoff pollution characters in 2 typical events and treatment effect of the pilot system were analyzed. The results showed that the runoff was severely polluted. Event mean concentrations (EMCs) of SS, COD, TN and TP in the runoff were 361, 135, 7.88 and 0.62 mg/L respectively. The runoff formed by long rain presented an obvious first flush effect. The first 25% flow contributed more than 50% of the total pollutants loading of SS, TP, DTP and PO4(3-). The pilot system could reduce 100% of the non-point source pollution if the volume of the runoff was less than the retention tank. Otherwise the overflow will be purification by the filtration pilot system and the removal rates of SS, COD, TN, TP, DTP and PO4(3-) reached 97.4% , 61.8%, 22.6%, 85.1%, 72.1%, and 85.2% respectively. The system was stable and the removal rate of SS, COD, TN, and TP were 98.6%, 65.4%, 55.1% and 92.6%. The whole system could effectively remove the non-point source pollution caused by runoff.

  6. TAX OPTIMIZATION, TAX AVOIDANCE OR TAX EVASION? CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE OFFSHORE COMPANIES’ LEGAL BACKGROUND

    OpenAIRE

    Eva ERDÕS

    2010-01-01

    Is it a legal or illegal activity to give money to establish offshore firms? What is the offshore practice is it a method of tax optimization, tax minimization or is it a harmful activity, which means tax avoidance or tax evasion. This question is very important in the European Union’s tax law system, because the EU tax law is against the harmful tax competition. Some member states’ legal system is permitted to use offshore companies’ rules, but in the European Union it is prohibited to estab...

  7. Source-receptor metrology and modeling of trace amounts of atmospheric pollutants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Coddeville, P.

    2005-12-01

    This work deals with acid pollution and with its long distance transport using the metrology of trace amounts of pollutants in rural environment and the identification of the emission sources at the origin of acid atmospheric fallouts. Several French and foreign precipitation collectors have been evaluated and tested on the field. The measurement efficiency and limitations of four sampling systems for gas and particulate sulfur, ammonia and nitrous compounds have been evaluated. The limits of methods and the measurement uncertainties have been determined and calculated. A second aspect concerns the development of oriented receptor-type statistical models with the aim of improving the research of emission sources in smaller size areas defined by the cells of a geographical mesh. The construction of these models combines the pollution data of the sites with the informations about the trajectories of air masses. Results are given as probability or concentration fields revealing the areas potentially at the origin of pollutant emissions. Areas with strong pollutant emissions have been detected at the Polish, Czech and German borders and have been identified as responsible of pollution events encountered in Morvan region. Quantitative source-receptor relations have been also established. The different atmospheric transport profiles, their related frequency and concentration have been also evaluated using a dynamical clouds classification of air mass retro-trajectories. Finally, the first medium-term exploitation results (14 years) of precipitation data from measurement stations allow to perfectly identify the different meteorological regimes of the French territory by establishing a relation with the chemical composition of rainfalls. A west-east oriented increase of rainfall acidity is observed over the French territory. The pluviometry of the north-east area being among the highest of France, it generates more important deposits of acidifying compounds. The analysis

  8. ICT and international corporate taxation: tax attributes and scope of taxation

    OpenAIRE

    Schäfer, Anne; Spengel, Christoph

    2002-01-01

    In this paper, an outline of the consequences of the increased use of ICT on international corporate taxation, namely on the tax attributes and the scope of taxation, is given. It is argued that the concept of capital export neutrality shall prevail, as it is deemed to be the most appropriate to the changed economic structure. With regard to the tax attributes in the source state, an enlargement of the notion of a permanent establishment in order to shift tax revenues to the source state is n...

  9. [Research advances in identifying nitrate pollution sources of water environment by using nitrogen and oxygen stable isotopes].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mao, Wei; Liang, Zhi-wei; Li, Wei; Zhu, Yao; Yanng, Mu-yi; Jia, Chao-jie

    2013-04-01

    Water body' s nitrate pollution has become a common and severe environmental problem. In order to ensure human health and water environment benign evolution, it is of great importance to effectively identify the nitrate pollution sources of water body. Because of the discrepant composition of nitrogen and oxygen stable isotopes in different sources of nitrate in water body, nitrogen and oxygen stable isotopes can be used to identify the nitrate pollution sources of water environment. This paper introduced the fractionation factors of nitrogen and oxygen stable isotopes in the main processes of nitrogen cycling and the composition of these stable isotopes in main nitrate sources, compared the advantages and disadvantages of five pre-treatment methods for analyzing the nitrogen and oxygen isotopes in nitrate, and summarized the research advances in this aspect into three stages, i. e. , using nitrogen stable isotope alone, using nitrogen and oxygen stable isotopes simultaneously, and combining with mathematical models. The future research directions regarding the nitrate pollution sources identification of water environment were also discussed.

  10. TOP TAX SYSTEM - A common tax system for all nations

    OpenAIRE

    VIJAYA KRUSHNA VARMA

    2011-01-01

    TOP Tax system is a new tax system which can be used as a common tax system for all nations. This new tax system will be without present tax system’s all Direct and Indirect taxes accompanied by tax laws, tax exemptions, multiple tax collection departments to relieve 7 billion people of the world from the cobweb of ambiguous and complex tax structures, plethora of tax laws, mandatory and cumbersome accounting, auditing, tax returns and consequent quagmire of all tax related cases. Taxation, t...

  11. Characterization and source identification of pollutants in runoff from a mixed land use watershed using ordination analyses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Dong Hoon; Kim, Jin Hwi; Mendoza, Joseph A; Lee, Chang Hee; Kang, Joo-Hyon

    2016-05-01

    While identification of critical pollutant sources is the key initial step for cost-effective runoff management, it is challenging due to the highly uncertain nature of runoff pollution, especially during a storm event. To identify critical sources and their quantitative contributions to runoff pollution (especially focusing on phosphorous), two ordination methods were used in this study: principal component analysis (PCA) and positive matrix factorization (PMF). For the ordination analyses, we used runoff quality data for 14 storm events, including data for phosphorus, 11 heavy metal species, and eight ionic species measured at the outlets of subcatchments with different land use compositions in a mixed land use watershed. Five factors as sources of runoff pollutants were identified by PCA: agrochemicals, groundwater, native soils, domestic sewage, and urban sources (building materials and automotive activities). PMF identified similar factors to those identified by PCA, with more detailed source mechanisms for groundwater (i.e., nitrate leaching and cation exchange) and urban sources (vehicle components/motor oils/building materials and vehicle exhausts), confirming the sources identified by PCA. PMF was further used to quantify contributions of the identified sources to the water quality. Based on the results, agrochemicals and automotive activities were the two dominant and ubiquitous phosphorus sources (39-61 and 16-47 %, respectively) in the study area, regardless of land use types.

  12. Spatial distribution and source apportionment of water pollution in different administrative zones of Wen-Rui-Tang (WRT) river watershed, China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Liping; Mei, Kun; Liu, Xingmei; Wu, Laosheng; Zhang, Minghua; Xu, Jianming; Wang, Fan

    2013-08-01

    Water quality degradation in river systems has caused great concerns all over the world. Identifying the spatial distribution and sources of water pollutants is the very first step for efficient water quality management. A set of water samples collected bimonthly at 12 monitoring sites in 2009 and 2010 were analyzed to determine the spatial distribution of critical parameters and to apportion the sources of pollutants in Wen-Rui-Tang (WRT) river watershed, near the East China Sea. The 12 monitoring sites were divided into three administrative zones of urban, suburban, and rural zones considering differences in land use and population density. Multivariate statistical methods [one-way analysis of variance, principal component analysis (PCA), and absolute principal component score-multiple linear regression (APCS-MLR) methods] were used to investigate the spatial distribution of water quality and to apportion the pollution sources. Results showed that most water quality parameters had no significant difference between the urban and suburban zones, whereas these two zones showed worse water quality than the rural zone. Based on PCA and APCS-MLR analysis, urban domestic sewage and commercial/service pollution, suburban domestic sewage along with fluorine point source pollution, and agricultural nonpoint source pollution with rural domestic sewage pollution were identified to the main pollution sources in urban, suburban, and rural zones, respectively. Understanding the water pollution characteristics of different administrative zones could put insights into effective water management policy-making especially in the area across various administrative zones.

  13. Country policy profile - Lithuania. December 2015

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2015-12-01

    In Lithuania, electricity from renewable sources is mainly promoted through a feed-in tariff and grants. Renewable energy sources for heating and cooling purposes are exempt from environmental pollution tax and are eligible for grants. Moreover, heat suppliers are obliged to purchase all heat produced from renewable energy sources. Renewable transport is promoted through reimbursement of raw materials for bio-fuel production and an exemption from excise tax and environmental pollution tax (RES-Legal Europe, 2014)

  14. Country policy profile - Lithuania. August 2015

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2015-08-01

    In Lithuania, electricity from renewable sources is mainly promoted through a feed-in tariff and grants. Renewable energy sources for heating and cooling purposes are exempt from environmental pollution tax and are eligible for grants. Moreover, heat suppliers are obliged to purchase all heat produced from renewable energy sources. Transport sector is promoted through reimbursement of raw materials for bio-fuel production and an exemption from excise tax and environmental pollution tax (RES-Legal Europe, 2014)

  15. Extensive Tax Minimization as an Obstacle to Human Rights Compliance

    OpenAIRE

    Sydness, Live Synnevåg

    2010-01-01

    Every year developing countries lose billions of dollars through tax evasion and tax avoidance by TNCs, which are some of the largest tax payers in the world. A great portion of developing countries’ already scarce revenues is vanishing without the population benefitting from the human rights obligations its states have undertaken by becoming part of human rights conventions. Tax revenues are an essential source for evoking resources that enable the government to promote the realizations of h...

  16. Spatio-temporal patterns and source apportionment of pollution in Qiantang River (China) using neural-based modeling and multivariate statistical techniques

    Science.gov (United States)

    Su, Shiliang; Zhi, Junjun; Lou, Liping; Huang, Fang; Chen, Xia; Wu, Jiaping

    Characterizing the spatio-temporal patterns and apportioning the pollution sources of water bodies are important for the management and protection of water resources. The main objective of this study is to describe the dynamics of water quality and provide references for improving river pollution control practices. Comprehensive application of neural-based modeling and different multivariate methods was used to evaluate the spatio-temporal patterns and source apportionment of pollution in Qiantang River, China. Measurement data were obtained and pretreated for 13 variables from 41 monitoring sites for the period of 2001-2004. A self-organizing map classified the 41 monitoring sites into three groups (Group A, B and C), representing different pollution characteristics. Four significant parameters (dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, total phosphorus and total lead) were identified by discriminant analysis for distinguishing variations of different years, with about 80% correct assignment for temporal variation. Rotated principal component analysis (PCA) identified four potential pollution sources for Group A (domestic sewage and agricultural pollution, industrial wastewater pollution, mineral weathering, vehicle exhaust and sand mining), five for Group B (heavy metal pollution, agricultural runoff, vehicle exhaust and sand mining, mineral weathering, chemical plants discharge) and another five for Group C (vehicle exhaust and sand mining, chemical plants discharge, soil weathering, biochemical pollution, mineral weathering). The identified potential pollution sources explained 75.6% of the total variances for Group A, 75.0% for Group B and 80.0% for Group C, respectively. Receptor-based source apportionment was applied to further estimate source contributions for each pollution variable in the three groups, which facilitated and supported the PCA results. These results could assist managers to develop optimal strategies and determine priorities for river

  17. A note on the neutrality of profit taxes with tax evasion and tax avoidance

    OpenAIRE

    Che-chiang Huang; Horn-in Kuo

    2014-01-01

    Traditional literature exploring the relationship between production and tax evasion ignores the impact of other activities on these two decisions. This paper incorporates firms' tax avoidance activities into the model of tax evasion. In contrast to conventional results, we find that profit tax is not necessarily neutral. In addition, the independency or separability of tax evasion and production decisions may not hold either whenever tax avoidance is present.

  18. Factors influencing the spatial extent of mobile source air pollution impacts: a meta-analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Levy Jonathan I

    2007-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background There has been growing interest among exposure assessors, epidemiologists, and policymakers in the concept of "hot spots", or more broadly, the "spatial extent" of impacts from traffic-related air pollutants. This review attempts to quantitatively synthesize findings about the spatial extent under various circumstances. Methods We include both the peer-reviewed literature and government reports, and focus on four significant air pollutants: carbon monoxide, benzene, nitrogen oxides, and particulate matter (including both ultrafine particle counts and fine particle mass. From the identified studies, we extracted information about significant factors that would be hypothesized to influence the spatial extent within the study, such as the study type (e.g., monitoring, air dispersion modeling, GIS-based epidemiological studies, focus on concentrations or health risks, pollutant under study, background concentration, emission rate, and meteorological factors, as well as the study's implicit or explicit definition of spatial extent. We supplement this meta-analysis with results from some illustrative atmospheric dispersion modeling. Results We found that pollutant characteristics and background concentrations best explained variability in previously published spatial extent estimates, with a modifying influence of local meteorology, once some extreme values based on health risk estimates were removed from the analysis. As hypothesized, inert pollutants with high background concentrations had the largest spatial extent (often demonstrating no significant gradient, and pollutants formed in near-source chemical reactions (e.g., nitrogen dioxide had a larger spatial extent than pollutants depleted in near-source chemical reactions or removed through coagulation processes (e.g., nitrogen oxide and ultrafine particles. Our illustrative dispersion model illustrated the complex interplay of spatial extent definitions, emission rates

  19. THE TAX CONTROL AS A COMPONENT OF TAX ADMINISTRATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olga Zhuk

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available In the article the features of tax control in the system of taxes administration were investigated. The basic approaches to the determination of tax control were defined. Principles of tax control that must be kept were defined and it will ensure efficiency and effectiveness of tax control. Basic forms of tax control were characterized. An advantages of horizontal monitoring that is one of the form of tax controls were directed. Key words: tax control, tax control forms, horizontal monitoring, documentaries, desk and actual checks.

  20. Using Machine Learning in Environmental Tax Reform Assessment for Sustainable Development: A Case Study of Hubei Province, China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yinger Zheng

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available During the past 30 year of economic growth, China has also accumulated a huge environmental pollution debt. China’s government attempts to use a variety of means, including tax instruments to control environmental pollution. After nine years of repeated debates, the State Council Legislative Affairs Office released the Environmental Protection Tax Law (Draft in June 2015. As China’s first environmental tax law, whether this conservative “Environmental Fee to Tax (EFT” reform could improve the environment has generated controversy. In this paper, we seek insights to this controversial issue using the machine learning approach, a powerful tool for environmental policy assessment. We take Hubei Province, the first pilot area as a case of EFT, and analyze the institutional incentive, behavior transformation and emission intensity reduction performance. Twelve pilot cities located in Hubei Province were selected to estimate the effect of the reform by using synthetic control and a rapid developing machine learning method for policy evaluation. We find that the EFT reform can promote emission intensity reduction. Especially, relative to comparable synthetic cities in the absence of the reform, the average annual emission intensity of Sulfur Dioxide (SO2 in the pilot cities dropped by 0.13 ton/million Yuan with a reduction rate of 10%–32%. Our findings also show that the impact of environmental tax reform varies across cities due to the administrative level and economic development. The results of our study are also supported by enterprise interviews. The EFT improves the overall environmental costs, and encourages enterprises to reduce emissions pollution. These results provide valuable experience and policy implications for the implementation of China’s Environmental Protection Tax Law.

  1. Analyse of pollution sources in Horna Nitra river basin using the system GeoEnviron such as instrument for groundwater and surface water pollution risk assessment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kutnik, P.

    2004-01-01

    In this presentation author deals with the analyse of pollution sources in Horna Nitra river basin using the system GeoEnviron such as instrument for groundwater and surface water pollution risk assessment

  2. Exposure to Mobile Source Air Pollution in Early-life and Childhood Asthma Incidence: The Kaiser Air Pollution and Pediatric Asthma Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pennington, Audrey Flak; Strickland, Matthew J; Klein, Mitchel; Zhai, Xinxin; Bates, Josephine T; Drews-Botsch, Carolyn; Hansen, Craig; Russell, Armistead G; Tolbert, Paige E; Darrow, Lyndsey A

    2018-01-01

    Early-life exposure to traffic-related air pollution exacerbates childhood asthma, but it is unclear what role it plays in asthma development. The association between exposure to primary mobile source pollutants during pregnancy and during infancy and asthma incidence by ages 2 through 6 was examined in the Kaiser Air Pollution and Pediatric Asthma Study, a racially diverse birth cohort of 24,608 children born between 2000 and 2010 and insured by Kaiser Permanente Georgia. We estimated concentrations of mobile source fine particulate matter (PM2.5, µg/m), nitrogen oxides (NOX, ppb), and carbon monoxide (CO, ppm) at the maternal and child residence using a Research LINE source dispersion model for near-surface releases. Asthma was defined using diagnoses and medication dispensings from medical records. We used binomial generalized linear regression to model the impact of exposure continuously and by quintiles on asthma risk. Controlling for covariates and modeling log-transformed exposure, a 2.7-fold increase in first year of life PM2.5 was associated with an absolute 4.1% (95% confidence interval, 1.6%, 6.6%) increase in risk of asthma by age 5. Quintile analysis showed an increase in risk from the first to second quintile, but similar risk across quintiles 2-5. Risk differences increased with follow-up age. Results were similar for NOX and CO and for exposure during pregnancy and the first year of life owing to high correlation. Results provide limited evidence for an association of early-life mobile source air pollution with childhood asthma incidence with a steeper concentration-response relationship observed at lower levels of exposure.

  3. Car ownership and use taxes as pollution correcting instruments

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mabit, Stefan Lindhard; Mulalic, Ismir

    There have been many attempts to alter the taxation of private vehicles to obtain more energy-efficient car transport. The last significant reform in Denmark was completed in 2007. The most important objective was to improve fuel efficiency and consequently to reduce emissions related to car tran...... a change in car taxes. Based on a simple theoretical framework we use a large sample of detailed Danish data to estimate the joint demand for vehicles and kilometres. The empirical results point at effects that have important implications....

  4. The effect of enforcing some direct tax law

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hassan Ghodrati

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available Regarding to the role of tax in the economy as the most stable and constant source of income and also due to the fact that there was no success in achieving fiscal goals by the government during its economic and developmental programs, paying attention to and making effort in this domain is regarded as a necessity in any country. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of enforcing Article 181 of Direct Tax Law on extent of taxpayers’ satisfaction, increase of trust, increase of tax compliance or decrease of tax evasion in Isfahan, Iran. The present study consists of a main hypothesis and four sub-hypotheses. Data were collected from 100 companies regarding their performance during 200 years. Article 181 of Direct Tax Code was implemented upon these companies over the period 2006-2011. Hypotheses of the study were evaluated. The results of the study, in survey and post-event pivot, showed that enforcing Article 181 of Direct Tax Law in Isfahan was effective. However, its effect was not significant regarding increase of taxpayers’ familiarity and acquaintance with Tax Office and its functions in Isfahan; it increased tax compliance, decreased tax evasion by the taxpayers, increased taxpayers’ satisfaction and helped them trust on Tax Office and its performance.

  5. Bureaucratic Tax-Seeking: The Danish Waste Tax

    OpenAIRE

    Christoffersen, Henrik; Svendsen, Gert Tinggaard

    2000-01-01

    Two main results in traditional tax theory states the following. First, general taxes minimize the welfare loss from changed relative prices. Second, because the total public budget tends to exceed the optimal size, a leader (here named 'troop leader') is needed in the budget process to prevent over-taxation. Nevertheless, differentiated taxes initiated by individual ministries generate a still larger proportion of total tax revenue, in particular under cover of taxing externalities such as e...

  6. Tracking sensitive source areas of different weather pollution types using GRAPES-CUACE adjoint model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Chao; An, Xingqin; Zhai, Shixian; Hou, Qing; Sun, Zhaobin

    2018-02-01

    In this study, the sustained pollution processes were selected during which daily PM2.5 concentration exceeded 75 μg/m3 for three days continuously based on the hourly data of Beijing observation sites from July 2012 to December 2015. Using the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) MICAPS meteorological processing system, synoptic situation during PM2.5 pollution processes was classified into five weather types: low pressure and weak high pressure alternating control, weak high pressure, low pressure control, high rear, and uniform pressure field. Then, we chose the representative pollution cases corresponding to each type, adopted the GRAPES-CUACE adjoint model tracking the sensitive source areas of the five types, and analyzed the critical discharge periods of Beijing and neighboring provinces as well as their contribution to the PM2.5 peak concentration in Beijing. The results showed that the local source plays the main theme in the 30 h before the objective time, and prior to 72 h before the objective time contribution of local sources for the five pollution types are 37.5%, 25.0%, 39.4%, 31.2%, and 42.4%, respectively; the Hebei source contributes constantly in the 57 h ahead of the objective time with the contribution proportion ranging from 37% to 64%; the contribution period and rate of Tianjin and Shanxi sources are shorter and smaller. Based on the adjoint sensitivity analysis, we further discussed the effect of emission reduction control measures in different types, finding that the effect of local source reduction in the first 20 h of the objective time is better, and if the local source is reduced 50% within 72 h before the objective time, the decline rates of PM2.5 in the five types are 11.6%, 9.4%, 13.8%, 9.9% and 15.2% respectively. And the reduction effect of the neighboring sources is better within the 3-57 h before the objective time.

  7. Integrating ICT Skills and Tax Software in Tax Education: A Survey of Malaysian Tax Practitioners' Perspectives

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ling, Lai Ming; Nawawi, Nurul Hidayah Ahamad

    2010-01-01

    Purpose: This study aims to examine the ICT skills needed by a fresh accounting graduate when first joining a tax firm; to find out usage of electronic tax (e-tax) applications in tax practice; to assess the rating of senior tax practitioners on fresh graduates' ICT and e-tax applications skills; and to solicit tax practitioners' opinion regarding…

  8. Cd isotopes as a potential source tracer of metal pollution in river sediments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gao, Bo; Zhou, Haidong; Liang, Xirong; Tu, Xianglin

    2013-01-01

    Tracing the sources of heavy metals in water environment is key important for our understanding of their pollution behavior. In this present study, Cd concentrations and Cd isotopic compositions in sediments were determined to effectively identify possible Cd sources. Results showed that elevated concentrations and high enrichment factor for Cd were found in all sediments, suggesting anthropogenic Cd origin. Cd isotopic compositions in sediments yielded relative variations ranged from −0.35‰ to 0.07‰ in term of δ 114/110 Cd (the mean: −0.08‰). Large fractionated Cd was found in sediments collected from a smelter and an E-waste town. Cd isotopic compositions and Cd concentrations measured in sediments allowed the identification of three main origins (dust from metal refining (δ 114/110 Cd 114/110 Cd > 0), and those δ 114/110 Cd = 0, such as background and mining activity). According to the actual precision obtained, Cd isotopes could be a potential tool for tracing metal pollution sources in water environment. -- The information and application of Cd isotopic compositions will provide a new direction in tracing metal pollution in water environment

  9. Globalization, Tax Competition and Tax Burden İn Turkey

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Veli KARGI

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available 1990’s world was quite different from the world of 1950’s. Especially in the last twenty years, the increasing involvement of Japan in the world economy since the 1990s, in addition to the dominance of globalization and market economy throughout the world, the rapid spread of information resulting from the developments in IT-technology and the international competition emerging in the field of technology have all led to some significant developments in the world economy. Reduction of high mobility income and corporate tax rates due to tax competition may cause an unjust distribution of the tax burden. The fact that indirect taxation constitutes about 70% of the tax revenues obtained in Turkey can be taken as an indication of the unfairness in the distribution of tax burden in Turkey. In this study, following a definition of globalization and tax competition, classification of tax competition, reasons for increasing tax competition, benefits and losses of tax competition are explained, and changes introduced by various countries in their tax systems due to tax competition, the distribution of tax burden resulting from tax competition in Turkey and the effectiveness of the new income tax law in Turkey in terms of tax competition are analyzed.

  10. AN OVERVIEW OF THE EUROPEAN TAX HAVENS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Loredana Maftei

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available In the actual context of economic globalization, tax havens represent a significant obstacle for global governments seeking to increase their fiscal incomes and a source of polarization of income and wealth. Statistics reports showed that tax havens hold at least $10 trillion in assets, money generally controlled and hidden by major players from the political and financial areas, as well as from criminal ones. The paper introduces the present situation of European tax havens, with the major poles of action. The conclusion finds the real efforts of international bodies such as OECD, to interdict opportunities to avoid taxation.

  11. Tax levy financing for local public health: fiscal allocation, effort, and capacity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riley, William J; Gearin, Kimberly J; Parrotta, Carmen D; Briggs, Jill; Gyllstrom, M Elizabeth

    2013-12-01

    Local health departments (LHDs) rely on a wide variety of funding sources, and the level of financing is associated with both LHD performance in essential public health services and population health outcomes. Although it has been shown that funding sources vary across LHDs, there is no evidence regarding the relationship between fiscal allocation (local tax levy); fiscal effort (tax capacity); and fiscal capacity (community wealth). The purpose of this study is to analyze local tax levy support for LHD funding. Three research questions are addressed: (1) What are tax levy trends in LHD fiscal allocation? (2) What is the role of tax levy in overall LHD financing? and (3) How do local community fiscal capacity and fiscal effort relate to LHD tax levy fiscal allocation? This study focuses on 74 LHDs eligible for local tax levy funding in Minnesota. Funding and expenditure data for 5 years (2006 to 2010) were compiled from four governmental databases, including the Minnesota Department of Health, the State Auditor, the State Demographer, and the Metropolitan Council. Trends in various funding sources and expenditures are described for the time frame of interest. Data were analyzed in 2012. During the 2006-2010 time period, total average LHD per capita expenditures increased 13%, from $50.98 to $57.63. Although the overall tax levy increase in Minnesota was 25%, the local tax levy for public health increased 5.6% during the same period. There is a direct relationship between fiscal effort and LHD expenditures. Local funding reflects LHD community priorities and the relative importance in comparison to funding other local programs with tax dollars. In Minnesota, local tax levy support for local public health services is not keeping pace with local tax support for other local government services. These results raise important questions about the relationship between tax levy resource effort, resource allocation, and fiscal capacity as they relate to public health

  12. TAX RESEARCH Financial Accounting versus Tax Accounting - Tax Rules’ Impact on Investment Decisions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dr.Sc. Skender Ahmeti

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available This paper provides guidance for all those interested in research related to tax. In the study are included three main areas dealing with taxes and about taxes: (1 the role of information in corporation tax expenditures under the rules and laws of the country against financial statements according to international accounting standards, (2 case study PTK; how much effective tax and tax on extra profit has it paid (3 the impact of tax rules on investment decisions - the reasons and profits of the company and the host country. We will try to summarize here the three areas of study and come to some conclusions on how to deal with fiscal policy in Kosovo. In addition, we will offer our opinion on some interesting and important questions for future research.

  13. Impact of future tax incentive legislation on the development of biomass energy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Middleton, G.L. Jr.

    1991-01-01

    Historically, the use of biomass as an energy source has been subsidized by generous tax incentives. These tax incentives took the form of tax-exempt financing, the energy tax credit, the investment tax credit, and short depreciation lives. Common with tax incentives in other areas, the tax incentives for biomass projects have been curtailed in recent years. Given the appetite of Congress for revenue, it is not likely that the recent trend will reverse. If changes do occur, they are likely to involve liberalization of some oof the rules for tax-exempt debt. But even under current law, there are still tax advantages available for biomass energy projects, of which potential developers should be aware

  14. The David R. Tillinghast Lecture - What's Source Got to Do with it - Source Rules and U.S. International Taxation

    OpenAIRE

    Shay, Stephen E.; Fleming, J. Clifton, Jr.; Peroni, Robet J.

    2002-01-01

    Arguably, the largest problem in international income taxation is the proper treatment of income that is subject to the legitimate taxing claims of two or more countries. A source country's jurisdiction to tax foreign persons is limited to income earned within the source country's borders. Under current international norms, however, the taxpayer's residence country is required to accommodate the source country's taxing right by employing a foreign tax credit or by exempting foreign source inc...

  15. Tax and Fiscal Policies for Promotion of Industrial EnergyEfficiency: A Survey of International Experience

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Price, Lynn; Galitsky, Christina; Sinton, Jonathan; Worrell,Ernst; Graus, Wina

    2005-09-15

    The Energy Foundation's China Sustainable Energy Program (CSEP) has undertaken a major project investigating fiscal and tax policy options for stimulating energy efficiency and renewable energy development in China. This report, which is part of the sectoral sub-project studies on energy efficiency in industry, surveys international experience with tax and fiscal policies directed toward increasing investments in energy efficiency in the industrial sector. The report begins with an overview of tax and fiscal policies, including descriptions and evaluations of programs that use energy or energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) taxes, pollution levies, public benefit charges, grants or subsidies, subsidized audits, loans, tax relief for specific technologies, and tax relief as part of an energy or greenhouse gas (GHG) emission tax or agreement scheme. Following the discussion of these individual policies, the report reviews experience with integrated programs found in two countries as well as with GHG emissions trading programs. The report concludes with a discussion of the best practices related to international experience with tax and fiscal policies to encourage investment in energy efficiency in industry.

  16. Capital Income Tax Coordination and the Income Tax Mix

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Huizinga, Harry; Nielsen, Søren Bo

    2005-01-01

    in the mix of capital and labor taxes brought on by capital income tax coordination can potentially be welfare reducing. This reflects that in a non-cooperative equilibrium capital income taxes may be more distorting from an international perspective than are labor income taxes. Simulations with a simple...... model calibrated to EU public finance data suggest that countries indeed lower their labor taxes in response to higher coordinated capital income taxes. The overall welfare effects of capital income tax coordination, however, are estimated to remain positive.JEL Classification: F20, H87......Europe has seen several proposals for tax coordination only in the area of capital income taxation, leaving countries free to adjust their labor taxes. The expectation is that highercapital income tax revenues would cause countries to reduce their labor taxes. This paper shows that such changes...

  17. Role of rural solid waste management in non-point source pollution control of Dianchi Lake catchments, China

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Wenjing LU; Hongtao WANG

    2008-01-01

    In recent years, with control of the main municipal and industrial point pollution sources and implementation of cleaning for some inner pollution sources in the water body, the discharge of point source pollution decreased gradually, while non-point source pollution has become increasingly distressing in Dianchi Lake catchments. As one of the major targets in non-point source pollution control, an integrated solid waste controlling strategy combined with a technological solution and management system was proposed and implemented based on the waste disposal situation and characteristics of rural solid waste in the demonstration area. As the key technoogy in rural solid waste treatment, both centralized plantscale composting and a dispersed farmer-operated waste treating system showed promise in rendering timely benefits in efficiency, large handling capacity, high quality of the end product, as well as good economic return. Problems encountered during multi-substrates co-com-posting such as pathogens, high moisture content, asyn-chronism in the decomposition of different substrates, and low quality of the end product can all be tackled. 92.5% of solid waste was collected in the demonstration area, while the treating and recycling ratio reached 87.9%, which pre-vented 32.2 t nitrogen and 3.9 t phosphorus per year from entering the water body of Dianchi Lake after imple-mentation of the project.

  18. Distributional effects of a carbon tax in broader U.S. fiscal reform

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mathur, Aparna; Morris, Adele C.

    2014-01-01

    This paper analyzes the distributional implications of an illustrative $15 carbon tax imposed in 2010 on carbon in fossil fuels. We analyze its incidence across income classes and regions, both in isolation and when combined with measures that apply the carbon tax revenue to lowering other distortionary taxes in the economy. Consistent with earlier findings, we find that a carbon tax is regressive. Using tax swap simulations, we then subtract the burden of other taxes the carbon tax revenue could displace, and compute the net effect on households under three assumptions about how capital and labor income might be distributed. - Highlights: • Shows that a carbon tax by itself is regressive. • Burden of a carbon tax may be offset partly with a corporate tax swap. • Higher income households face negative tax rates under corporate tax swap. • Corporate tax swap results in wider regional variations in burden than labor tax swaps. • Adding sources side incidence of carbon tax makes tax less regressive

  19. Calculation and analysis of the non-point source pollution in the upstream watershed of the Panjiakou Reservoir, People's Republic of China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, S.; Tang, L.

    2007-05-01

    Panjiakou Reservoir is an important drinking water resource in Haihe River Basin, Hebei Province, People's Republic of China. The upstream watershed area is about 35,000 square kilometers. Recently, the water pollution in the reservoir is becoming more serious owing to the non-point pollution as well as point source pollution on the upstream watershed. To effectively manage the reservoir and watershed and develop a plan to reduce pollutant loads, the loading of non-point and point pollution and their distribution on the upstream watershed must be understood fully. The SWAT model is used to simulate the production and transportation of the non-point source pollutants in the upstream watershed of the Panjiakou Reservoir. The loadings of non-point source pollutants are calculated for different hydrologic years and the spatial and temporal characteristics of non-point source pollution are studied. The stream network and topographic characteristics of the stream network and sub-basins are all derived from the DEM by ArcGIS software. The soil and land use data are reclassified and the soil physical properties database file is created for the model. The SWAT model was calibrated with observed data of several hydrologic monitoring stations in the study area. The results of the calibration show that the model performs fairly well. Then the calibrated model was used to calculate the loadings of non-point source pollutants for a wet year, a normal year and a dry year respectively. The time and space distribution of flow, sediment and non-point source pollution were analyzed depending on the simulated results. The comparison of different hydrologic years on calculation results is dramatic. The loading of non-point source pollution in the wet year is relatively larger but smaller in the dry year since the non-point source pollutants are mainly transported through the runoff. The pollution loading within a year is mainly produced in the flood season. Because SWAT is a

  20. Renewable energy for rural development to protect environmental pollution from energy sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mathur, A.N.

    2001-01-01

    Energy is the key input for technological industrial, social and economical development of a nation. The present energy scenario is heavily biased towards the conventional energy sources, such as petroleum products, coal, atomic energy, etc., which are finite in nature and causes environmental pollution. The energy utilization pattern is also meant for the energy requirement in urban areas. To meet the growing energy requirement of rural areas through the conventional energy sources will cause serious harmful effect on the environmental pollution. The man's thurst to use more energy after about 150 thousand years ago, invention of wheel, use of petroleum products for power generation and invention of steam and coal has brought him to use the energy sources for his comfort irrespective of the environmental consideration. The extensive use of energy operated devices in domestic, industrial, transport and for agriculture sectors in urban and rural areas have resulted in economical development of the society

  1. Characterisation and quantification of the sources of PM10 during air pollution episodes in the UK

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Muir, David; Longhurst, J.W.S.; Tubb, A.

    2006-01-01

    Data for concentrations of PM 10 and gaseous pollutants from sites in the UK Automatic Urban and Rural Network have been examined during periods of elevated concentrations of PM 10 . The ratios of concentrations of PM 10 to those of the other pollutants were used to determine the most probable source of the additional particles. The hypothesis is that because the concentrations of PM 10 were divided by those of the other pollutants, the ratio should decrease when PM 10 and the other pollutants have a common source. Conversely, the ratio should increase when the sources are different. During episodes where road traffic was the most probable source of the additional particles, the ratios of concentrations of PM 10 to carbon monoxide and oxides of nitrogen did decrease, but the comparable ratios for sulphur dioxide and ozone increased. In contrast, during episodes known to have been caused by construction activity, all these ratios increased. This is taken to show that the basic hypothesis is valid. For prolonged episodes, it was possible to use data averaged over the total duration of the episode for the purposes of source identification. For sporadic construction, or other short-duration episodes, it was necessary to use time series data. The data have also been used to calculate the differences between hourly average concentrations of pollutants measured during episodes and long-term hourly average concentrations. These have been used to model the additional PM 10 during air pollution episodes associated with construction activities and road traffic emissions. This confirms the lack of relationship between PM 10 and other pollutants during construction works. During episodes arising from road traffic emissions, there was good agreement between measured and modelled additional concentrations of PM 10 when an appropriate factor, F, related to the contribution of road traffic emissions to PM 10 at different site types was applied. The values used were 0.2 (Suburban

  2. International Migration, Income Taxes and Transfers: A Welfare Analysis

    OpenAIRE

    Michael S. Michael

    2002-01-01

    An important issue in public policy debates is the effect of international migration on welfare in source and host countries. We address this issue by constructing a general equilibrium model of a two-class source or host country. Each country produces many traded and non-traded goods, uses income taxes and distributes the tax receipts equally to all individuals. The analysis examines the effects of permanent migration on class, and national welfare. We show, among other things, that marginal...

  3. Using an epiphytic moss to identify previously unknown sources of atmospheric cadmium pollution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geoffrey H. Donovan; Sarah E. Jovan; Demetrios Gatziolis; Igor Burstyn; Yvonne L. Michael; Michael C. Amacher; Vicente J. Monleon

    2016-01-01

    Urban networks of air-quality monitors are often too widely spaced to identify sources of air pollutants, especially if they do not disperse far from emission sources. The objectives of this study were to test the use of moss bio-indicators to develop a fine-scale map of atmospherically-derived cadmium and to identify the sources of cadmium in a complex urban setting....

  4. Identifying sources of groundwater pollution using trace element signatures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Olmez, I.; Hayes, M.J.

    1990-01-01

    A simple receptor modeling approach has been applied to groundwater pollution studies and has shown that marker trace elements can be used effectively in source identification and apportionment. Groundwater and source materials from one coal-fired and five oil-fired power plants, and one coal-tar deposit site have been analyzed by instrumental neutron activation analysis for more than 20 minor and trace elements. In one of the oil-fired power plants, trace element patterns indicated a leak from the hazardous waste surface impoundments owing to the failure of a hypolon liner. Also, the extent and spatial distribution of groundwater contamination have been determined in a coal-tar deposit site

  5. Different Tax Systems among Nations and International Tax Avoidance

    OpenAIRE

    栗原, 克文

    2008-01-01

    As economic globalization proceeds, tax policies of one nation influence others more and greater pressures are imposed on tax systems and tax administrations.The possibility of tax avoidance will expand if cross-border transactions are abused.Specifically, tax system differentials among countries increase the opportunity for tax avoidance.Under some tax avoidance schemes, foreign entities which have no or little economic substance are used to create artificial losses, so that they can minimiz...

  6. New tax law hobbles tax-exempt hospitals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goldblatt, S J

    1982-03-01

    The Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 left tax-exempt hospitals at a significant disadvantage in the competition for capital. Although the new law's accelerated depreciation schedules and liberalized investment tax credits contain some marginal benefits for tax-exempt hospitals, these benefits are probably more than offset by the impact of the law on charitable giving.

  7. BASIC CONCEPTS OF TAX SECURITY AS PART OF THE FINANCIAL SECURITY OF UKRAINE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sergiy Golikov

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of the paper is to examine the essence of the term «tax security», its fundamental characteristics, such as threats, risks, interests and protection, defined how the state could provide them. The paper analyses economic, social and legal nature of the term. Key indicators of tax security of Ukraine identified and analyzed. In addition, the paper studies an integrated approach of tax security threats. In case of a big amount of threats, they divided to four main sources of threats: the state of the national economy, the state of the public finances, social features of the society and institutional environment. For each source, there have been identified and analyzed the most important factors of threats of tax security of Ukraine. Methodology. The survey based on an analysis of existing studies of Ukrainian and foreign scientists about the essence and nature of "tax security" for the last 10 years. In addition, to determine the essence and the concept, goals and objectives, methods and principles of the economic nature of the tax security, main risks, threats, expectations and results of efficient tax security identified. To build an integrated approach it is necessary to analyse all existing and potential factors of threats. There data used from reports of the State Statistics Service of Ukraine, Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine, PWC and World Bank. Results of the survey showed that tax security is such a condition of tax security, when the process of harmonization of taxation provided under effective management of risks and threats that arise in tax area, by taking the necessary measures by the executive bodies to meet the interests of the state, society and taxpayers (business entities, organizations, people. Integrated approach of threats analysis of tax security shows that the most dangerous threats are those that are associated with poor economic development, considerable socio-economic stratification of

  8. Indoor air pollution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qureshi, I.H.

    2001-01-01

    Indoor air pollution is a potential risk to human health. Prolonged exposure to indoor pollutants may cause various infectious, allergic and other diseases. Indoor pollutants can emanate from a broad array of internal and external sources. Internal sources include building and furnishing materials, consumer and commercial products, office equipment, micro-organisms, pesticides and human occupants activities. External sources include soil, water supplies and outside makeup air. The main indoor air pollutants of concern are inorganic gases, formaldehyde and other volatile organic compounds, pesticides, radon and its daughters, particulates and microbes. The magnitude of human exposure to indoor pollutants can be estimated or predicted with the help of mathematical models which have been developed using the data from source emission testing and field monitoring of pollutants. In order to minimize human exposure to indoor pollutants, many countries have formulated guidelines / standards for the maximum permissible levels of main pollutants. Acceptable indoor air quality can be achieved by controlling indoor pollution sources and by effective ventilation system for removal of indoor pollutants. (author)

  9. Optimal gasoline tax in developing, oil-producing countries: The case of Mexico

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Antón-Sarabia, Arturo; Hernández-Trillo, Fausto

    2014-01-01

    This paper uses the methodology of Parry and Small (2005) to estimate the optimal gasoline tax for a less-developed oil-producing country. The relevance of the estimation relies on the differences between less-developed countries (LDCs) and industrial countries. We argue that lawless roads, general subsidies on gasoline, poor mass transportation systems, older vehicle fleets and unregulated city growth make the tax rates in LDCs differ substantially from the rates in the developed world. We find that the optimal gasoline tax is $1.90 per gallon at 2011 prices and show that the estimate differences are in line with the factors hypothesized. In contrast to the existing literature on industrial countries, we show that the relative gasoline tax incidence may be progressive in Mexico and, more generally, in LDCs. - Highlights: • We estimate the optimal gasoline tax for a typical less-developed, oil-producing country like Mexico. • The relevance of the estimation relies on the differences between less-developed and industrial countries. • The optimal gasoline tax is $1.90 per gallon at 2011 prices. • Distance-related pollution damages, accident costs and gas subsidies account for the major differences. • Gasoline tax incidence may be progressive in less developed countries

  10. From tax evasion to tax planning

    OpenAIRE

    Bourgain, Arnaud; Pieretti, Patrice; Zanaj, Skerdilajda

    2013-01-01

    The aim of this paper is to analyze within a simple model how a re- moval of bank secrecy can impact tax revenues and banks' profitability assuming that offshore centers are able to offer sophisticated but legal or not easily detectable tax planning. Two alternative regimes are considered. A first in which there is strict bank secrecy and a second where there is international information exchange for tax purposes. We show in particular that sharing tax information with onshore coun- tries can...

  11. Tax Law

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Schaper, Marcel; Hage, Jaap; Waltermann, Antonia; Akkermans, Bram

    2017-01-01

    Taxes are compulsory, unrequited payments to government. This chapter discusses the goals of taxation and provides an introduction to the most important taxes: taxes on income, taxes on goods and services, and taxes on property. Furthermore, the chapter offers insights to procedural issues of

  12. A Summary of Best Management Practices for Nonpoint Source Pollution

    Science.gov (United States)

    1992-08-01

    and concrete block material, and structures and systems for soil stabilization including erosion checks, revetments , retaining structures, and...industrial storage areas, and coal/ slag piles. Rural NPS pollution includes runoff from Some of the above sources plus runoff from agriculture...water quality. The effectiveness of detention ponds is reduced, however, when maintenance is neglected. Common problems include blocked outlets

  13. Spatial Regression and Prediction of Water Quality in a Watershed with Complex Pollution Sources.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Xiaoying; Liu, Qun; Luo, Xingzhang; Zheng, Zheng

    2017-08-16

    Fast economic development, burgeoning population growth, and rapid urbanization have led to complex pollution sources contributing to water quality deterioration simultaneously in many developing countries including China. This paper explored the use of spatial regression to evaluate the impacts of watershed characteristics on ambient total nitrogen (TN) concentration in a heavily polluted watershed and make predictions across the region. Regression results have confirmed the substantial impact on TN concentration by a variety of point and non-point pollution sources. In addition, spatial regression has yielded better performance than ordinary regression in predicting TN concentrations. Due to its best performance in cross-validation, the river distance based spatial regression model was used to predict TN concentrations across the watershed. The prediction results have revealed a distinct pattern in the spatial distribution of TN concentrations and identified three critical sub-regions in priority for reducing TN loads. Our study results have indicated that spatial regression could potentially serve as an effective tool to facilitate water pollution control in watersheds under diverse physical and socio-economical conditions.

  14. Assessing the pollution risk of a groundwater source field at western Laizhou Bay under seawater intrusion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zeng, Xiankui; Wu, Jichun; Wang, Dong; Zhu, Xiaobin

    2016-01-01

    Coastal areas have great significance for human living, economy and society development in the world. With the rapid increase of pressures from human activities and climate change, the safety of groundwater resource is under the threat of seawater intrusion in coastal areas. The area of Laizhou Bay is one of the most serious seawater intruded areas in China, since seawater intrusion phenomenon was firstly recognized in the middle of 1970s. This study assessed the pollution risk of a groundwater source filed of western Laizhou Bay area by inferring the probability distribution of groundwater Cl − concentration. The numerical model of seawater intrusion process is built by using SEAWAT4. The parameter uncertainty of this model is evaluated by Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulation, and DREAM (ZS) is used as sampling algorithm. Then, the predictive distribution of Cl - concentration at groundwater source field is inferred by using the samples of model parameters obtained from MCMC. After that, the pollution risk of groundwater source filed is assessed by the predictive quantiles of Cl - concentration. The results of model calibration and verification demonstrate that the DREAM (ZS) based MCMC is efficient and reliable to estimate model parameters under current observation. Under the condition of 95% confidence level, the groundwater source point will not be polluted by seawater intrusion in future five years (2015–2019). In addition, the 2.5% and 97.5% predictive quantiles show that the Cl − concentration of groundwater source field always vary between 175 mg/l and 200 mg/l. - Highlights: • The parameter uncertainty of seawater intrusion model is evaluated by MCMC. • Groundwater source field won’t be polluted by seawater intrusion in future 5 years. • The pollution risk is assessed by the predictive quantiles of Cl − concentration

  15. Assessing the pollution risk of a groundwater source field at western Laizhou Bay under seawater intrusion

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zeng, Xiankui; Wu, Jichun; Wang, Dong, E-mail: wangdong@nju.edu.cn; Zhu, Xiaobin

    2016-07-15

    Coastal areas have great significance for human living, economy and society development in the world. With the rapid increase of pressures from human activities and climate change, the safety of groundwater resource is under the threat of seawater intrusion in coastal areas. The area of Laizhou Bay is one of the most serious seawater intruded areas in China, since seawater intrusion phenomenon was firstly recognized in the middle of 1970s. This study assessed the pollution risk of a groundwater source filed of western Laizhou Bay area by inferring the probability distribution of groundwater Cl{sup −} concentration. The numerical model of seawater intrusion process is built by using SEAWAT4. The parameter uncertainty of this model is evaluated by Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulation, and DREAM{sub (ZS)} is used as sampling algorithm. Then, the predictive distribution of Cl{sup -} concentration at groundwater source field is inferred by using the samples of model parameters obtained from MCMC. After that, the pollution risk of groundwater source filed is assessed by the predictive quantiles of Cl{sup -} concentration. The results of model calibration and verification demonstrate that the DREAM{sub (ZS)} based MCMC is efficient and reliable to estimate model parameters under current observation. Under the condition of 95% confidence level, the groundwater source point will not be polluted by seawater intrusion in future five years (2015–2019). In addition, the 2.5% and 97.5% predictive quantiles show that the Cl{sup −} concentration of groundwater source field always vary between 175 mg/l and 200 mg/l. - Highlights: • The parameter uncertainty of seawater intrusion model is evaluated by MCMC. • Groundwater source field won’t be polluted by seawater intrusion in future 5 years. • The pollution risk is assessed by the predictive quantiles of Cl{sup −} concentration.

  16. A method to analyze “source–sink” structure of non-point source pollution based on remote sensing technology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jiang, Mengzhen; Chen, Haiying; Chen, Qinghui

    2013-01-01

    With the purpose of providing scientific basis for environmental planning about non-point source pollution prevention and control, and improving the pollution regulating efficiency, this paper established the Grid Landscape Contrast Index based on Location-weighted Landscape Contrast Index according to the “source–sink” theory. The spatial distribution of non-point source pollution caused by Jiulongjiang Estuary could be worked out by utilizing high resolution remote sensing images. The results showed that, the area of “source” of nitrogen and phosphorus in Jiulongjiang Estuary was 534.42 km 2 in 2008, and the “sink” was 172.06 km 2 . The “source” of non-point source pollution was distributed mainly over Xiamen island, most of Haicang, east of Jiaomei and river bank of Gangwei and Shima; and the “sink” was distributed over southwest of Xiamen island and west of Shima. Generally speaking, the intensity of “source” gets weaker along with the distance from the seas boundary increase, while “sink” gets stronger. -- Highlights: •We built an index to study the “source–sink” structure of NSP in a space scale. •The Index was applied in Jiulongjiang estuary and got a well result. •The study is beneficial to discern the high load area of non-point source pollution. -- “Source–Sink” Structure of non-point source nitrogen and phosphorus pollution in Jiulongjiang estuary in China was worked out by the Grid Landscape Contrast Index

  17. Redistributive Effects of Income Tax Rates and Tax Base 1984-2009: Evidence from Japanese Tax Reforms

    OpenAIRE

    Miyazaki, Takeshi; Kitamura, Yukinobu

    2014-01-01

    The primary objective of this paper is to examine how and to what extent changes in income tax rates and income tax deductions affect income inequality from longitudinal perspectives, by using microdata from Japanese individuals and households. The findings of this paper could shed light on the effects of tax rates and tax deduction on tax progressivity. First, redistributive effects of the Japanese income tax are likely to decline for the period 1984-2009. Second, the income tax reforms, i.e...

  18. Russian petroleum tax policy – Continuous maneuvering in rocky waters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fjaertoft, Daniel; Lunden, Lars Petter

    2015-01-01

    This article maps and analyses petroleum taxation policy in Russia to investigate the extent to which it reaches the goal of maximizing government revenue from new petroleum field developments. Expected cash flows from four real-world fields in Russia are modeled in four real-world tax regimes in an attempt to determine whether the so-called ‘tax maneuver’ of December 2014 helps the government to reach its goal. Russia's tax policy is further analyzed in terms of the desirable tax system design features of simplicity, flexibility, stability and competitiveness. The article concludes that the changes to the tax system introduced additional incentives for field developments but failed both to improve tax system design per se and to maximize government tax revenue. - Highlights: • Petroleum tax revenue is the Russian government’s largest single source of revenue. • Tax legislation has not maximized government revenue from the petroleum industry. • The December 2014 tax reform is just one in a long line of reforms and amendments. • Russian petroleum taxation is set to change perpetually.

  19. Excise Tax Avoidance: The Case of State Cigarette Taxes

    Science.gov (United States)

    DeCicca, Philip; Kenkel, Donald; Liu, Feng

    2013-01-01

    We conduct an applied welfare economics analysis of cigarette tax avoidance. We develop an extension of the standard formula for the optimal Pigouvian corrective tax to incorporate the possibility that consumers avoid the tax by making purchases in nearby lower-tax jurisdictions. To provide a key parameter for our formula, we estimate a structural endogenous switching regression model of border-crossing and cigarette prices. In illustrative calculations, we find that for many states, after taking into account tax avoidance the optimal tax is at least 20 percent smaller than the standard Pigouvian tax that simply internalizes external costs. Our empirical estimate that tax avoidance strongly responds to the price differential is the main reason for this result. We also use our results to examine the benefits of replacing avoidable state excise taxes with a harder-to-avoid federal excise tax on cigarettes. PMID:24140760

  20. Excise tax avoidance: the case of state cigarette taxes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    DeCicca, Philip; Kenkel, Donald; Liu, Feng

    2013-12-01

    We conduct an applied welfare economics analysis of cigarette tax avoidance. We develop an extension of the standard formula for the optimal Pigouvian corrective tax to incorporate the possibility that consumers avoid the tax by making purchases in nearby lower tax jurisdictions. To provide a key parameter for our formula, we estimate a structural endogenous switching regression model of border-crossing and cigarette prices. In illustrative calculations, we find that for many states, after taking into account tax avoidance the optimal tax is at least 20% smaller than the standard Pigouvian tax that simply internalizes external costs. Our empirical estimate that tax avoidance strongly responds to the price differential is the main reason for this result. We also use our results to examine the benefits of replacing avoidable state excise taxes with a harder-to-avoid federal excise tax on cigarettes. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. Study of landscape patterns of variation and optimization based on non-point source pollution control in an estuary.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Mengzhen; Chen, Haiying; Chen, Qinghui; Wu, Haiyan

    2014-10-15

    Appropriate increases in the "sink" of a landscape can reduce the risk of non-point source pollution (NPSP) to the sea at relatively lower costs and at a higher efficiency. Based on high-resolution remote sensing image data taken between 2003 and 2008, we analyzed the "source" and "sink" landscape pattern variations of nitrogen and phosphorus pollutants in the Jiulongjiang estuary region. The contribution to the sea and distribution of each pollutant in the region was calculated using the LCI and mGLCI models. The results indicated that an increased amount of pollutants was contributed to the sea, and the "source" area of the nitrogen NPSP in the study area increased by 32.75 km(2). We also propose a landscape pattern optimization to reduce pollution in the Jiulongjiang estuary in 2008 through the conversion of cultivated land with slopes greater than 15° and paddy fields near rivers, and an increase in mangrove areas. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Lessons Learned from OMI Observations of Point Source SO2 Pollution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krotkov, N.; Fioletov, V.; McLinden, Chris

    2011-01-01

    The Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) on NASA Aura satellite makes global daily measurements of the total column of sulfur dioxide (SO2), a short-lived trace gas produced by fossil fuel combustion, smelting, and volcanoes. Although anthropogenic SO2 signals may not be detectable in a single OMI pixel, it is possible to see the source and determine its exact location by averaging a large number of individual measurements. We describe new techniques for spatial and temporal averaging that have been applied to the OMI SO2 data to determine the spatial distributions or "fingerprints" of SO2 burdens from top 100 pollution sources in North America. The technique requires averaging of several years of OMI daily measurements to observe SO2 pollution from typical anthropogenic sources. We found that the largest point sources of SO2 in the U.S. produce elevated SO2 values over a relatively small area - within 20-30 km radius. Therefore, one needs higher than OMI spatial resolution to monitor typical SO2 sources. TROPOMI instrument on the ESA Sentinel 5 precursor mission will have improved ground resolution (approximately 7 km at nadir), but is limited to once a day measurement. A pointable geostationary UVB spectrometer with variable spatial resolution and flexible sampling frequency could potentially achieve the goal of daily monitoring of SO2 point sources and resolve downwind plumes. This concept of taking the measurements at high frequency to enhance weak signals needs to be demonstrated with a GEOCAPE precursor mission before 2020, which will help formulating GEOCAPE measurement requirements.

  3. Does an Uncertain Tax System Encourage "Aggressive Tax Planning"?

    OpenAIRE

    James Alm

    2014-01-01

    "Aggressive tax planning" (ATP) is typically characterized as a tax scheme that reduces the effective tax rate of a particular type of income to a level below the one sought by fiscal policy for this income. One motivation often suggested for its use is the uncertainty in tax liabilities introduced by a complicated and ever changing tax system. In this paper, I examine the impact of an uncertainty on the use of such tax schemes; by implication, I also examine how a simpler and more stable tax...

  4. Energy and the global warming issue in developing countries: analyzing the incidence of the fuel carbon tax and its policy implications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Siddayao, C.M.; Percebois, J.R.

    1992-01-01

    By changing the natural environment, energy resource use has repercussions for human welfare. So do policies that are proposed to deal with concerns over global climate warming, particularly with respect to carbon dioxide (CO 2 ). Among the major policy options identified are reduction of emission from fossil fuel consumption, as well as more rigorous forest management to avoid further deforestation. The basic approach to reducing carbon emissions from fossil fuels is through the efficient use of energy. Fuel switching, pollution prevention technologies, and the 'polluter pays' principle are also among the policy strategies often discussed. One of the proposed economic policy instruments in the 'polluter pays' category that could lead to more efficient use of energy and at the same time deal with the CO 2 problem is the carbon tax. This paper will focus on the incidence of the tax in the different sectors of a developing country and suggest the key issues in analyzing this incidence. This introduction will include a brief background discussion on the greenhouse gas (GHG) issue which has led to the proposal for the carbon tax. In section II, the incidence of the carbon tax will be reviewed. In section III, the key analytical issues for analyzing incidence of the tax on a sector-by-sector analysis of a national tax will be raised. In this version of this paper, the intended quantitative analysis is not presented; we hope to have partial results by the time of conference. 31 refs., 1 fig., 3 tabs

  5. Dividends and Taxes: Evidence on Tax-Reduction Strategies.

    OpenAIRE

    Chaplinsky, Susan; Seyhun, H Nejat

    1990-01-01

    This article investigates two aspects of dividend tax avoidance not addressed by prior research. First, it examines the aggregate dividend tax savings provided to individuals through tax-exempt and tax-deferred accumulators. Using the Internal Revenue Service Individual Income Tax Model, it then proceeds to determine whether specific provisions of the Internal Revenue Code, such as the preferential treatment of capital gains, the investment-interest limitation, and the $100 dividend exclusion...

  6. New Leverage for Increasing Tax Revenues in Turkey: Traditional Tax Applications Supported by Electronic Tax Audits

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ozge Onkan

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available In this study, it is examined for the period 2000- 2015 in Turkey that increasing the electronic applications regarding tax audits had the effects on the required amount of tax levied as a result of tax audits. Tax Inspectors reach strategic information without uneasiness by means of electronic applications developed by some institutions such as Electronic Risk Analysis that Tax Inspection Board founded in 2011 and Revenue Administration as institutions designated by law for auditing tax in Turkey. Thus, this leads to an increase the tax revenues obtained in the course of tax audits compared to the times when there is not electronic applications.

  7. Capital mobility, tax competition, and lobbying for redistributive capital taxation

    OpenAIRE

    Lorz, Jens Oliver

    1996-01-01

    This paper analyzes the impact of international capital mobility on redistributive capital taxation and on lobbying activities by interest groups. It employs a model where different capital endowments lead to a conflict between households concerning their most preferred capital tax rate. Three main results are derived: First, redistributive source based capital taxes or subsidies decline as international tax competition intensifies. Second, lobbying activities of certain interest groups may e...

  8. Estimation of contribution ratios of pollutant sources to a specific section based on an enhanced water quality model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cao, Bibo; Li, Chuan; Liu, Yan; Zhao, Yue; Sha, Jian; Wang, Yuqiu

    2015-05-01

    Because water quality monitoring sections or sites could reflect the water quality status of rivers, surface water quality management based on water quality monitoring sections or sites would be effective. For the purpose of improving water quality of rivers, quantifying the contribution ratios of pollutant resources to a specific section is necessary. Because physical and chemical processes of nutrient pollutants are complex in water bodies, it is difficult to quantitatively compute the contribution ratios. However, water quality models have proved to be effective tools to estimate surface water quality. In this project, an enhanced QUAL2Kw model with an added module was applied to the Xin'anjiang Watershed, to obtain water quality information along the river and to assess the contribution ratios of each pollutant source to a certain section (the Jiekou state-controlled section). Model validation indicated that the results were reliable. Then, contribution ratios were analyzed through the added module. Results show that among the pollutant sources, the Lianjiang tributary contributes the largest part of total nitrogen (50.43%), total phosphorus (45.60%), ammonia nitrogen (32.90%), nitrate (nitrite + nitrate) nitrogen (47.73%), and organic nitrogen (37.87%). Furthermore, contribution ratios in different reaches varied along the river. Compared with pollutant loads ratios of different sources in the watershed, an analysis of contribution ratios of pollutant sources for each specific section, which takes the localized chemical and physical processes into consideration, was more suitable for local-regional water quality management. In summary, this method of analyzing the contribution ratios of pollutant sources to a specific section based on the QUAL2Kw model was found to support the improvement of the local environment.

  9. Mobilising public opinion for the tobacco industry: the Consumer Tax Alliance and excise taxes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Campbell, R; Balbach, E D

    2008-10-01

    Tobacco industry funding was instrumental in creating and financing the Consumer Tax Alliance in 1989 as an organisation that relied upon extensive media outreach to build opposition to excise taxes as a regressive form of taxation. By obscuring its own role in this effort, the tobacco industry undermined the public's reasonable expectations for transparency in the policy-making process. To examine the formation and activities of the Consumer Tax Alliance as a "hybrid" form of interest group in order to provide tobacco control and public health advocates with a better understanding of unanticipated tobacco industry coalitions and facilitate appropriate countermeasures. Document searches through the Legacy Tobacco Documents Library and through Tobacco Documents Online and review of background literature. The Tobacco Institute actively sought liberal allies beginning in the mid-1980s in seeking to build public opposition to cigarette excise tax increases by promoting them as a regressive form of taxation. The creation of the Consumer Tax Alliance in 1989 was expressly intended to turn labour and middle-class opinion against prospective excise tax increases in federal budget deficit negotiations, without divulging the tobacco industry's role in its formation. It is important to understand the dynamic by which trusted organisations can be induced to alter their agendas in response to funding sources. Advocates need to understand this form of interest group behaviour so that they are better able to negotiate the policy arena by diagnosing and exposing this influence where it occurs and, by doing so, be better prepared to take appropriate countermeasures.

  10. Research and information needs related to nonpoint source pollution and wetlands in the watershed: An EPA perspective

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ethridge, B.J.; Olson, R.K.

    1992-01-01

    Two related Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) efforts, wetlands protection and nonpoint source pollution control, fail to fully consider landscape factors when making site-specific decisions. The paper discusses the relationship of the two programs and the use of created and natural wetlands to treat nonpoint source (NPS) pollution. Recommendations to improve the programs include increased technical transfer of existing information, and more research on construction methods and siting of created wetlands to effectively manage NPS pollution. Additional research is also needed to determine (1) the maximum pollutant loading rates to assure the biological integrity of wetlands, (2) the effectiveness of current land-use practices in protecting habitat and water quality functions, (3) wetland functions as pollutant sinks, (4) NPS pollution threats to wildlife, (5) practical watershed models, and (6) indicators and reference sites for monitoring wetland condition. Model watershed demonstrations, jointly implemented by the research and conservation communities, are recommended as a means of integrating research results. (Copyright (c) 1992 - Elsevier Science Publishers B.V.)

  11. The Multimedia Environmental Pollutant Assessment System (MEPAS)reg-sign: Source-term release formulations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Streile, G.P.; Shields, K.D.; Stroh, J.L.; Bagaasen, L.M.; Whelan, G.; McDonald, J.P.; Droppo, J.G.; Buck, J.W.

    1996-11-01

    This report is one of a series of reports that document the mathematical models in the Multimedia Environmental Pollutant Assessment System (MEPAS). Developed by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory for the US Department of Energy, MEPAS is an integrated impact assessment software implementation of physics-based fate and transport models in air, soil, and water media. Outputs are estimates of exposures and health risk assessments for radioactive and hazardous pollutants. Each of the MEPAS formulation documents covers a major MEPAS component such as source-term, atmospheric, vadose zone/groundwater, surface water, and health exposure/health impact assessment. Other MEPAS documentation reports cover the sensitivity/uncertainty formulations and the database parameter constituent property estimation methods. The pollutant source-term release component is documented in this report. MEPAS simulates the release of contaminants from a source, transport through the air, groundwater, surface water, or overland pathways, and transfer through food chains and exposure pathways to the exposed individual or population. For human health impacts, risks are computed for carcinogens and hazard quotients for noncarcinogens. MEPAS is implemented on a desktop computer with a user-friendly interface that allows the user to define the problem, input the required data, and execute the appropriate models for both deterministic and probabilistic analyses

  12. Using ensemble models to identify and apportion heavy metal pollution sources in agricultural soils on a local scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Qi; Xie, Zhiyi; Li, Fangbai

    2015-11-01

    This study aims to identify and apportion multi-source and multi-phase heavy metal pollution from natural and anthropogenic inputs using ensemble models that include stochastic gradient boosting (SGB) and random forest (RF) in agricultural soils on the local scale. The heavy metal pollution sources were quantitatively assessed, and the results illustrated the suitability of the ensemble models for the assessment of multi-source and multi-phase heavy metal pollution in agricultural soils on the local scale. The results of SGB and RF consistently demonstrated that anthropogenic sources contributed the most to the concentrations of Pb and Cd in agricultural soils in the study region and that SGB performed better than RF. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Fuel tax incidence in developing countries. The case of Costa Rica

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Blackman, Allen [Resources for the Future, 1616 P Street, N.W. Washington, DC (United States); Environment for Development Center for Central America, Turriabla (Costa Rica); Osakwe, Rebecca; Alpizar, Francisco [Environment for Development Center for Central America, Turriabla (Costa Rica)

    2010-05-15

    Although fuel taxes are a practical means of curbing vehicular air pollution, congestion, and accidents in developing countries - all of which are typically major problems - they are often opposed on distributional grounds. Yet few studies have investigated fuel tax incidence in a developing country context. We use household survey data and income-outcome coefficients to analyze fuel tax incidence in Costa Rica. We find that the effect of a 10% fuel price hike through direct spending on gasoline would be progressive, its effect through spending on diesel - both directly and via bus transportation - would be regressive (mainly because poorer households rely heavily on buses), and its effect through spending on goods other than fuel and bus transportation would be relatively small, albeit regressive. Finally, we find that the overall effect of a 10% fuel price hike through all types of direct and indirect spending would be neutral and the magnitude of this combined effect would be modest. We conclude that distributional concerns need not rule out using fuel taxes to address pressing public health and safety problems, particularly if gasoline and diesel taxes can be differentiated. (author)

  14. Fuel tax incidence in developing countries. The case of Costa Rica

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Blackman, Allen; Osakwe, Rebecca; Alpizar, Francisco

    2010-01-01

    Although fuel taxes are a practical means of curbing vehicular air pollution, congestion, and accidents in developing countries - all of which are typically major problems - they are often opposed on distributional grounds. Yet few studies have investigated fuel tax incidence in a developing country context. We use household survey data and income-outcome coefficients to analyze fuel tax incidence in Costa Rica. We find that the effect of a 10% fuel price hike through direct spending on gasoline would be progressive, its effect through spending on diesel - both directly and via bus transportation - would be regressive (mainly because poorer households rely heavily on buses), and its effect through spending on goods other than fuel and bus transportation would be relatively small, albeit regressive. Finally, we find that the overall effect of a 10% fuel price hike through all types of direct and indirect spending would be neutral and the magnitude of this combined effect would be modest. We conclude that distributional concerns need not rule out using fuel taxes to address pressing public health and safety problems, particularly if gasoline and diesel taxes can be differentiated. (author)

  15. Fuel tax incidence in developing countries: The case of Costa Rica

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Blackman, Allen, E-mail: blackman@rff.or [Resources for the Future, 1616 P Street, N.W. Washington, DC (United States); Environment for Development Center for Central America, Turriabla (Costa Rica); Osakwe, Rebecca; Alpizar, Francisco [Environment for Development Center for Central America, Turriabla (Costa Rica)

    2010-05-15

    Although fuel taxes are a practical means of curbing vehicular air pollution, congestion, and accidents in developing countries-all of which are typically major problems-they are often opposed on distributional grounds. Yet few studies have investigated fuel tax incidence in a developing country context. We use household survey data and income-outcome coefficients to analyze fuel tax incidence in Costa Rica. We find that the effect of a 10% fuel price hike through direct spending on gasoline would be progressive, its effect through spending on diesel-both directly and via bus transportation-would be regressive (mainly because poorer households rely heavily on buses), and its effect through spending on goods other than fuel and bus transportation would be relatively small, albeit regressive. Finally, we find that the overall effect of a 10% fuel price hike through all types of direct and indirect spending would be neutral and the magnitude of this combined effect would be modest. We conclude that distributional concerns need not rule out using fuel taxes to address pressing public health and safety problems, particularly if gasoline and diesel taxes can be differentiated.

  16. PAH diagnostic ratios for the identification of pollution emission sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tobiszewski, Marek; Namieśnik, Jacek

    2012-01-01

    Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) diagnostic ratios have recently come into common use as a tool for identifying and assessing pollution emission sources. Some diagnostic ratios are based on parent PAHs, others on the proportions of alkyl-substituted to non-substituted molecules. The ratios are applicable to PAHs determined in different environmental media: air (gas + particle phase), water, sediment, soil, as well as biomonitor organisms such as leaves or coniferous needles, and mussels. These ratios distinguish PAH pollution originating from petroleum products, petroleum combustion and biomass or coal burning. The compounds involved in each ratio have the same molar mass, so it is assumed they have similar physicochemical properties. Numerous studies show that diagnostic ratios change in value to different extents during phase transfers and environmental degradation. The paper reviews applications of diagnostic ratios, comments on their use and specifies their limitations. - Highlights: ► PAH diagnostic ratios may identify pollution coming from petroleum spills, fuel combustion and coal or biomass burning. ► They are sensitive to changes during PAHs environmental fate processes. ► Some diagnostic ratios are of limited value due to fast photodegradation of one of the compounds. - The paper reviews PAH diagnostic ratios that are applied to identify pollution emission originating from petroleum products, fuel combustion or coal and biomass burning.

  17. CEO Power, Corporate Tax Avoidance and Tax Aggressiveness

    OpenAIRE

    GATOT SOEPRIYANTO

    2017-01-01

    My thesis investigates the association between CEO power, corporate tax avoidance and tax aggressiveness, using two organizational theory perspectives: self-interest and stewardship. I find that a powerful CEO engages in less corporate tax avoidance activities, which lends credence to the risk minimization motive of the stewardship perspective. My findings on the association between CEO power and tax aggressiveness show that powerful CEOs avoid risky tax avoidance strategies that expose a fir...

  18. Tax Planning Implementation on Income Tax, Article 23 as A Legal Effort To Minimize Tax Expense Payable

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Achmad Daengs GS

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available An effort to minimize tax burden can be done in various ways start from inside the scope of taxation regulation to violate the taxation regulation. This research focuses on related Laws with the efforts to minimize Income tax. In general tax planning referred to engineered the business process and tax payer transaction. The aim is tax payable in minimal number but under taxation regulation scope. The outline of this study focus on planning effort of Tax Income Article 23 to minimize tax expense payable run in PT. TRIPERKASA AMININDAH Surabaya. Tax planning that done in this company refer to provision  in accordance with  Directorate General of Tax Decision Number : Kep-305/PJ/2001 on the estimates of nett income. Tax planning had done by this company in addition to refer the regulation also based on the condition of this company which experiencing poor performance. Then the aim that will be reached from that tax planning to reach minimal expense over the Income Tax Article 23 it can be done with gross up method. From the analysis result on the alternative it can draw a conclusion that PT. TRIPERKASA AMININDAH  Surabaya  has made adjustments on the regulation above, calculation of Income Tax Article 23 with gross up method in fact be able to saving the tax then suitable with the tax planning aim that is effort to minimize tax expense payable.

  19. Economy wide emission impacts of carbon and energy tax in electricity supply industry: A case study on Sri Lanka

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Siriwardena, K.; Wijayatunga, P.D.C.; Fernando, W.J.L.S.; Shrestha, R.M.; Attalage, R.A.

    2007-01-01

    This paper presents the results and analysis of a study conducted with the objective of investigating the impact on economy wide emissions due to carbon and energy taxes levied within the electricity generation sector of Sri Lanka. This exercise is mainly based on the input-output table developed by the national planning department. An input-output decomposition technique is used to analyze four types of effects that contribute to the overall reduction in equivalent carbon, NO x and SO 2 emissions. These four effects are: fuel mix effect (i.e. the change in emissions due to variation I fuel mix), structural effect (i.e. change in emissions due to changes in technological coefficients with taxes compared to that without taxes), final demand effect (i.e. the change in emissions associated with changes in final demand) and joint effect (i.e. the interactive effect between or among the fuel mix, structural and final demand effects). The polluting fuel sources and low energy efficiency generation technologies are less preferred under these tax regimes. Of the four effects, a change in fuel mix in thermal electricity generation and a change final demand for electricity were found to be the main contributors in achieving economy wide emission reductions. It was found in the analysis that a minimum of US$ 50/tC tax or US$ 1.0/MBtu of energy tax is required to have a significant impact on economy wide emissions in the Sri Lankan context. This translates into an overall increase in electricity generation cost of approximately USCts 0.9 kW -1 h -1 and USCts 0.6 kW -1 h -1 under the carbon and energy tax regimes, respectively. The reduction in emissions is also strongly coupled with the value of the price elasticity of electricity

  20. Social and political barriers to green tax reform. The case of CO{sub 2} taxes in Norway

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kasa, Sjur

    1999-06-29

    This paper presents the story of several attempts to tax Norwegian mainland emission intensive industries during the 1990s. These industries, mainly made up of aluminium and ferro-alloy producers located in the Norwegian countryside and a series of planned gas powered power stations along the coast, have enjoyed full exemption form CO{sub 2} taxes during a period in which relatively high CO{sub 2} taxes have been imposed on Norwegian consumers and some other industries. The various sources of the emission intensive industries are explored, included their ability to amass broad support for ``pro-industrial`` social norms among politicians, media and the bureaucracy. Theoretically these capabilities are described in terms of the policy network approach developed in British political science. 34 refs.

  1. White Book on means of extending the general tax on polluting activities to intermediary energy consumptions of enterprises; Livre blanc sur les modalites de l'extension de la taxe generale sur les activites polluantes aux consommations intermediaires d'energie des entreprises

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1999-10-11

    The government decided to engage France in a firm action of reducing the pollutant emission damaging the environment or producing the greenhouse effect. To this aim the taxation upon the consumptions of rare resources the use of which results in an important pressure upon environment, as the energy for instance, constitutes an essential complement to other tools, as for instance, regulations, technical norms, ecological labels, assistance for investments, etc. Thus the fiscal policy constitutes a perennial lever of inciting actors, particularly those acting in economy, to optimize and control their energy consumption or to reduce their greenhouse gas emission. Any pollutant emission avoided represents not only a supplementary protection of the environment but also, in time, the avoidance of a reparatory expenditure for the entire society. To this aim the Parliament has approved in 1999 the creation of a general tax on polluting activities (TGAP) intended to prevent first the local and diffuse pollutions which will be enlarged since 2001 to prevent the global pollutions, first of those resulting from greenhouse gas emissions. France engaged itself in the frame of Kyoto conference protocol, adopted in December 1997, to stabilize in 2010 its gas emissions to the level attained in 1990. Actually, taking into account the prospects for economic growth, this engagement needs supplementary efforts. The government's decision, announced last 20 May, of enlarging the TGAP since 2001 to intermediary energy consumptions, is a contribution to this objective. Concerned about the France industry competitiveness, namely to the particular situation of the intensive energy enterprises, exposed to international competition, the government judged advisable to proceed in a large consultation of the concerned economic actors before implementing this enlargement. The White Book makes this engagement concrete. The accuracy of the answers given to the questions, posed in its second

  2. [Characteristics and loads of key sources of pollutions discharged into Beishi River, Changzhou City].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Chun-Ping; Jiang, Jian-Guo; Chen, Ai-Mei; Wu, Jia-Ling; Fan, Xiu-Juan; Ye, Bin

    2010-11-01

    Choosing the Beishi river, Changzhou City as the study area, the sewage generation, pollutants characteristics and sewage discharge in catchment area of Beishi river were conducted, detailed investigated and monitored. After using pollution coefficients, the yearly loads of all sources of pollutions were calculated to determine the highest sewage. The results showed that: except pH, the high concentration of SS, COD, BOD5, ammonia nitrogen, TN and TP discharged from MSW collecting houses, MSW transfer stations, public toilets and dining in Changzhou city far exceeded the "Integrated Wastewater Discharge Standard" (GB 8978-1996) and "Effluent Discharged into the City Sewer Water Quality Standards" (CJ 3082-1999). Among which: the highest concentration of COD discharged from MSW transfer stations was up to 51 700 mg/L, while the ammonia nitrogen and TN were as high as 1 616 mg/L and 2 044 mg/L in the toilet wastewater. In addition to this, the ratio of wastewater discharged directly into the river through storm water pipe network was higher from MSW houses, MSW transfer stations, public toilets, dining and other waste in Changzhou city. The 125.2 t/a of COD and 40.53 t/a of BOD5 were the two highest concentrations of various sources of pollution. The highest annual polluting loads discharged into Beishi river is dining, followed by the sanitation facilities. Therefore, cutting pollution control of food and sanitation facilities along the river is particularly urgent.

  3. TAX POLICY OF SERBIA IN THE FUNCTION OF DEVELOPING THE ECONOMIC SYSTEM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jugoslav Anicic

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available Global mobility of capital and labour impose the issue of optimal tax structure of all countries. In some countries, direct taxes on income and profits are still dominant, while in other the main source of tax incomes are indirect taxes, primarily value added tax (VAT. Tax system of Serbia is specific for its big burdens for work, and smaller burden of profits and property in relation to EU countries. For long-term sustainable economic growth, among other things, more efficient tax system is required. Tax policy should contribute to elimination of essential macroeconomic imbalances of Serbian economy – high unemployment rate and high foreign trade deficit, without endangering international competitiveness of a company and favourable economic environment.

  4. Epidemiology, public health, and health surveillance around point sources of pollution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stebbings, J.H. Jr.

    1981-01-01

    In industrial society a large number of point sources of pollution exist, such as chemical plants, smelters, and nuclear power plants. Public concern has forced the practising epidemiologist to undertake health surveillance of the usually small populations living around point sources. Although not justifiable as research, such epidemiologic surveillance activities are becoming a routine part of public health practice, and this trend will continue. This introduction reviews concepts of epidemiologic surveillance, and institutional problems relating to the quality of such applied research

  5. Analysis of Deferred Taxes in the Business Environment in Serbia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Savka VUČKOVIĆ-MILUTINOVIĆ

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Flow-through model of income tax reporting in general purpose financial statements had a long history of use in Serbia. It was only in 2004 (and 2003 for banks, when the implementation of deferred taxes model started. It was inevitable, because IAS/IFRS became mandatory basis for preparing financial statements. In this paper we examine quality of deferred taxes disclosures in the financial statements of companies in Serbia. We also documented the most common temporary differences that arise in measuring accounting and taxable income and in that way we identified the major sources of deferred tax. We analyzed the materiality of deferred taxes and their effect on company´s performance in Serbia.

  6. Managing Nonpoint Source Pollution in Western Washington: Landowner Learning Methods and Motivations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ryan, Clare M.

    2009-06-01

    States, territories, and tribes identify nonpoint source pollution as responsible for more than half of the Nation’s existing and threatened water quality impairments, making it the principal remaining cause of water quality problems across the United States. Combinations of education, technical and financial assistance, and regulatory measures are used to inform landowners about nonpoint source pollution issues, and to stimulate the use of best management practices. A mail survey of non-commercial riparian landowners investigated how they learn about best management practices, the efficacy of different educational techniques, and what motivates them to implement land management activities. Landowners experience a variety of educational techniques, and rank those that include direct personal contact as more effective than brochures, advertisements, radio, internet, or television. The most important motivations for implementing best management practices were linked with elements of a personal stewardship ethic, accountability, personal commitment, and feasibility. Nonpoint source education and social marketing campaigns should include direct interpersonal contacts, and appeal to landowner motivations of caring, responsibility, and personal commitment.

  7. Air quality in a simulated office environment as a result of reducing pollution sources and increasing ventilation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wargocki, Pawel; Bako-Biro, Zsolt; Clausen, Geo

    2002-01-01

    Air quality was studied in an office space classified as low-polluting and ventilated with outdoor air at a rate of 1 h-1. The pollution load in the space was changed by introducing or removing common building-related indoor pollution sources (linoleum, sealant and wooden shelves with books and p...

  8. Fecal pollution source tracking toolbox for identification, evaluation and characterization of fecal contamination in receiving urban surface waters and groundwater.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tran, Ngoc Han; Gin, Karina Yew-Hoong; Ngo, Huu Hao

    2015-12-15

    The quality of surface waters/groundwater of a geographical region can be affected by anthropogenic activities, land use patterns and fecal pollution sources from humans and animals. Therefore, the development of an efficient fecal pollution source tracking toolbox for identifying the origin of the fecal pollution sources in surface waters/groundwater is especially helpful for improving management efforts and remediation actions of water resources in a more cost-effective and efficient manner. This review summarizes the updated knowledge on the use of fecal pollution source tracking markers for detecting, evaluating and characterizing fecal pollution sources in receiving surface waters and groundwater. The suitability of using chemical markers (i.e. fecal sterols, fluorescent whitening agents, pharmaceuticals and personal care products, and artificial sweeteners) and/or microbial markers (e.g. F+RNA coliphages, enteric viruses, and host-specific anaerobic bacterial 16S rDNA genetic markers) for tracking fecal pollution sources in receiving water bodies is discussed. In addition, this review also provides a comprehensive approach, which is based on the detection ratios (DR), detection frequencies (DF), and fate of potential microbial and chemical markers. DR and DF are considered as the key criteria for selecting appropriate markers for identifying and evaluating the impacts of fecal contamination in surface waters/groundwater. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  9. A choice experiment on tax: Are income and consumption taxes equivalent?

    OpenAIRE

    Kurokawa, Hirofumi; Mori, Tomoharu; Ohtake, Fumio

    2016-01-01

    We test the equivalence of income and consumption taxes through a choice experiment. Under a given set of income and consumption parameters, subjects were asked to choose among an income tax of 20%, a consumption tax of 25% (which is an equivalent tax burden), a consumption tax of 22%, and a consumption tax of 20%. Our results showed that subjects prefer income tax to consumption tax when the nominal consumption tax rate is higher than the nominal income tax rate. However, subjects tend to pr...

  10. Who Pays the Property Tax? A New View. Studies of Government Finance Second Series.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aaron, Henry J.

    This book considers the most common criticisms of the property tax as a source of government revenue and argues that, contrary to popular belief, empirical studies show that the property tax is probably a largely progressive tax. The author also examines common defects in property tax administration and concludes that these problems are remediable…

  11. Tax competition and tax harmonization in the European Union

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Danuše Nerudová

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available The article deals with the problems of tax competition and harmonization within the European Union. It reveals the single difficulties connected with harmonization, identifies the problems arising from tax competition and points out the harmful tax competition as well. Single compulsory harmonized tax base in connection with prevailing tax competition in the area of tax rates is the suggested solution in the scope of direct taxation. As the solution in the area of indirect taxation could serve the introduction of “principle of origin”. This would cause remarkable administrative costs decrease not only for economic subjects but for tax authorities as well.

  12. Groundwater Pollution Sources Apportionment in the Ghaen Plain, Iran

    OpenAIRE

    Mohammad Reza Vesali Naseh; Roohollah Noori; Ronny Berndtsson; Jan Adamowski; Elaheh Sadatipour

    2018-01-01

    Although Iran’s Ghaen Plain provides saffron to much of the world, no regional groundwater quality (GQ) assessment has yet been undertaken. Given the region’s potential for saltwater intrusion and heavy metal contamination, it is important to assess the GQ and determine its main probable source of pollution (MPSP). Such knowledge would allow for informed mitigation or elimination of the potential adverse health effects of this groundwater through its use as drinking water, or indirectly as a ...

  13. THE IMPLICATIONS OF TAX MORALE ON TAX COMPLIANCE BEHAVIOR

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nichita Ramona-Anca

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available The present paper focuses on the analysis of tax compliance behavior from the tax morale standpoint. We grounded our research on the idea that empirical studies constantly invalidating the assumptions of theoretical models of tax evasion show there are more factors influencing compliance than just the economic ones (e.g., audit probability, fine, tax rate, income. Giving the fact that audit probabilities are generally very low and that tax evasion is not as high as one could expect, tax morale might have to do with the high degrees of tax compliance registered around the world. In a stream of articles on taxation published beginning with the late 60n#8217;s, tax morale defined as the intrinsic motivation to comply or n#8220;internalised obligation to pay taxn#8221; (Braithwaite and Ahmed 2005 has been found to positively relate to tax compliance and negatively relate to shadow economy. This paper attempts to offer a broader view on the influence of tax morale on compliance behavior, covering articles ranging from national and cross-cultural surveys to experimental games. Moreover, the aim of the article is to emphasize the policy implications of tax morale research and the changes governments could make in order to raise the amount of public levies.

  14. Combining land use information and small stream sampling with PCR-based methods for better characterization of diffuse sources of human fecal pollution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peed, Lindsay A; Nietch, Christopher T; Kelty, Catherine A; Meckes, Mark; Mooney, Thomas; Sivaganesan, Mano; Shanks, Orin C

    2011-07-01

    Diffuse sources of human fecal pollution allow for the direct discharge of waste into receiving waters with minimal or no treatment. Traditional culture-based methods are commonly used to characterize fecal pollution in ambient waters, however these methods do not discern between human and other animal sources of fecal pollution making it difficult to identify diffuse pollution sources. Human-associated quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) methods in combination with low-order headwatershed sampling, precipitation information, and high-resolution geographic information system land use data can be useful for identifying diffuse source of human fecal pollution in receiving waters. To test this assertion, this study monitored nine headwatersheds over a two-year period potentially impacted by faulty septic systems and leaky sanitary sewer lines. Human fecal pollution was measured using three different human-associated qPCR methods and a positive significant correlation was seen between abundance of human-associated genetic markers and septic systems following wet weather events. In contrast, a negative correlation was observed with sanitary sewer line densities suggesting septic systems are the predominant diffuse source of human fecal pollution in the study area. These results demonstrate the advantages of combining water sampling, climate information, land-use computer-based modeling, and molecular biology disciplines to better characterize diffuse sources of human fecal pollution in environmental waters.

  15. A Comparison of the Health Effects of Ambient Particulate Matter Air Pollution from Five Emission Sources

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Neil J. Hime

    2018-06-01

    Full Text Available This article briefly reviews evidence of health effects associated with exposure to particulate matter (PM air pollution from five common outdoor emission sources: traffic, coal-fired power stations, diesel exhaust, domestic wood combustion heaters, and crustal dust. The principal purpose of this review is to compare the evidence of health effects associated with these different sources with a view to answering the question: Is exposure to PM from some emission sources associated with worse health outcomes than exposure to PM from other sources? Answering this question will help inform development of air pollution regulations and environmental policy that maximises health benefits. Understanding the health effects of exposure to components of PM and source-specific PM are active fields of investigation. However, the different methods that have been used in epidemiological studies, along with the differences in populations, emission sources, and ambient air pollution mixtures between studies, make the comparison of results between studies problematic. While there is some evidence that PM from traffic and coal-fired power station emissions may elicit greater health effects compared to PM from other sources, overall the evidence to date does not indicate a clear ‘hierarchy’ of harmfulness for PM from different emission sources. Further investigations of the health effects of source-specific PM with more advanced approaches to exposure modeling, measurement, and statistics, are required before changing the current public health protection approach of minimising exposure to total PM mass.

  16. Aggressive Tax Strategies and Corporate Tax Governance: An Institutional Approach

    OpenAIRE

    Garbarino, Carlo

    2009-01-01

    This paper deals with the impact of tax-aggressive strategies on corporate governance by adopting an agency perspective of the firm and discusses how certain corporate tax governance measures may limit these kinds of managerial actions. We first clarify a few basic concepts such as tax minimization, effective tax planning, tax avoidance, and tax evasion, which are important to understand in the discussion about aggressive tax behaviour. We further define the regulative concept of effective ta...

  17. Investor Valuations of Japan's Adoption of a Territorial Tax Regime: Quantifying the Direct and Competitive Effects of International Tax Reform

    OpenAIRE

    Estelle P. Dauchy; Sebastien Bradley; Makoto Hasegawa

    2014-01-01

    Despite an extensive literature on the normative implications of different international tax regimes and an empirical literature addressing individual specific predictions, there exists little evidence encompassing the broad range of effects of taxing corporations' foreign-source income on a worldwide or territorial basis. This paper takes a more comprehensive quantitative approach by examining stock market reactions surrounding three events over the course of which Japan's 2009 adoption of a...

  18. Report on the behalf of the Commission of inquiry on the economic and financial cost of air pollution. Nr 610

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Husson, Jean-Francois; Aichi, Leila

    2015-01-01

    After a list of 61 propositions made by the authors, this huge report first addresses air pollution as a major public health issue with multiple impacts. It proposes an overview of the progressive awareness on this issue as pollution has been considered for a long time as an unavoidable consequence of technical and industrial progress, as the emergence of air survey slowly became a priority for public authorities between 1917 and 1973, and as the struggle against atmospheric pollution is now a key issue in the prevention of climate change in a context which has become supra-national. It analyses outer air pollution: European and international definitions, status of scientific knowledge on health effects, sources of atmospheric pollution, the peculiar case of France regarding chemical pollution due to the Diesel engines, and aero-biologic pollution. It addresses inner air pollution, a hazard with many unknowns: a phenomenon which has been progressively acknowledged as a major public health problem, overview of the rather timid French legal framework. It proposes an overview of other impacts (other than on health): on vegetal and biodiversity, on the built environment, and on water. The second part addresses the economic and financial cost of air pollution. It discusses how to assess the cost of air pollution (assessment of health impacts of air pollution, assessment of health cost of air pollution). It outlines that it is a major cost which is often under-assessed. It proposes an overview of the status of the cost of air pollution in France as far as the cost for the health system, the social and economic cost, and other costs (decrease of agriculture efficiency, building degradation, policy costs, effect of the environment and loss of biodiversity, tax and regulation) are concerned. The third part of this report proposes an overview of solutions which aim at obtaining a better balance between standards and tax policy, at promoting innovation, at implementing

  19. Sources of heavy metal pollution in agricultural soils of a rapidly industrializing area in the Yangtze Delta of China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Xianghua; Zhao, Yongcun; Zhao, Xiaoyan; Wang, Yudong; Deng, Wenjing

    2014-10-01

    The rapid industrialization and urbanization in developing countries have increased pollution by heavy metals, which is a concern for human health and the environment. In this study, 230 surface soil samples (0-20cm) were collected from agricultural areas of Jiaxing, a rapidly industrializing area in the Yangtze Delta of China. Sequential Gaussian simulation (SGS) and multivariate factorial kriging analysis (FKA) were used to identify and explore the sources of heavy metal pollution for eight metals (Cu, Zn, Pb, Cr, Ni, Cd, Hg and As). Localized hot-spots of pollution were identified for Cu, Zn, Pb, Cr, Ni and Cd with area percentages of 0.48 percent, 0.58 percent, 2.84 percent, 2.41 percent, 0.74 percent, and 0.68 percent, respectively. The areas with Hg pollution covered approximately 38 percent whereas no potential pollution risk was found for As. The soil parent material and point sources of pollution had significant influences on Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn and Cd levels, except for the influence of agricultural management practices also accounted for micro-scale variations (nugget effect) for Cu and Zn pollution. Short-range (4km) diffusion processes had a significant influence on Cu levels, although they did not appear to be the dominant sources of Zn and Cd variation. The short-range diffusion pollution arising from current and historic industrial emissions and urbanization, and long-range (33km) variations in soil parent materials and/or diffusion jointly determined the current concentrations of soil Pb. The sources of Hg pollution risk may be attributed to the atmosphere deposition of industrial emission and historical use of Hg-containing pesticides. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. GOODS AND SERVICE TAX ONE NATION ONE TAX IN INDIA.

    OpenAIRE

    Shuchi Sharma; Rupendra Prakash Yadav.

    2018-01-01

    Goods and Service Tax is a significant and logical step towards a comprehensive Indirect tax reform in India. This paper analyses the concept of Goods Service Tax and further discusses their impact on the various sectors in India. Brief description is given on Goods Service Tax background and Goods and Service Tax models helps to reduce tax burden. It aims at creating a single and unified market benefiting both corporate and economy because this is the only Indirect tax that directly affects ...

  1. The Compensative Effects of Tobacco Leaf Price Changes on Tax Revenue in China

    OpenAIRE

    Cai, Hailong; Kinnucan, Henry W.

    2009-01-01

    Tobacco production in China is influenced by a government-set procurement price for tobacco leaf, and an excise tax on tobacco leaf revenue. This study examines the increase in the procurement price needed to keep tax revenue constant in the face of a 50% reduction in the tax rate. This “compensative effect” is important because reductions in the tax rate are contemplated and tobacco tax revenue is a major source of funding for rural communities. Based on an equilibrium-displacement model of ...

  2. Mobilizing Public Opinion for the Tobacco Industry: The Consumer Tax Alliance and Excise Taxes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Campbell, Richard; Balbach, Edith D.

    2009-01-01

    Background Tobacco industry funding was instrumental in creating and financing the Consumer Tax Alliance in 1989 as an ostensibly organization that relied upon extensive media outreach to build opposition to excise taxes as a regressive form of taxation. By obscuring its own role in this effort, the tobacco industry undermined the public’s reasonable expectations for transparency in the policy making process. Aim To examine the formation and activities of the Consumer Tax Alliance as a “hybrid” form of interest group in order to provide tobacco control and public health advocates with a better understanding of unanticipated tobacco industry coalitions and facilitate appropriate counter measures. Methods Document searches through the Legacy Tobacco Documents Library and through Tobacco Documents Online and review of background literature. Results The Tobacco Institute actively sought liberal allies beginning in the mid-1980s in seeking to build public opposition to cigarette excise tax increases by promoting them as a regressive form of taxation. The creation of the Consumer Tax Alliance in 1989 was expressly intended to turn labor and middle class opinion against prospective excise tax increases in federal budget deficit negotiations, without divulging the tobacco industry’s role in its formation. Conclusion It is important to understand the dynamic by which trusted organizations can be induced to alter their agendas in response to funding sources. Advocates need to understand this form of interest group behavior so that they are better able to negotiate the policy arena by diagnosing and exposing this influence where it occurs and, by doing so, be better prepared to take appropriate counter measures. What this paper adds The tobacco industry’s political strategies for utilizing third party efforts to contest cigarette excise tax increases have not been extensively studied. While there has been some attention to industry sponsorship of third parties, the

  3. Taxation on environmental pollution and energy consumption 1995

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1996-01-01

    The document gives statistics on taxation of pollution caused to the environment and on energy consumption in Denmark. These forms of taxation are rapidly increasing in Denmark as a consequence of the country's environmental policy. In 1995 the total state revenue from these sources was 23.5 billion Danish kroner which comprises 7.1% (compared to 6.5% for 1994) of the total revenue from all forms of taxation. Revenues in 1995 are 8.2 billion Danish kroner higher than in 1986. The State's revenue from taxation of energy consumption was 18.4 billion Danish kroner, which is 78% of revenues from taxation on both environmental pollution and on energy consumption. Revenues from taxation on pollution of the environment was 5.2 billion Danish kroner. The contribution of the taxation of environmental pollution has increased from 2% in 1986 to 22% in 1995 of the total revenue from taxation of both environmental pollution and energy consumption. Statistics include revenues from taxation on petrol, electric power, the use of gas and diesel oil and fuel oils, on kerosone and tar fuels for heating, on autogas and bottled gas, and on pit coal and lignite. Details are given on taxation revenues from the taxation of the different forms of environmental pollution such as carbon dioxide and rubbish etc. and on the taxation on carbon dioxide emission from the use of energy products such as electricity and various fuels. Information is given on grants given to projects for reducing the emission of carbon dioxide from 1993-1996 and on the phasing of taxation on environmental pollution in accordance with the Danish tax reforms. (AB)

  4. Spatio-Temporal Variations and Source Apportionment of Water Pollution in Danjiangkou Reservoir Basin, Central China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pan Chen

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Understanding the spatio-temporal variation and the potential source of water pollution could greatly improve our knowledge of human impacts on the environment. In this work, data of 11 water quality indices were collected during 2012–2014 at 10 monitoring sites in the mainstream and major tributaries of the Danjiangkou Reservoir Basin, Central China. The fuzzy comprehensive assessment (FCA, the cluster analysis (CA and the discriminant analysis (DA were used to assess the water pollution status and analyze its spatio-temporal variation. Ten sites were classified by the high pollution (HP region and the low pollution (LP region, while 12 months were divided into the wet season and the dry season. It was found that the HP region was mainly in the small tributaries with small drainage areas and low average annual discharges, and it was also found that most of these rivers went through urban areas with industrial and domestic sewages input into the water body. Principal component analysis/factor analysis (PCA/FA was applied to reveal potential pollution sources, whereas absolute principal component score-multiple linear regression (APCS-MLR was used to identify their contributions to each water quality variable. The study area was found as being generally affected by industrial and domestic sewage. Furthermore, the HP region was polluted by chemical industries, and the LP region was influenced by agricultural and livestock sewage.

  5. Valuation of social and health effects of transport-related air pollution in Madrid (Spain)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Monzon, Andres; Guerrero, Maria-Jose [Transport Department, Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, Escuela Tecnica Superior de Ingenieros de Caminos, C. y P., Caminos, Ciudad Universitaria, s/n, 28040 Madrid (Spain)

    2004-12-01

    Social impacts of pollutants from mobile sources are a key element in urban design and traffic planning. One of the most relevant impacts is health effects associated with high pollution periods. Madrid is a city that suffers chronic congestion levels and some periods of very stable atmospheric conditions; as a result, pollution levels exceed air quality standards for certain pollutants.This paper focuses on the social evaluation of transport-related emissions. A new methodology to evaluate those impacts in monetary terms has been designed and applied to Madrid. The method takes into account costs associated with losses in working time, mortality and human suffering; calculated using an impact pathway approach linked to CORINAIR emissions. This also allows the calculation of social costs associated with greenhouse gas impacts. As costs have been calculated individually by effect and mode of transport, they can be used to design pricing policies based on real social costs. This paper concludes that the health and social costs of transport-related air pollution in Madrid is 357 Meuro. In these circumstances, the recent public health tax applied in Madrid is clearly correct and sensible with a fair pricing policy on car use.

  6. Valuation of social and health effects of transport-related air pollution in Madrid (Spain)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Monzon, Andres; Guerrero, Maria-Jose

    2004-01-01

    Social impacts of pollutants from mobile sources are a key element in urban design and traffic planning. One of the most relevant impacts is health effects associated with high pollution periods. Madrid is a city that suffers chronic congestion levels and some periods of very stable atmospheric conditions; as a result, pollution levels exceed air quality standards for certain pollutants. This paper focuses on the social evaluation of transport-related emissions. A new methodology to evaluate those impacts in monetary terms has been designed and applied to Madrid. The method takes into account costs associated with losses in working time, mortality and human suffering; calculated using an impact pathway approach linked to CORINAIR emissions. This also allows the calculation of social costs associated with greenhouse gas impacts. As costs have been calculated individually by effect and mode of transport, they can be used to design pricing policies based on real social costs. This paper concludes that the health and social costs of transport-related air pollution in Madrid is 357 Meuro. In these circumstances, the recent public health tax applied in Madrid is clearly correct and sensible with a fair pricing policy on car use

  7. Imperfect tax competition for profits, asymmetric equilibrium and beneficial tax havens

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Johannesen, Niels

    2010-01-01

    We present a model of tax competition for real investment and profits and show that the presence of tax havens in some cases increases the tax revenue of countries. In the first part of the paper, we argue that tax competition for profits is likely to be imperfect in the sense that the jurisdicti...... countries. We demonstrate that the latter effect may dominate the former effects so that countries, on balance, benefit from the presence of tax havens.......We present a model of tax competition for real investment and profits and show that the presence of tax havens in some cases increases the tax revenue of countries. In the first part of the paper, we argue that tax competition for profits is likely to be imperfect in the sense that the jurisdiction...... countries. In the second part of the paper, we introduce tax havens. Starting from a symmetric equilibrium, tax havens unambiguously reduce the tax revenue of countries due to a ‘leakage effect' - tax havens attract tax base from countries - and a 'competition effect' - the optimal response to the increased...

  8. Tax Potential vs. Tax Effort; A Cross-Country Analysis of Armenia's Stubbornly Low Tax Collection

    OpenAIRE

    David A. Grigorian; Hamid R Davoodi

    2007-01-01

    Despite recording double digit growth since 2000, Armenia's tax-to-GDP ratio has been fairly stable at about 14½ percent. This paper catalogues a range of factors that may account for Armenia's stubbornly for tax collection by benchmarking Armenia's tax-to-GDP against some comparator countries and conducting an extensive econometric study of the main determinants of tax collection. We find empirical support for the hypothesis that the persistence of Armenia's low tax-GDP ratio can be traced t...

  9. Taxing Feedlots in Alberta: Lethbridge County's Tax on Confined Feeding Operations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bev Dahlby

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Lethbridge County introduced a new business tax on confined feeding operations (CFO, notably feedlots, in 2016. It was expected to bring in $2.5 million for county road maintenance in 2017. However, the tax could have a detrimental impact on feedlot owners and is not the fairest way to amass revenue for road repairs. Four criteria can be used to evaluate a particular form of taxation. They are fairness, efficient resource allocation, compliance and administration costs, and revenue stability. This paper examines the potential impacts of the tax and proposes three alternative methods for financing Lethbridge County road maintenance that meet those criteria. These alternatives create less of an impact on feedlot owners and share the tax burden more equitably. They also reduce the potentially negative ripple effects that the CFO levy may have on feed producers, cattle producers, meat packers and consumers. The current tax is based on livestock storage capacity, rather than on production volume. It’s counter-productive in the long run because the feedlot’s fixed costs of production are increased, while its variable costs remain unaffected. This permanent increase in fixed costs, estimated to be as high as 20 per cent of the average operating margin per head of cattle, lowers the return on feedlot investments. Thus, the new tax could result in some feedlots being closed for lack of a high enough return on investment.A more equitable revenue source for road maintenance would be user fees imposed on the trucking industry. This system is already in use in Oregon and New Zealand. It uses GPS technology to track trucks on the roads and then charges the trucking companies a fee based on road use. It would certainly be worthwhile for the province to initiate a pilot program to test the system’s efficacy on Alberta roads. Lethbridge County could also implement a usage levy that would be based on how much it spends on roads, combined with a feedlot

  10. Water Quality Assessment and Pollution Source Identification of the Eastern Poyang Lake Basin Using Multivariate Statistical Methods

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Weili Duan

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Multivariate statistical methods including cluster analysis (CA, discriminant analysis (DA and component analysis/factor analysis (PCA/FA, were applied to explore the surface water quality datasets including 14 parameters at 28 sites of the Eastern Poyang Lake Basin, Jiangxi Province of China, from January 2012 to April 2015, characterize spatiotemporal variation in pollution and identify potential pollution sources. The 28 sampling stations were divided into two periods (wet season and dry season and two regions (low pollution and high pollution, respectively, using hierarchical CA method. Four parameters (temperature, pH, ammonia-nitrogen (NH4-N, and total nitrogen (TN were identified using DA to distinguish temporal groups with close to 97.86% correct assignations. Again using DA, five parameters (pH, chemical oxygen demand (COD, TN, Fluoride (F, and Sulphide (S led to 93.75% correct assignations for distinguishing spatial groups. Five potential pollution sources including nutrients pollution, oxygen consuming organic pollution, fluorine chemical pollution, heavy metals pollution and natural pollution, were identified using PCA/FA techniques for both the low pollution region and the high pollution region. Heavy metals (Cuprum (Cu, chromium (Cr and Zinc (Zn, fluoride and sulfide are of particular concern in the study region because of many open-pit copper mines such as Dexing Copper Mine. Results obtained from this study offer a reasonable classification scheme for low-cost monitoring networks. The results also inform understanding of spatio-temporal variation in water quality as these topics relate to water resources management.

  11. Bureaucratic Tax-Seeking: The Danish Waste Tax

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Christoffersen, Henrik; Svendsen, Gert Tinggaard

    2002-01-01

    model. These suggestions are confirmed by the case of the Danish waste tax with its fixed price approach and perverse incentives compared to that of achieving environmental target levels in a cost-minimising way. Thus, we recommend that bureaucratic institutions should coordinate their tax......-seeking efforts to maximise budgets in the long run and that the ministries that collect green tax revenues should not be allowed to control these revenues. Furthermore, our results dictate that postulated effects from green tax intervention need to be demonstrated....

  12. Slovenian income taxes and analysis of their tax expenditure in 2006-2010

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maja Klun

    2012-09-01

    Full Text Available Tax expenditure analyses have been an important element in the supervision of reform processes linked to implementing different kinds of tax incentive and the management of a correct tax policy. The paper provides an evaluation of tax expenditure in Slovenia relating to personal income tax and corporate income tax. Four consecutive tax years were selected for the calculation of the tax expenditure on personal income tax (2006-09, while three consecutive years were selected for the corporate income tax calculation (2008-10. The tax expenditure calculated for personal income tax was highest in 2006 and reached 5.2% of GDP. After several changes in personal income tax, expenditures decreased to around 3% of GDP in the following three years. The tax expenditure calculated for corporate income tax was much lower as compared to GDP than for personal income tax, reaching around 0.2% of GDP.

  13. Regulation of air pollution from wood-burning stoves

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bjørner, Thomas Bue; Brandt, Jørgen; Hansen, Lars Gårn

    Air pollution is a major global challenge. Emissions from residential wood-burning stoves make a surprisingly large contribution to total air pollution related health costs. In Denmark, emissions from wood-burning stoves are calculated to cause almost 400 premature deaths each year within Denmark...... and additionally about 300 premature deaths in other parts of Europe. In this article, we present an integrated assessment of the net social benefit of different schemes for regulating wood-burning stoves including bans and taxes. The assessment uses high resolution air pollution emission inventory...

  14. Tax Governance

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Boll, Karen; Brehm Johansen, Mette

    to wider international trends within tax administration, especially concerning the development of risk assessments and internal control in the corporations and a greater focus on monitoring of these elements by the tax authorities. Overall, the working paper concludes that Tax Governance as a model......This working paper presents an analysis of the experiences of Cooperative Compliance in Denmark. Cooperative Compliance denotes a specific kind of collaborative program for the regulation of large corporate taxpayers by the tax authorities. Cooperative Compliance programs have been implemented...... in several countries worldwide. In Denmark the program is called Tax Governance. Tax Governance has been studied using qualitative method and the analyses of the working paper build on an extensive base of in-depth interviews – primarily with tax directors from corporations participating in the program...

  15. Can We Manage Nonpoint-Source Pollution Using Nutrient Concentrations during Seasonal Baseflow?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    James A. McCarty

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available Nationwide, a substantial amount of resources has been targeted toward improving water quality, particularly focused on nonpoint-source pollution. This study was conducted to evaluate the relationship between nutrient concentrations observed during baseflow and runoff conditions from 56 sites across five watersheds in Arkansas. Baseflow and stormflow concentrations for each site were summarized using geometric mean and then evaluated for directional association. A significant, positive correlation was found for NO–N, total N, soluble reactive P, and total P, indicating that sites with high baseflow concentrations also had elevated runoff concentrations. Those landscape factors that influence nutrient concentrations in streams also likely result in increased runoff, suggesting that high baseflow concentrations may reflect elevated loads from the watershed. The results highlight that it may be possible to collect water-quality data during baseflow to help define where to target nonpoint-source pollution best management practices within a watershed.

  16. The demand for environmental quality in driving transitions to low-polluting energy sources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fouquet, Roger

    2012-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to understand the long run demand for energy-related environmental quality, its influence on legislation and on transitions to low polluting energy sources. It presents a series of episodes in British history where a demand for improvements in energy-related environmental quality existed. These episodes helped to identify a few cases where markets partially drove transitions to low polluting energy sources, in specific economic conditions. More generally, they showed that, when pushed, governments will introduce environmental legislation, although it tends to be weak and poorly enforced. In the case of air pollution, strong and binding legislation occurred roughly one hundred years later than was socially optimal. Based on this evidence, for a transition to a low carbon economy, governments will probably need to introduce focussed and binding legislation, and this cannot be expected without strong and sustained demand for climate stability. This demand will need to be spearheaded by pressure groups to introduce legislation, to enforce it and to avoid it being over-turned by future governments. - Highlights: ► Reviews demand for improvements in environmental quality in British history. ► In special cases, demand may drive transitions through markets. ► Demand will probably have to drive transitions to low polluting energy through legislation. ► Need for strong and sustained demand spearheaded through pressure groups.

  17. Classical Corporation Tax as a Global Means of Tax Harmonization

    OpenAIRE

    Kari, Seppo; Ylä-Liedenpoha, Jouko

    2002-01-01

    Classical corporation tax entails double taxation of corporate income. The alternative practice of imputing corporation tax to the domestic recipients of dividends is shown, in the case of a company with international owners, to effectively convert the imputation system back to a classical corporation tax. It also requires complex rules for exempting flow-through dividends from equalization tax to avoid the cumulation of corporation tax internationally. In contrast, classical corporation tax ...

  18. Air pollution

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Strauss, W; Mainwaring, S J

    1984-01-01

    This book deals with the nature of air pollution. The numerous sources of unwanted gases and dust particles in the air are discussed. Details are presented of the effects of pollutants on man, animals, vegetation and on inanimate materials. Methods used to measure, monitor and control air pollution are presented. The authors include information on the socio-economic factors which impinge on pollution control and on the problems the future will bring as methods of generating energy change and industries provide new sources of pollutants.

  19. Biological and chemical diagnosis of damage to crops caused by air pollution and tracing the source of pollution

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Van Raay, A

    1975-01-01

    This paper deals with the biological and chemical diagnosis of damage of crops caused by air pollution. Field observations were made as well as trials in fumigation chambers. The field work showed a great deal of fluoride contamination near industrial plants. A network of monitoring points was set up around the fluoride-emitting sources. The HF pollution was determined by the limed paper method, the fluoride content of plants, leaf necrosis in some plants, and an impinger and tubes filled with coated silver pellets, directed by a weather-vane. These investigations were carried out in two areas of New Zealand as well as near Delfzijl in Groningen. Fluoride was emitted by factories producing aluminum, superphosphate or sodium triphosphate.

  20. Ground water pollution through air pollutants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cichorowski, G.; Michel, B.; Versteegen, D.; Wettmann, R.

    1989-01-01

    The aim of the investigation is to determine the significance of air pollutants for ground water quality and ground water use. The report summarizes present knowledge and assesses statements with a view to potential ground water pollution from the air. In this context pollution paths, the spreading behaviour of pollutants, and 'cross points' with burden potentials from other pollutant sources are presented. (orig.) [de

  1. Source apportionment of fine particles and its chemical components over the Yangtze River Delta, China during a heavy haze pollution episode

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, L.; An, J. Y.; Zhou, M.; Yan, R. S.; Huang, C.; Lu, Q.; Lin, L.; Wang, Y. J.; Tao, S. K.; Qiao, L. P.; Zhu, S. H.; Chen, C. H.

    2015-12-01

    An extremely high PM2.5 pollution episode occurred over the eastern China in January 2013. In this paper, the particulate matter source apportionment technology (PSAT) method coupled within the Comprehensive air quality model with extensions (CAMx) is applied to study the source contributions to PM2.5 and its major components at six receptors (Urban Shanghai, Chongming, Dianshan Lake, Urban Suzhou, Hangzhou and Zhoushan) in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region. Contributions from 4 source areas (including Shanghai, South Jiangsu, North Zhejiang and Super-region) and 9 emission sectors (including power plants, industrial boilers and kilns, industrial processing, mobile source, residential, volatile emissions, dust, agriculture and biogenic emissions) to PM2.5 and its major components (sulfate, nitrate, ammonia, organic carbon and elemental carbon) at the six receptors in the YRD region are quantified. Results show that accumulation of local pollution was the largest contributor during this air pollution episode in urban Shanghai (55%) and Suzhou (46%), followed by long-range transport (37% contribution to Shanghai and 44% to Suzhou). Super-regional emissions play an important role in PM2.5 formation at Hangzhou (48%) and Zhoushan site (68%). Among the emission sectors contributing to the high pollution episode, the major source categories include industrial processing (with contributions ranging between 12.7 and 38.7% at different receptors), combustion source (21.7-37.3%), mobile source (7.5-17.7%) and fugitive dust (8.4-27.3%). Agricultural contribution is also very significant at Zhoushan site (24.5%). In terms of the PM2.5 major components, it is found that industrial boilers and kilns are the major source contributor to sulfate and nitrate. Volatile emission source and agriculture are the major contributors to ammonia; transport is the largest contributor to elemental carbon. Industrial processing, volatile emissions and mobile source are the most significant

  2. Tax Information Exchange with Developing Countries and Tax Havens

    OpenAIRE

    Braun, Julia; Zagler, Martin

    2015-01-01

    The exchange of tax information has received ample attention recently, due to a number of recent headlines on aggressive tax planning and tax evasion. Whilst both participating tax authorities will gain when foreign investments (FDI) are bilateral, we demonstrate that FDI receiving nations will lose in asymmetric situations. We solve a bargaining model that proves that tax information exchange will only happen voluntarily with compensation for this loss. We then present empirical evidence in ...

  3. The Tax Base And The Tax Bill. Tax Implications of Development: A Workbook.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brighton, Deb; Northup, Jim

    The property tax base in Vermont's towns are overburdened as property taxes are usually the only funding method available to finance schools, police departments, highway work, recreation programs, and government in general. Attempting to offer their citizens a balanced program of services without exorbitant taxes, local officials are striving to…

  4. A Method for Identifying Pollution Sources of Heavy Metals and PAH for a Risk-Based Management of a Mediterranean Harbour

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ombretta Paladino

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available A procedure for assessing harbour pollution by heavy metals and PAH and the possible sources of contamination is proposed. The procedure is based on a ratio-matching method applied to the results of principal component analysis (PCA, and it allows discrimination between point and nonpoint sources. The approach can be adopted when many sources of pollution can contribute in a very narrow coastal ecosystem, both internal and outside but close to the harbour, and was used to identify the possible point sources of contamination in a Mediterranean Harbour (Port of Vado, Savona, Italy. 235 sediment samples were collected in 81 sampling points during four monitoring campaigns and 28 chemicals were searched for within the collected samples. PCA of total samples allowed the assessment of 8 main possible point sources, while the refining ratio-matching identified 1 sampling point as a possible PAH source, 2 sampling points as Cd point sources, and 3 sampling points as C > 12 point sources. By a map analysis it was possible to assess two internal sources of pollution directly related to terminals activity. The study is the prosecution of a previous work aimed at assessing Savona-Vado Harbour pollution levels and suggested strategies to regulate the harbour activities.

  5. Chemical composition and sources of particle pollution in affluent and poor neighborhoods of Accra, Ghana

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhou, Zheng; Dionisio, Kathie L; Verissimo, Thiago G; Kerr, Americo S; Coull, Brent; Arku, Raphael E; Koutrakis, Petros; Spengler, John D; Vallarino, Jose; Hughes, Allison F; Agyei-Mensah, Samuel; Ezzati, Majid

    2013-01-01

    The highest levels of air pollution in the world now occur in developing country cities, where air pollution sources differ from high-income countries. We analyzed particulate matter (PM) chemical composition and estimated the contributions of various sources to particle pollution in poor and affluent neighborhoods of Accra, Ghana. Elements from earth’s crust were most abundant during the seasonal Harmattan period between late December and late January when Saharan dust is carried to coastal West Africa. During Harmattan, crustal particles accounted for 55 μg m −3 (37%) of fine particle (PM 2.5 ) mass and 128 μg m −3 (42%) of PM 10 mass. Outside Harmattan, biomass combustion, which was associated with higher black carbon, potassium, and sulfur, accounted for between 10.6 and 21.3 μg m −3 of fine particle mass in different neighborhoods, with its contribution largest in the poorest neighborhood. Other sources were sea salt, vehicle emissions, tire and brake wear, road dust, and solid waste burning. Reducing air pollution in African cities requires policies related to energy, transportation and urban planning, and forestry and agriculture, with explicit attention to impacts of each strategy in poor communities. Such cross-sectoral integration requires emphasis on urban environment and urban poverty in the post-2015 Development Agenda. (letter)

  6. Risk diversification and tax competition : the influence of risk correlations and tax provisions on tax competition

    OpenAIRE

    Berndt, Markus; Reichl, Bettina

    2000-01-01

    From standard-portfolio-models the authors derive demand elasticities for risky assets, and combine the results with a simple non-cooperative model of tax competition between capital importing countries. They find that tax rates resulting from tax competition depend heavily on the correlations of capital market indices. If investment alternatives are not correlated, the outcome of both tax competition and a cooperative solution of tax harmonization are identical. The results suggest regional ...

  7. Corporate Taxation and Investment: The Case of the Split Rate Corporate Tax System in Macedonia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ilija Gruevski

    2018-12-01

    Full Text Available The majority of experts agree that taxes are distortionary in nature. This is relatively true for all of the different groups of taxes, but for the corporate taxes is exceptionallyobvious. The existence of the corporate tax system can affect the company’s behavior in number of ways and one of the most criticized is the ability for distortion of the choice of the sources of finance. In the following article, we explore the effects from corporate taxation on investment, through the methodological frame of the effective marginal tax rates. The objective is to analyze the investment decision in the case of isolated implementation of corporate taxes which means that the effects from the so-called “double taxation”, induced by the personal taxes are not taken in consideration. We hope to prove that these conditions generate “uneven” distribution of the burden across the projects covered with different sources of finance. Also, we intend to test and explore the properties of some alternative corporate tax systems which are widely known as neutral, such as: the comprehensive business income tax system (CBIT, the imputation corporate tax system (ICT, the full imputation corporate tax system (FICT, the allowance for corporate equity tax system (ACE and the split rate corporate tax system (SRCT. In addition, we support our findings with a practical example: the case study from the implementation of the split rate corporate tax system in Macedonia.

  8. Modeling of land use and reservoir effects on nonpoint source pollution in a highly agricultural basin

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Yiping; Liu, Shu-Guang

    2012-01-01

    Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is tightly linked to land use activities that determine the sources and magnitudes of pollutant loadings to stream water. The pollutant loads may also be alleviated within reservoirs because of the physical interception resulting from changed hydrological regimes and other biochemical processes. It is important but challenging to assess the NPS pollution processes with human effects due to the measurement limitations. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effects of human activities such as land uses and reservoir operation on the hydrological and NPS pollution processes in a highly agricultural area-the Iowa River Basin-using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT). The evaluation of model performance at multiple sites reveals that SWAT can consistently simulate the daily streamflow, and monthly/annual sediment and nutrient loads (nitrate nitrogen and mineral phosphorus) in the basin. We also used the calibrated model to estimate the trap efficiencies of sediment (~78%) and nutrients (~30%) in the Coralville Reservoir within the basin. These non-negligible effects emphasize the significance of incorporating the sediment and nutrient removal mechanisms into watershed system studies. The spatial quantification of the critical NPS pollution loads can help identify hot-spot areas that are likely locations for the best management practices.

  9. The American Law Institutes Reporter’s Study of Corporate Tax Integration: A Critique

    Science.gov (United States)

    1994-02-14

    retains current corporate income tax as a withholding mechanism for payment of the shareholder level tax, as a measure to ensure compliance, and as a...the burden of the corporate income tax will fall only on retained earnings." The immediate result of this method is more cash in hands of the...would convert the corporate income tax into a withholding mechanism for an ultimate tax on corporate source income at the shareholder level.9 Professor

  10. Tax Morality and Progressive Wage Tax

    OpenAIRE

    Andras Simonovits

    2010-01-01

    We analyze the impact of tax morality on progressive income (wage) taxation. We assume that transfers (cash-back) and public expenditures are financed from linear wage taxes. We derive the reported wages from individual utility maximization, when individuals obtain partial satisfaction from reporting wages (depending on their tax morality), and cannot be excluded from the use of public services. The government maximizes a utilitarian social welfare function, also taking into account the utili...

  11. Tax havens: Features, operations and solving tax evasion problems

    OpenAIRE

    Obradović-Ćuk, Jelena; Mitić, Petar; Dinić, Vladimir

    2016-01-01

    Tax haven offers minimal or no tax liability to foreign individuals and enterprises in economically and politically stable environment, where little or no financial information is shared with foreign tax authorities. The aim of this research is to create a comprehensive overview of the characteristics and operations of tax havens, as well as to point out to the ways to overcome the problem of tax evasion. The methodology used in the work is characteristic of social science research: analysis,...

  12. How Taxing is Corruption on International Investors?

    OpenAIRE

    Shang-Jin Wei

    1997-01-01

    This paper studies the effect of corruption on foreign direct investment. The sample covers bilateral investment from fourteen source countries to forty-five host countries during 1990-91. There are three central findings. (1) A rise in either the tax rate on multinational firms or the corruption level in a host country reduces inward foreign direct investment (FDI). An increase in the corruption level from that of Singapore to that of Mexico is equivalent to raising the tax rate by over twen...

  13. A GIS-based atmospheric dispersion model for pollutants emitted by complex source areas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Teggi, Sergio; Costanzini, Sofia; Ghermandi, Grazia; Malagoli, Carlotta; Vinceti, Marco

    2018-01-01

    Gaussian dispersion models are widely used to simulate the concentrations and deposition fluxes of pollutants emitted by source areas. Very often, the calculation time limits the number of sources and receptors and the geometry of the sources must be simple and without holes. This paper presents CAREA, a new GIS-based Gaussian model for complex source areas. CAREA was coded in the Python language, and is largely based on a simplified formulation of the very popular and recognized AERMOD model. The model allows users to define in a GIS environment thousands of gridded or scattered receptors and thousands of complex sources with hundreds of vertices and holes. CAREA computes ground level, or near ground level, concentrations and dry deposition fluxes of pollutants. The input/output and the runs of the model can be completely managed in GIS environment (e.g. inside a GIS project). The paper presents the CAREA formulation and its applications to very complex test cases. The tests shows that the processing time are satisfactory and that the definition of sources and receptors and the output retrieval are quite easy in a GIS environment. CAREA and AERMOD are compared using simple and reproducible test cases. The comparison shows that CAREA satisfactorily reproduces AERMOD simulations and is considerably faster than AERMOD. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Nonpoint Source Pollution: Agriculture, Forestry, and Mining. Instructor Guide. Working for Clean Water: An Information Program for Advisory Groups.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buskirk, E. Drannon, Jr.

    Nonpoint sources of pollution have diffuse origins and are major contributors to water quality problems in both urban and rural areas. Addressed in this instructor's manual are the identification, assessment, and management of nonpoint source pollutants resulting from mining, agriculture, and forestry. The unit, part of the Working for Clean Water…

  15. Potential of border tax adjustments to deter free riding in international climate agreements

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burcu Irfanoglu, Zeynep; Sesmero, Juan P.; Golub, Alla

    2015-02-01

    The objective of this study is to conduct assessment of the hypothesis that trade sanctions in the form of border tax adjustments (BTAs) used by the United States against China, constitute a viable enforcement mechanism to sustain compliance with a range of emissions taxes in the context of agreements to curb global emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs). The performance of BTAs is then compared with those of punitive tariffs on the basis of the range of emission taxes that can be successfully enforced by their implementation. Results show that BTAs are a viable enforcement mechanism for international GHG mitigation agreements. However the maximum level of carbon tax that can be enforced varies dramatically with (1) the marginal damage of pollution perceived by Chinese authorities, and (2) the legal limitations that GATT rules may impose on BTAs. Finally, while BTAs seem a promising enforcement mechanism in the context of climate agreements, punitive tariffs seem to be capable of supporting a much stricter environmental target.

  16. Potential of border tax adjustments to deter free riding in international climate agreements

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Irfanoglu, Zeynep Burcu; Golub, Alla; Sesmero, Juan P

    2015-01-01

    The objective of this study is to conduct assessment of the hypothesis that trade sanctions in the form of border tax adjustments (BTAs) used by the United States against China, constitute a viable enforcement mechanism to sustain compliance with a range of emissions taxes in the context of agreements to curb global emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs). The performance of BTAs is then compared with those of punitive tariffs on the basis of the range of emission taxes that can be successfully enforced by their implementation. Results show that BTAs are a viable enforcement mechanism for international GHG mitigation agreements. However the maximum level of carbon tax that can be enforced varies dramatically with (1) the marginal damage of pollution perceived by Chinese authorities, and (2) the legal limitations that GATT rules may impose on BTAs. Finally, while BTAs seem a promising enforcement mechanism in the context of climate agreements, punitive tariffs seem to be capable of supporting a much stricter environmental target. (letter)

  17. A taxing environment: evaluating the multiple objectives of environmental taxes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miranda, Marie Lynn; Hale, Brack W

    2002-12-15

    Environmental taxes have attracted attention in recent years as a tool to internalize environmental externalities. This paper evaluates Sweden's experience with environmental taxes in the energy sector by examining how environmental taxes compare with estimated environmental externalities associated with the use of oil, coal, natural gas, and forest residue fuels. We also analyze how environmental taxes influence fuel choices in the energy sector by comparing the production, environmental, and tax costs for the same fuels. We find that (i) the Swedish environmental taxes correspond imperfectly with environmental costs; (ii) the Swedish tax and subsidy system introduces changes in fuel choice decisions; (iii) the energy users are responding to the incentives created by the tax and subsidy systems in ways that are consistent with economic theory; and (iv) the Swedish experience with environmental taxes and subsidies bears directly on wider evaluations of energy policy approaches internationally.

  18. Everyday Representations of Tax Avoidance, Tax Evasion, and Tax Flight: Do Legal Differences Matter?

    OpenAIRE

    Kirchler, Erich; Maciejovsky, Boris; Schneider, Friedrich

    2001-01-01

    From an economic point of view, legal considerations apart, tax avoidance, tax evasion and tax flight have similar effects, namely a reduction of revenue yields, and are based on the same desire to reduce the tax burden. Due to legal differences and moral concerns it is, however, likely that individuals perceive them as different and as unequally fair. Overall, 252 fiscal officers, business students, business lawyers, and entrepreneurs produced spontaneous associations to a scenario either de...

  19. Tax Policy Trends: Republicans Reveal Proposed Tax Overhaul

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Philip Bazel

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available REPUBLICANS REVEAL PROPOSED TAX OVERHAUL The White House and Congressional Republicans have revealed their much-anticipated proposal for reform of the U.S. personal and corporate tax systems. The proposal titled, “UNIFIED FRAMEWORK FOR FIXING OUR BROKEN TAX CODE” outlines a number of central policy changes, which will significantly alter the U.S. corporate tax system. The proposal includes a top federal marginal rate reduction for the sole proprietorships, partnerships and S corporation—small business equivalents— from 39.6% to 25% (state income tax rates would no longer be deductible. Large corporations would also see a meaningful federal rate reduction given the proposed drop in the federal corporate income tax rate from 35% to 20%. Additionally, the proposal includes a generous temporary measure intended to stimulate investment, full capital expensing for machinery with a partial limitation of interest deductions.

  20. Sources of contamination and modelled pollutant trajectories in a Mediterranean harbour (Tarragona, Spain).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mestres, M; Sierra, J P; Mösso, C; Sánchez-Arcilla, A

    2010-06-01

    The proximity of commercial harbours to residential areas and the growing environmental awareness of society have led most port authorities to include environmental management within their administration plan. Regarding water quality, it is necessary to have the capacity and tools to deal with contamination episodes that may damage marine ecosystems and human health, but also affect the normal functioning of harbours. This paper presents a description of the main pollutant sources in Tarragona Harbour (Spain), and a numerical analysis of several pollution episodes based on the Port Authority's actual environmental concerns. The results show that pollution generated inside the harbour tends to remain confined within the port, whereas it is very likely that oil spills from a nearby monobuoy may affect the neighbouring beaches. The present combination of numerical models proves itself a useful tool to assess the environmental risk associated to harbour activities and potential pollution spills.

  1. TAX EVASION THROUGH FICTITIOUS ECONOMIC OPERATIONS, OBSTACLE TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    SERGIU-BOGDAN CONSTANTIN

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Tax evasion means the avoidance of declaring and paying taxes. The purpose of the research is to identify ways and mechanisms of tax evasion through fictitious economic operations and how this kind o tax evasion can influence sustainable development. The principal methods are researching tax evasion cases investigated by the Romanian authorities responsible for combating this phenomenon, court trials on tax evasion and using the bibliographic references in the field. The data used are obtained through open sources of the authorities specialized in combating tax evasion for the cases made public, the media and also from specialised literature. The principal results are that this type of tax evasion is manifested through transactions with “ghost companies”, with offshore companies and transactions between associated enterprises. The main causes of this problem are: high taxation, corruption, inefficient government and tax authorities, no fiscal education and very hard tax legislation. The consequences are that the state budget is affected, the companies that do business legally are affected and also the final consumers, so Romania will not have economic growth and the quality of life will not improve. The main conclusion is that in order to have sustainable development, tax evasion in general and this kind of tax evasion in particular must be eradicated. The measures that have to be taken are to prevent tax evasion and to tighten controls but without violating taxpayers rights and without making abuses

  2. The rise and fall of the world's first fat tax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bødker, Malene; Pisinger, Charlotta; Toft, Ulla; Jørgensen, Torben

    2015-06-01

    In 2011, Denmark introduced the world's first tax on saturated fat, but only 15 months later the fat tax was abolished. The aim of this article is to investigate the political processes surrounding the implementation and rapid abolition of the fat tax. Our findings suggest that industry and trade associations were heavily involved in the political process of formulating the fat tax. Industry representatives used certain tactics to oppose the fat tax: threatening lawsuits, predicting welfare losses, casting doubt on evidence, diverting focus and requesting postponement. After the fat tax was implemented, the food industry continued their opposition through intensified lobbyism and juridical actions at EU level. However, other factors seem to have contributed to the fall of the fat tax. The tax received criticism for being poorly designed and gradually lost popularity among health professionals, politicians and the public. In the end, the fat tax was abolished for financial reasons. This study demonstrates how politicians considered the fat tax as a funding source rather than a public health initiative, which resulted in significant shortcomings. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the massive influence by industry stakeholders was not balanced with inputs from public health professionals, who should assume a more proactive role in policy-making. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. A projection of motor fuel tax revenue and analysis of alternative revenue sources in Georgia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-05-01

    Motor fuel tax revenue currently supplies the majority of funding for : transportation agencies at the state and federal level. Georgia uses excise and sales taxes : to generate revenue for the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT). Inflation a...

  4. From Progressive to Flat: How Tax Reform would Affect the Military

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-06-01

    problem that would be eliminated with the Hall and Rabushka’s flat tax rate proposal is double taxation of people who own shares in corporations...corporations would pay a 19 percent tax rate and income from dividends would not be taxed as personal income. This way, double taxation for...Rabushka’s method of counting all income as wages or salary regardless of the source significantly impacts Ashton. After Ashton deducts the allowances

  5. Characterisation and quantification of the sources of PM{sub 10} during air pollution episodes in the UK

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Muir, David [Environmental Quality Unit, Department of Planning, Transport and Sustainable Development, Bristol City Council, The CREATE Centre, Smeaton Road, Bristol BS1 6XN (United Kingdom); Longhurst, J.W.S.; Tubb, A. [Faculty of Applied Sciences, University of the West of England, Frenchay Campus, Coldharbour Lane, Bristol BS16 1QY (United Kingdom)

    2006-04-01

    Data for concentrations of PM{sub 10} and gaseous pollutants from sites in the UK Automatic Urban and Rural Network have been examined during periods of elevated concentrations of PM{sub 10}. The ratios of concentrations of PM{sub 10} to those of the other pollutants were used to determine the most probable source of the additional particles. The hypothesis is that because the concentrations of PM{sub 10} were divided by those of the other pollutants, the ratio should decrease when PM{sub 10} and the other pollutants have a common source. Conversely, the ratio should increase when the sources are different. During episodes where road traffic was the most probable source of the additional particles, the ratios of concentrations of PM{sub 10} to carbon monoxide and oxides of nitrogen did decrease, but the comparable ratios for sulphur dioxide and ozone increased. In contrast, during episodes known to have been caused by construction activity, all these ratios increased. This is taken to show that the basic hypothesis is valid. For prolonged episodes, it was possible to use data averaged over the total duration of the episode for the purposes of source identification. For sporadic construction, or other short-duration episodes, it was necessary to use time series data. The data have also been used to calculate the differences between hourly average concentrations of pollutants measured during episodes and long-term hourly average concentrations. These have been used to model the additional PM{sub 10} during air pollution episodes associated with construction activities and road traffic emissions. This confirms the lack of relationship between PM{sub 10} and other pollutants during construction works. During episodes arising from road traffic emissions, there was good agreement between measured and modelled additional concentrations of PM{sub 10} when an appropriate factor, F, related to the contribution of road traffic emissions to PM{sub 10} at different site types

  6. Cigarette tax avoidance and evasion: findings from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Project

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guindon, G. Emmanuel; Driezen, Pete; Chaloupka, Frank J.; Fong, Geoffrey T.

    2014-01-01

    Background Decades of research have produced overwhelming evidence that tobacco taxes reduce tobacco use and increase government tax revenue. The magnitude and effectiveness of taxes at reducing tobacco use provide an incentive for tobacco users, manufacturers and others, most notably criminal networks, to devise ways to avoid or evade tobacco taxes. Consequently, tobacco tax avoidance and tax evasion can reduce the public health and fiscal benefit of tobacco taxes. Objectives First, this study aims to document, using data from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Project (ITC), levels and trends in cigarette users’ tax avoidance and tax evasion behaviour in a sample of sixteen low-, middle- and high-income countries. Second, this study explores factors associated with cigarette tax avoidance and evasion. Methods We use data from ITC surveys conducted in 16 countries to estimate the extent and the type of cigarette tax avoidance/evasion between countries and across time. We use self-reported information about the source of a smoker’s last purchase of cigarettes or self-reported packaging information, or similar information gathered by the interviewers during face-to-face interviews to measure tax avoidance/evasion behaviours. We use generalized estimating equations (GEE) to explore individual-level factors that may affect the likelihood of cigarette tax avoidance or evasion in Canada, United States, United Kingdom and France. Findings We find prevalence estimates of cigarette tax avoidance/evasion vary substantially between countries and across time. In Canada, France and the United Kingdom, more than 10% of smokers report last purchasing cigarettes from low or untaxed sources while in Malaysia, some prevalence estimates suggest substantial cigarette tax avoidance/evasion. We also find important associations between household income and education and the likelihood to engage in tax avoidance/evasion. These associations, however, vary both in

  7. Conference on alternatives for pollution control from coal-fired low emission sources, Plzen, Czech Republic. Plzen Proceedings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1994-07-01

    The Conference on Alternatives for Pollution Control from Coal-Fired Emission Sources presented cost-effective approaches for pollution control of low emission sources (LES). It also identified policies and strategies for implementation of pollution control measures at the local level. Plzen, Czech Republic, was chosen as the conference site to show participants first hand the LES problems facing Eastern Europe today. Collectively, these Proceedings contain clear reports on: (a) methods for evaluating the cost effectiveness of alternative approaches to control pollution from small coal-fired boilers and furnaces; (b) cost-effective technologies for controlling pollution from coal-fired boilers and furnaces; (c) case studies of assessment of cost effective pollution control measures for selected cities in eastern Europe; and (d) approaches for actually implementing pollution control measures in cities in Eastern Europe. It is intended that the eastern/central European reader will find in these Proceedings useful measures that can be applied to control emissions and clean the air in his city or region. The conference was sponsored by the United States Agency for International Development (AID), the United States Department of Energy (DOE), and the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade. Selected papers have been indexed separately for inclusion in the Energy Science and Technology Database.

  8. Chemical and isotopic methods for characterization of pollutant sources in rain water

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Verma, M.P.

    1996-01-01

    The acid rain formation is related with industrial pollution. An isotopic and chemical study of the spatial and temporary distribution of the acidity in the rain gives information about the acidity source. The predominant species in the acid rain are nitrates and sulfates. For the rain monitoring is required the determination of the anion species such as HCO 3 , Cl, SO 4 , NO 3 and p H. So it was analyzed the cations Na + , K + , Ca 2+ and Mg 2+ to determine the quality analysis. All of them species can be determined with enough accuracy, except HCO 3 by modern equipment such as, liquid chromatograph, atomic absorption, etc. The HCO 3 concentration is determined by traditional methods like acid-base titration. This work presents the fundamental concepts of the titration method for samples with low alkalinity (carbonic species), for rain water. There is presented a general overview over the isotopic methods for the characterization of the origin of pollutant sources in the rain. (Author)

  9. An improved export coefficient model to estimate non-point source phosphorus pollution risks under complex precipitation and terrain conditions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cheng, Xian; Chen, Liding; Sun, Ranhao; Jing, Yongcai

    2018-05-15

    To control non-point source (NPS) pollution, it is important to estimate NPS pollution exports and identify sources of pollution. Precipitation and terrain have large impacts on the export and transport of NPS pollutants. We established an improved export coefficient model (IECM) to estimate the amount of agricultural and rural NPS total phosphorus (TP) exported from the Luanhe River Basin (LRB) in northern China. The TP concentrations of rivers from 35 selected catchments in the LRB were used to test the model's explanation capacity and accuracy. The simulation results showed that, in 2013, the average TP export was 57.20 t at the catchment scale. The mean TP export intensity in the LRB was 289.40 kg/km 2 , which was much higher than those of other basins in China. In the LRB topographic regions, the TP export intensity was the highest in the south Yanshan Mountains and was followed by the plain area, the north Yanshan Mountains, and the Bashang Plateau. Among the three pollution categories, the contribution ratios to TP export were, from high to low, the rural population (59.44%), livestock husbandry (22.24%), and land-use types (18.32%). Among all ten pollution sources, the contribution ratios from the rural population (59.44%), pigs (14.40%), and arable land (10.52%) ranked as the top three sources. This study provides information that decision makers and planners can use to develop sustainable measures for the prevention and control of NPS pollution in semi-arid regions.

  10. Enhancing the Alberta Tax Advantage with a Harmonized Sales Tax

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Philip Bazel

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available Alberta enjoys a reputation as a fiercely competitive jurisdiction when it comes to tax rates. But the reality is that the province can do better with a tax mix that has greater emphasis on consumption, rather than income tax levies. While Alberta has a personal tax advantage compared to other Canadian jurisdictions — but not the United States — it relies most heavily on income taxes and non-resource revenues that impinges on investment and saving. Taxes on new investment in Alberta’s non-resource sectors are no better than average, compared to other countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, or OECD, so it is not exceptionally attractive to many different kinds of investors. And Alberta’s corporate income tax rate is not much more competitive than the world average for manufacturing and service companies. By introducing the Harmonized Sales Tax with a provincial rate of 8 per cent (in addition to the federal 5 per cent rate, Alberta has the ability to make its tax system more competitive. An HST would even allow the province to entirely eliminate income tax for the majority of families. And because the HST would be easily administered using the same collection mechanisms that already exist for the GST, implementing a new Alberta HST could be done relatively smoothly and with minimal additional administration costs. Adopting an Alberta HST is the simplest, most efficient and fairest way to reform the provincial tax system, and will deliver noticeable benefits to Albertans, most visibly in the form of significant income tax relief. It would enable the province to raise the income-tax exemption from $17,593 to $57,250, making it possible for couples to earn up to $114,500 free of any provincial income taxes. In addition, the province could lower income tax rates for income over that amount from 10 to nine per cent. And with the revenue from the HST, Alberta would have the capacity to lower its general corporate

  11. Carbon exergy tax applied to biomass integrated gasification combined cycle in sugarcane industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fonseca Filho, Valdi Freire da; Matelli, José Alexandre; Perrella Balestieri, José Antonio

    2016-01-01

    The development of technologies based on energy renewable sources is increasing worldwide in order to diversify the energy mix and satisfy the rigorous environmental legislation and international agreements to reduce pollutant emission. Considering specific characteristics of biofuels available in Brazil, studies regarding such technologies should be carried out aiming energy mix diversification. Several technologies for power generation from biomass have been presented in the technical literature, and plants with BIGCC (biomass integrated gasification combined cycle) emerge as a major technological innovation. By obtaining a fuel rich in hydrogen from solid biomass gasification, BIGCC presents higher overall process efficiency than direct burning of the solid fuel in conventional boilers. The objective of this paper is to develop a thermodynamic and chemical equilibrium model of a BIGCC configuration for sugarcane bagasse. The model embodies exergetic cost and CO_2 emission analyses through the method of CET (carbon exergy tax). An exergetic penalty comparison between the BIGCC technology (with and without CO_2 capture and sequestration), a natural gas combined cycle and the traditional steam cycle of sugarcane sector is then presented. It is verified that the BIGCC configuration with CO_2 capture and sequestration presents technical and environmental advantages when compared to traditional technology. - Highlights: • We compared thermal cycles with the exergetic carbon exergy tax. • Thermal cycles with and without carbon capture and sequestration were considered. • Burned and gasified sugarcane bagasse was assumed as renewable fuel. • Exergetic carbon penalty tax was imposed to all studied configurations. • BIGCC with carbon sequestration revealed to be advantageous.

  12. Contributions of mobile, stationary and biogenic sources to air pollution in the Amazon rainforest: a numerical study with the WRF-Chem model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abou Rafee, Sameh A.; Martins, Leila D.; Kawashima, Ana B.; Almeida, Daniela S.; Morais, Marcos V. B.; Souza, Rita V. A.; Oliveira, Maria B. L.; Souza, Rodrigo A. F.; Medeiros, Adan S. S.; Urbina, Viviana; Freitas, Edmilson D.; Martin, Scot T.; Martins, Jorge A.

    2017-06-01

    This paper evaluates the contributions of the emissions from mobile, stationary and biogenic sources on air pollution in the Amazon rainforest by using the Weather Research and Forecasting with Chemistry (WRF-Chem) model. The analyzed air pollutants were CO, NOx, SO2, O3, PM2. 5, PM10 and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Five scenarios were defined in order to evaluate the emissions by biogenic, mobile and stationary sources, as well as a future scenario to assess the potential air quality impact of doubled anthropogenic emissions. The stationary sources explain the highest concentrations for all air pollutants evaluated, except for CO, for which the mobile sources are predominant. The anthropogenic sources considered resulted an increasing in the spatial peak-temporal average concentrations of pollutants in 3 to 2780 times in relation to those with only biogenic sources. The future scenario showed an increase in the range of 3 to 62 % in average concentrations and 45 to 109 % in peak concentrations depending on the pollutant. In addition, the spatial distributions of the scenarios has shown that the air pollution plume from the city of Manaus is predominantly transported west and southwest, and it can reach hundreds of kilometers in length.

  13. Contributions of mobile, stationary and biogenic sources to air pollution in the Amazon rainforest: a numerical study with the WRF-Chem model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. A. Abou Rafee

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available This paper evaluates the contributions of the emissions from mobile, stationary and biogenic sources on air pollution in the Amazon rainforest by using the Weather Research and Forecasting with Chemistry (WRF-Chem model. The analyzed air pollutants were CO, NOx, SO2, O3, PM2. 5, PM10 and volatile organic compounds (VOCs. Five scenarios were defined in order to evaluate the emissions by biogenic, mobile and stationary sources, as well as a future scenario to assess the potential air quality impact of doubled anthropogenic emissions. The stationary sources explain the highest concentrations for all air pollutants evaluated, except for CO, for which the mobile sources are predominant. The anthropogenic sources considered resulted an increasing in the spatial peak-temporal average concentrations of pollutants in 3 to 2780 times in relation to those with only biogenic sources. The future scenario showed an increase in the range of 3 to 62 % in average concentrations and 45 to 109 % in peak concentrations depending on the pollutant. In addition, the spatial distributions of the scenarios has shown that the air pollution plume from the city of Manaus is predominantly transported west and southwest, and it can reach hundreds of kilometers in length.

  14. Mapping Tax Compliance

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Boll, Karen

    2014-01-01

    Tax compliance denotes the act of reporting and paying taxes in accordance with the tax laws. Current social science scholarship on tax compliance can almost entirely be divided into behavioural psychology analyses and critical tax studies. This article, which presents two cases of how tax...... compliance is constructed, challenges the explanatory reaches of today's social science approaches, arguing that an alternative approach to understanding tax compliance is worthwhile exploring. This other choice of approach, inspired by actor–network theory (ANT), adopts a more practice-oriented focus...... that studies tax compliance where it takes place as well as what it is made of. Consequently, this article argues that tax compliance is a socio-material assemblage and that complying is a distributed action. The article concludes by highlighting how an ANT approach contributes to the further theoretical...

  15. A tax proposal for a cash flow corporate tax

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lourdes Jerez Barroso

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: Due to its advantages in terms of neutrality and simplicity, the aim of this paper is to design a tax base for corporation cash flows, as well as to develop its practical implementation.Design/Methodology: The conceptual aspects and the background of tax on corporation tax flows are reviewed and a tax base that levies a charge on the corporation’s economical activities’ cash flow is then proposed. In order to carry this out, a methodological procedure is developed on the basis of the accounting documents that companies must present and through which the stock variables and the accounting documents’ work flow is transformed into cash flow.Findings: An implementation on the basis of the accounting documents that Spanish companies must present. Practical Implications: This paper defines the procedure to follow in order to determine the tax base of a cash flow corporate income tax on the basis of its accounts, which would allow an estimation of this tax figure’s revenue impact.Originality/ Value: The design of a tax base of cash flows for companies. The accounting approximation carried out to determine the cash flows justifies the fact that the tax base proposal is technically possible.

  16. Identification of pollutant sources in a rapidly developing urban river catchment in China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Jingshui; Yin, Hailong; Jomma, Seifeddine; Rode, Michael; Zhou, Qi

    2016-04-01

    Rapid economic development and urbanization worldwide cause serious ecological and environmental problems. A typical region that is in transition and requires systemic research for effective intervention is the rapidly developing city of Hefei in central P. R. China. In order to investigate the sources of pollutants over a one-year period in Nanfei River catchment that drains the city of Hefei, discharges were measured and water samples were taken and measured along the 14km river section at 10 sites for 4 times from 2013 to 2014. Overflow concentrations of combined sewer and separate storm drains were also measured by selecting 15 rain events in 4 typical drainage systems. Loads and budgets of water and different pollutant sources i.e., wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent, urban drainage overflow, unknown wastewater were calculated. The water balance demonstrated that >70% of the discharge originated from WWTP effluent. Lack of clean upstream inflow thereby is threatening ecological safety and water quality. Furthermore, mass fluxes calculations revealed that >40% of the COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand) loads were from urban drainage overflow because of a large amount of discharge of untreated wastewater in pumping stations during rain events. WWTP effluent was the predominant source of the total nitrogen loads (>60%) and ammonia loads (>45%). However, the total phosphorous loads from three different sources are similar (˜1/3). Thus, our research provided a basis for appropriate and prior mitigation strategies (state-of-art of WWTP upgrade, sewer systems modification, storm water regulation and storage capacity improvement, etc.) for different precedence-controlled pollutants with the limited infrastructure investments in these rapidly developing urban regions.

  17. Fiscal Federalism, Tax Reforms And Productivity: A Case For Direct ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Of all sources of revenue to government, taxation is the most important. Owing to the inherent power of the government to impose taxes, the government is assured at all times of its tax revenue no matter the circumstances. With modifications as a result of different manifestos of opposing political parties, the government's ...

  18. Comparing Multipollutant Emissions-Based Mobile Source Indicators to Other Single Pollutant and Multipollutant Indicators in Different Urban Areas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michelle M. Oakes

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available A variety of single pollutant and multipollutant metrics can be used to represent exposure to traffic pollutant mixtures and evaluate their health effects. Integrated mobile source indicators (IMSIs that combine air quality concentration and emissions data have recently been developed and evaluated using data from Atlanta, Georgia. IMSIs were found to track trends in traffic-related pollutants and have similar or stronger associations with health outcomes. In the current work, we apply IMSIs for gasoline, diesel and total (gasoline + diesel vehicles to two other cities (Denver, Colorado and Houston, Texas with different emissions profiles as well as to a different dataset from Atlanta. We compare spatial and temporal variability of IMSIs to single-pollutant indicators (carbon monoxide (CO, nitrogen oxides (NOx and elemental carbon (EC and multipollutant source apportionment factors produced by Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF. Across cities, PMF-derived and IMSI gasoline metrics were most strongly correlated with CO (r = 0.31–0.98, while multipollutant diesel metrics were most strongly correlated with EC (r = 0.80–0.98. NOx correlations with PMF factors varied across cities (r = 0.29–0.67, while correlations with IMSIs were relatively consistent (r = 0.61–0.94. In general, single-pollutant metrics were more correlated with IMSIs (r = 0.58–0.98 than with PMF-derived factors (r = 0.07–0.99. A spatial analysis indicated that IMSIs were more strongly correlated (r > 0.7 between two sites in each city than single pollutant and PMF factors. These findings provide confidence that IMSIs provide a transferable, simple approach to estimate mobile source air pollution in cities with differing topography and source profiles using readily available data.

  19. The nuclear tax and you

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Harper, Mike

    1990-01-01

    Area Electricity Boards in the United Kingdom are required to contract for a specified amount of non-fossil fuel electricity. This is known as the Non-Fossil Fuel Obligation (NFFO). The Boards are able to recoup the additional costs of such purchases by charging the difference to their customers on a pro rata basis. Although the tax is raised for all non-fossil fuel sources, which includes most renewable energy schemes the majority of it will be used to support nuclear power. Initially the total non-nuclear component is expected to be 300 MW, rising to 800 MW by 1998 as more renewables come on stream. This compares to an initial total for nuclear power of 8,548 MW, decreasing to 7714 MW in 1998 as older capacity gets taken off. This clearly shows that the tax is nuclear based and justifies the epithet the Nuclear Tax. Friends of the Earth is launching a campaign to ensure that everyone who pays the Nuclear Tax is aware how much it is, and what it is going to support, and to show why this money is being wasted, when it should be directed to the fuller support of renewables or to the promotion of energy efficiency and energy conservation. (author)

  20. 26 CFR 31.6302(c)-1 - Use of Government depositories in connection with taxes under Federal Insurance Contributions Act...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal holidays. Example 1. For the eighth-monthly period April 1-3, 1991, Employer...) Exceptions—(1) Monthly returns. The provisions of this section are not applicable with respect to taxes for... SOURCE EMPLOYMENT TAXES AND COLLECTION OF INCOME TAX AT SOURCE Administrative Provisions of Special...

  1. Characterization of the atmospheric pollution level in Sfax (Tunisia): influence of sources and meteorological factors; Caracterisation du niveau de pollution atmospherique dans la ville de Sfax (Tunisie): influence des sources et des facteurs meteorologiques

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Azri, Ch.; Maalej, A.; Medhioub, K. [Ecole Nationale d' ingenieurs de Sfax, Unite de Recherche Etude et Gestion des Environnements Cotiers et Urbains (Tunisia); Tlili, A. [Faculte des Sciences de Sfax, Dept. de Geologie (Tunisia)

    2002-01-01

    This study held in Sfax City (Tunisia), showed that the atmospheric pollution level is strongly influenced by industrial sources, obstacles and meteorological factors. The factory of phosphate treatment 'SIAPE' displayed the main polluting source in the City. It is the principal issuing of SO{sub x} and toxic metals. The phosphogypsum deposit displayed an obstacle to the atmospheric diffusion of pollutants. Their stagnation is accentuated under smoky conditions. Several episodes of SO{sub 2} and dust are attributed to the effect of marked thermal inversions and the sirocco wind. The limited influence of traffic was proved by the registration of NO{sub x}, which showed low concentrations. It is conditioned by the change of fashion life of people and their customs of work (Ramadan month, agricultural activities). As a result, the adequate treatment of atmospheric industrial emanations (notably those of SIAPE) and the evacuation of artificial obstacles have to be considered. (authors)

  2. Event-based nonpoint source pollution prediction in a scarce data catchment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Lei; Sun, Cheng; Wang, Guobo; Xie, Hui; Shen, Zhenyao

    2017-09-01

    Quantifying the rainfall-runoff-pollutant (R-R-P) process is key to regulating non-point source (NPS) pollution; however, the impacts of scarce measured data on R-R-P simulations have not yet been reported. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive study of scarce data that addressed both rainfall-runoff and runoff-pollutant processes, whereby the impacts of data scarcity on two commonly used methods, including Unit Hydrograph (UH) and Loads Estimator (LOADEST), were quantified. A case study was performed in a typical small catchment of the Three Gorges Reservoir Region (TGRR) of China. Based on our results, the classification of rainfall patterns should be carried out first when analyzing modeling results. Compared to data based on a missing rate and a missing location, key information generates more impacts on the simulated flow and NPS loads. When the scarcity rate exceeds a certain threshold (20% in this study), measured data scarcity level has clear impacts on the model's accuracy. As the model of total nitrogen (TN) always performs better under different data scarcity conditions, researchers are encouraged to pay more attention to continuous the monitoring of total phosphorus (TP) for better NPS-TP predictions. The results of this study serve as baseline information for hydrologic forecasting and for the further control of NPS pollutants.

  3. European database on indoor air pollution sources in buildings: Current status of database structure and software

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Molina, J.L.; Clausen, G.H.; Saarela, K.; Plokker, W.; Bluyssen, P.M.; Bishop, W.; Oliveira Fernandes, E. de

    1996-01-01

    the European Joule II Project European Data Base for Indoor Air Pollution Sources in Buildings. The aim of the project is to produce a tool which would be used by designers to take into account the actual pollution of the air from the building elements and ventilation and air conditioning system

  4. Energy taxes in practice. Energy tax - electricity tax - biofuel quota - energy tax compliance. 3. upd. and rev. ed.

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stein, Roland M.; Thoms, Anahita

    2016-01-01

    You need a quick and easy overview of the legal provisions of the energy tax law? You would like to understand the relationship between the European and national regulations and their impact on the daily practice? This manual prepares the energy tax, electricity tax and biofuel quota law for you clearly on and illustrated by examples, what to look in practice in order to avoid pitfalls. It picks up especially contentious issues and problems, discusses the relevant case law and the relevant regulations and finally gives precise recommendations for daily practice. Based on practice notes, examples and diagrams you can easily identify how to transfer the legal requirements on the own workspaces or optionally can use tax breaks. This includes information on both simplified - and thus less subject to error - methods and to tax exemptions and credits. The manual is complemented by forms, extracts from the Combined Nomenclature and an online material collection with regulatory and legal texts. [de

  5. INFLUENCE OF INTERNATIONALIZATION OF TAX LAW ON RUSSIAN TAX LAW ENFORCEMENT IN THE AREA OF CORPORATE TAXATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Karina Ponomareva

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Subject. The influence of internationalization of tax law on Russian tax law enforcement in the area of corporate taxation is considered in the article.The purpose of the paper is to analyze influence of internationalization of tax law on Russian tax law enforcement in the area of corporate taxation.Methodology. The author uses methods of theoretical analysis, particularly the theory of integrative legal consciousness, as well as legal methods, including formal legal method and methods of comparative law.Results, scope of application. The development of Russian tax legislation is influenced by acts of international organizations, primarily the Action Plan aimed at combating base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS.Trends of regulation of corporate taxation in relationships with participation of a foreign element are considered in the article. The main issues of realization of norms in the area of corporate direct taxation are brought into light, and namely, taxation of royalties, intra-group expenses, thin capitalization rules and transfer pricing. Tax agreements concluded by the Russian Federation do not contain special rules aimed at combating abuses (in contrast, for example, from European anti-avoidance rules.In recent years Russian tax law introduced institutions that had been established and applied in the tax law of foreign countries. These processes are moving forward and are characterized by frequent changes of legislation, which indicates that the concept of deoffshorization and implementation of the BEPS plan is not always elaborated at the stage of adoption of bills.Conclusions. The author comes to the conclusion that the most relevant and most controversial issues are taxation of payment of royalties, debt financing and intra-group expenses. The practice of applying the CFC rules is just starts forming. In addition, there is a tendency to increase the quality and quantity of information sources used by tax authorities to collect

  6. Novel human-associated Lachnospiraceae genetic markers improve detection of fecal pollution sources in urban waters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feng, Shuchen; Bootsma, Melinda; McLellan, Sandra L

    2018-05-04

    The human microbiome contains many organisms that could potentially be used as indicators of human fecal pollution. Here we report the development of two novel human-associated genetic marker assays that target organisms within the family Lachnospiraceae Next-generation sequencing of the V6 region of the 16S rRNA gene from sewage and animal stool samples identified 40 human-associated marker candidates with a robust signal in sewage and low or no occurrence in nonhuman hosts. Two were chosen for quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay development using longer sequences (V2 to V9 regions) generated from clone libraries. Validation of these assays, designated Lachno3 and Lachno12, was performed using fecal samples (n=55) from cat, dog, pig, cow, deer, and gull sources, and compared with established host-associated assays (Lachno2, and two Human Bacteroides assays; HB and HF183/BacR287). Each of the established assays cross-reacted with at least one other animal, including animals common in urban areas. Lachno3 and Lachno12 were primarily human-associated; however, Lachno12 demonstrated low levels of cross-reactivity with select cows, and non-specific amplification in pigs. This limitation may not be problematic when testing urban waters. These novel markers resolved ambiguous results from previous investigations in stormwater-impacted waters, demonstrating their utility. The complexity of the microbiome in humans and animals suggests no single organism is strictly specific to humans, and multiple complementary markers used in combination will provide the highest resolution and specificity for assessing fecal pollution sources. IMPORTANCE Traditional fecal indicator bacteria do not distinguish animal from human fecal pollution, which is necessary to evaluate health risks and mitigate pollution sources. Assessing urban areas is challenging since water can be impacted by sewage, which has a high likelihood of carrying human pathogens, as well as pet waste and urban wildlife. We

  7. Sources and Processes Affecting Particulate Matter Pollution over North China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, L.; Shao, J.; Lu, X.; Zhao, Y.; Gong, S.; Henze, D. K.

    2015-12-01

    Severe fine particulate matter (PM2.5) pollution over North China has received broad attention worldwide in recent years. Better understanding the sources and processes controlling pollution over this region is of great importance with urgent implications for air quality policy. We will present a four-dimensional variational (4D-Var) data assimilation system using the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model and its adjoint model at 0.25° × 0.3125° horizontal resolution, and apply it to analyze the factors affecting PM2.5 concentrations over North China. Hourly surface observations of PM2.5 and sulfur dioxide (SO2) from the China National Environmental Monitoring Center (CNEMC) can be assimilated into the model to evaluate and constrain aerosol (primary and precursors) emissions. Application of the data assimilation system to the APEC period (the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit; 5-11 November 2014) shows that 46% of the PM2.5 pollution reduction during APEC ("The APEC Blue") can be attributed to meteorology conditions and the rest 54% to emission reductions due to strict emission controls. Ammonia emissions are shown to significantly contribute to PM2.5 over North China in the fall. By converting sulfuric acid and nitric acid to longer-lived ammonium sulfate and ammonium nitrate aerosols, ammonia plays an important role in promoting their regional transport influences. We will also discuss the pathways and mechanisms of external long-range transport influences to the PM2.5 pollution over North China.

  8. Faktor-Faktor yang Menyebabkan Wajib Pajak Melakukan Tax Offenses, Tax Fraud, dan Tax Evasion (Studi Empiris di KPP Pratama Medan-Polonia)

    OpenAIRE

    Amalia, Gita

    2016-01-01

    This research aims to analyze the influence of tax fairness, tax compliance, tax knowledge, tax system, and discrimination against taxpayer perception about the ethical of tax offenses, tax fraud, and tax evasion. This research was conducted at the tax service office Pratama MedanPolonia, with a sampling technique is convenience sampling and distributing the questionnaires until fifty questionnaires. All of the questionnaires given to the taxpayer who listed on tax service office Pratama Meda...

  9. Isotope ratios as pollutant source and behaviour indicators

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1975-01-01

    Recent years have witnessed significant advances in isotope techniques for identifying origins and for studying the behaviour of trace contaminants and pollutants of the environment under actual existing environmental conditions. Improvements in the supply of stable isotopes and their labelled compounds, instrumental analysis and information on stable or radioactive isotopic ratios of existing environmental contaminants as a function of origin or behaviour have provided relatively new tools for the environmental scientist. While variations in natural or existing environmental stable and radioactive nuclides could be regarded as 'background noise' in conventional tracer experiments they promised unique information about sources and behaviour to those who listened carefully. (author)

  10. Supply Chain-based Solution to Prevent Fuel Tax Evasion

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Franzese, Oscar [ORNL; Capps, Gary J [ORNL; Daugherty, Michael [United States Department of Transportation (USDOT), Federal Highway Administration (FHWA); Siekmann, Adam [ORNL; Lascurain, Mary Beth [ORNL; Barker, Alan M [ORNL

    2016-01-01

    The primary source of funding for the United States transportation system is derived from motor fuel and other highway use taxes. Loss of revenue attributed to fuel-tax evasion has been assessed to be somewhere between $1 billion per year, or approximately 25% of the total tax collected. Any solution that addresses this problem needs to include not only the tax-collection agencies and auditors, but also the carriers transporting oil products and the carriers customers. This paper presents a system developed by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory for the Federal Highway Administration which has the potential to reduce or eliminate many fuel-tax evasion schemes. The solution balances the needs of tax-auditors and those of the fuel-hauling companies and their customers. The technology was deployed and successfully tested during an eight-month period on a real-world fuel-hauling fleet. Day-to-day operations of the fleet were minimally affected by their interaction with this system. The results of that test are discussed in this paper.

  11. Tax policy to combat global warming: On designing a carbon tax

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Poterba, J.

    1991-01-01

    This chapter is divided into five sections. The first describes the basic structure of the carbon tax, focusing on the policies already in place in Europe as well as proposed taxes for the US. The second section considers the distributional burden of carbon taxes across income groups. The third section examines the production and consumption distortions from a carbon tax, using a simple partial-equilibrium model of the energy market. These estimates do not correspond to the net efficiency cost of carbon taxes because they neglect the reduction in negative externalities associated with these taxes, but they indicate the cost that must be balanced against potential efficiency gains from the externality channel. The fourth section discusses the short- and long-run macroeconomic effects of adopting a carbon tax, drawing on previous empirical studies of the relationship between tax rates and real output growth. A central issue in this regard is the disposition of carbon tax revenues. The fifth section considers several design issues relating to carbon taxes, such as harmonization with other greenhouse taxes and the difficulty of taxing fossil-fuel use in imported intermediate goods. There is a brief concluding section that discusses broader issues of policy design

  12. CO2/energy taxes als an instrument in the Dutch environmental policy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rullens, W.M.

    1996-01-01

    The introduction of an eco-tax on energy consumption as a policy instrument for the reduction of energy consumption by The Netherlands is discussed. It is estimated that the introduction of this eco-tax will reduce energy consumption by 1 to 1.5 percent of the total national energy consumption. In addition, this tax will stimulate the development and the use of renewable energy sources. It is concluded that, although a European CO 2 -energy tax is preferred, national tax policies will allow to positive environmental effects without large economic risks. It remains however necessary to take into account potentially negative economic effects. (A.S.)

  13. Risk Assessment of Pollution Emergencies in Water Source Areas of the Hanjiang-to-Weihe River Diversion Project

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Luyao; Feng, Minquan

    2018-03-01

    [Objective] This study quantitatively evaluated risk probabilities of sudden water pollution accidents under the influence of risk sources, thus providing an important guarantee for risk source identification during water diversion from the Hanjiang River to the Weihe River. [Methods] The research used Bayesian networks to represent the correlation between accidental risk sources. It also adopted the sequential Monte Carlo algorithm to combine water quality simulation with state simulation of risk sources, thereby determining standard-exceeding probabilities of sudden water pollution accidents. [Results] When the upstream inflow was 138.15 m3/s and the average accident duration was 48 h, the probabilities were 0.0416 and 0.0056 separately. When the upstream inflow was 55.29 m3/s and the average accident duration was 48 h, the probabilities were 0.0225 and 0.0028 separately. [Conclusions] The research conducted a risk assessment on sudden water pollution accidents, thereby providing an important guarantee for the smooth implementation, operation, and water quality of the Hanjiang-to-Weihe River Diversion Project.

  14. The State of Connecticut: The Report of the Governor's Commission on Tax Reform. Summary.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Governor's Commission on Tax Reform, Hartford, CT.

    The Commission evaluated a wide variety of alternative tax sources and examined the existing structure in Connecticut. It specifically evaluated inequities resulting from Connecticut taxes as they affect various classes of citizens and examined the impact of the Connecticut tax structure on business with a view to encouraging economic expansion.…

  15. Fuel taxes and road expenditures: making the link

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Derkson, W.W.; Shurvell, S.J.

    1999-11-01

    This document reports on a study undertaken at the request of the United Grain Growers regarding government fuel tax revenue and the relationship to expenditures on roads. The account of fuel tax revenues was compiled from data collected from several different sources, as was the case for the road expenditures at the federal, provincial, local and modal levels. The emphasis was placed on the effects of fuel taxes on grain handling and transportation in the Prairie provinces. The authors presented fuel tax revenues broken down by mode of transportation and by province. The document was divided as follows: the first part was the introduction with the second part dealing with fuel tax rates and policies. In the third part, the topic of fuel tax and road related revenues was examined. Part four discussed road expenditures. The authors concluded that Transport Canada has traditionally represented the most important federal link to provincial highway infrastructure. It was noted that 4.2 billion dollars in road fuel taxes were collected by the federal government in 1998/1999, and of that amount, 198 million dollars, or 4.7 per cent, was reinvested in the National Highway System in programs managed by Transport Canada. Nearly one dollar on roads is spent by provincial governments on a Prairie-wide basis for every dollar collected in road fuel taxes, with Alberta spending the most and Saskatchewan spending the least. 15 tabs

  16. Estonian Tax Structure

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Viktor Trasberg

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available The paper analyses Estonian tax structure changes during the last decade and critically assesses the current situation. The country’s tax mix is rather unique among EU countries – it has one of the highest proportions of consumption taxes in total taxes and the lowest level of capital and profit taxes. Such an unbalanced tax structure creates risks for public finances, limits revenue collection and distorts the business environment.

  17. Wastewater Treatment Costs and Outlays in Organic Petrochemicals: Standards Versus Taxes With Methodology Suggestions for Marginal Cost Pricing and Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thompson, Russell G.; Singleton, F. D., Jr.

    1986-04-01

    With the methodology recommended by Baumol and Oates, comparable estimates of wastewater treatment costs and industry outlays are developed for effluent standard and effluent tax instruments for pollution abatement in five hypothetical organic petrochemicals (olefins) plants. The computational method uses a nonlinear simulation model for wastewater treatment to estimate the system state inputs for linear programming cost estimation, following a practice developed in a National Science Foundation (Research Applied to National Needs) study at the University of Houston and used to estimate Houston Ship Channel pollution abatement costs for the National Commission on Water Quality. Focusing on best practical and best available technology standards, with effluent taxes adjusted to give nearly equal pollution discharges, shows that average daily treatment costs (and the confidence intervals for treatment cost) would always be less for the effluent tax than for the effluent standard approach. However, industry's total outlay for these treatment costs, plus effluent taxes, would always be greater for the effluent tax approach than the total treatment costs would be for the effluent standard approach. Thus the practical necessity of showing smaller outlays as a prerequisite for a policy change toward efficiency dictates the need to link the economics at the microlevel with that at the macrolevel. Aggregation of the plants into a programming modeling basis for individual sectors and for the economy would provide a sound basis for effective policy reform, because the opportunity costs of the salient regulatory policies would be captured. Then, the government's policymakers would have the informational insights necessary to legislate more efficient environmental policies in light of the wealth distribution effects.

  18. Comparison between snowmelt-runoff and rainfall-runoff nonpoint source pollution in a typical urban catchment in Beijing, China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Lei; Zhi, Xiaosha; Shen, Zhenyao; Dai, Ying; Aini, Guzhanuer

    2018-01-01

    As a climate-driven event, nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is caused by rainfall- or snowmelt-runoff processes; however, few studies have compared the characteristics and mechanisms of these two kinds of NPS processes. In this study, three factors relating to urban NPS, including surface dust, snowmelt, and rainfall-runoff processes, were analyzed comprehensively by both field sampling and laboratory experiments. The seasonal variation and leaching characteristics of pollutants in surface dust were explored, and the runoff quality of snowmelt NPS and rainfall NPS were compared. The results indicated that dusts are the main sources of urban NPS and more pollutants are deposited in dust samples during winter and spring. However, pollutants in surface dust showed a low leaching ratio, which indicated most NPS pollutants would be carried as particulate forms. Compared to surface layer, underlying snow contained higher chemical oxygen demand, total suspended solids (TSS), Cu, Fe, Mn, and Pb concentrations, while the event mean concentration of most pollutants in snowmelt tended to be higher in roads. Moreover, the TSS and heavy metal content of snowmelt NPS was always higher than those of rainfall NPS, which indicated the importance of controlling snowmelt pollution for effective water quality management.

  19. Tax tips for forest landowners for the 2008 tax year

    Science.gov (United States)

    Linda Wang; John L. Greene

    2009-01-01

    This article summarizes key federal income tax provisions for forestland owners, foresters, loggers, forest product businesses, and tax practioners, and is current as of October 1, 2008.  Consult your tax and legal professionals for advice on your particular tax situation.

  20. Tax planning in corporation

    OpenAIRE

    Nevodnicheva, Yulia

    2010-01-01

    This thesis "Tax planning in corporation" puts brain to legal entity income tax and it is looking for possible solutions in tax planning in corporation. The first part deals with the tax theory, the other part is the theory of tax planning, comparison of tax regimes and tax policy and tax revenue by optimizing both internationally and in the local aspect. The last part discusses options for optimizing tax