Using an Integrated Assessment Model to Understand How U.S. States Can Effectively Reduce Air Pollution Health Costs

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  • July 18, 2023
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  • Simm, Sarah
    • Affiliation: Gillings School of Global Public Health, Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering
Abstract
  • Measures that reduce air pollutants have the potential to improve air quality and public health. Additionally, decarbonization strategies are expected to yield co-reductions in air pollutants; however, the magnitude of co-reductions depends on the measures implemented. This study uses an integrated assessment model of the U.S. energy system (GLIMPSE/GCAM-USA) to quantify co-reductions and explore how explicitly considering health benefits may change decarbonization pathways. For this study, health impact factors developed by the EPA were added to GLIMPSE/GCAM-USA, which were applied to a Reference Scenario and three policy scenarios. The first policy applies a U.S. economy-wide CO2 reduction constraint, while the second internalizes the public health costs of PM2.5, NOx, and SO2 emissions as a tax. The third combines the CO2 constraint and health cost taxes. Health benefits of a CO2 reduction policy are shown to mainly come from reductions of electric sector sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions. In contrast, the air pollution health taxes mainly cause emission reductions of primary fine particulate matter (PM2.5) from buildings and industry, but have minimal impact on CO2 emissions. Applying the health tax and CO2 cap together yields greater air pollution benefits due to the pathways implemented by each policy. In the early years the policies act separately, with the HCT electrifying the building and industrial sector and CCap decarbonizing the electric sector. In later years these policies work synergistically both focusing on industrial and building sector transformation.
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  • In Copyright
Advisor
  • West, Jason
    • Affiliation: Gillings School of Global Public Health, Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering
Degree
  • Master of Science in Public Health
Graduation year
  • 2023
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