RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Voluntary Pollution Reduction Programs, Environmental Management, and Environmental Performance: An Empirical Study
JF Land Economics
JO Land Econ
FD University of Wisconsin Press
SP 692
OP 711
DO 10.3368/le.85.4.692
VO 85
IS 4
A1 Sam, Abdoul G.
A1 Khanna, Madhu
A1 Innes, Robert
YR 2009
UL http://le.uwpress.org/content/85/4/692.abstract
AB This paper examines, empirically, the mechanism by which a voluntary pollution reduction program (VPR) achieves pollution reductions. We find that participation in the 33/50 program, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s first VPR, spurred the adoption of total quality environmental management (TQEM), an environmental management system that views pollution as a quality defect to be continuously reduced through the development of products and processes that minimize waste generation at source. We find in turn that TQEM had a significant negative effect on 33/50 releases and that 33/50 participation produced additional direct pollution reduction benefits both during and after the program years. (JEL C23, Q58)