On the Environmental Impacts of Voluntary Animal-based Policies in the EU: Technical and Political Considerations

Santeramo, Fabio Gaetano and Lamonaca, Emilia and Tappi, Marco and Di Gioia, Leonardo (2020): On the Environmental Impacts of Voluntary Animal-based Policies in the EU: Technical and Political Considerations. Forthcoming in: Environmental Science and Policy

Abstract

The livestock sector has a large influence on direct and indirect (via land use change) greenhouse gas emissions, with potential negative impacts on climate change. We quantify the environmental impacts related to the introduction of a voluntary animal-based policy supported by the European Union (EU), the Measure 14 of Rural Development Programmes 2014-2020 on animal welfare. We focus on methane and nitrous oxide emissions (direct impacts), and on carbon-based and nitrous oxide emissions from land use change (indirect impacts). Our case study is the dairy sector of the EU Member States. We found that the animal-based measures have (on average) limited environmental impacts, although marked differences exist across Member States.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Animal welfare; Emission; EU policy; Livestock; Rural development.
• Subjects: Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q1 - Agriculture > Q18 - Agricultural Policy ; Food Policy; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q5 - Environmental Economics > Q51 - Valuation of Environmental Effects; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q5 - Environmental Economics > Q53 - Air Pollution ; Water Pollution ; Noise ; Hazardous Waste ; Solid Waste ; Recycling; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q5 - Environmental Economics > Q56 - Environment and Development ; Environment and Trade ; Sustainability ; Environmental Accounts and Accounting ; Environmental Equity ; Population Growth

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