Costs of Pollution
(billions 2012 $)
What are we measuring?
Many different types of pollution have negative effects on society. We calculate the costs of water pollution, air pollution, solid waste disposal, noise pollution, and greenhouse gasses. Water pollution impacts human health, harms wildlife, decreases water security, harms recreational opportunities, and decreases the value of homes adjacent to waterbodies. Air pollution has a direct effect on human health, increasing the rate of heart attacks, asthma, and other maladies in populations with poor air quality. Solid waste disposal can impact human health if it is not done properly, lowers home values, and takes up land which could be used for a more productive purpose. Noise pollution can also cause negative impacts on human health, raising rates of hypertension and heart attacks, along with decreasing the ability of people to concentrate, making learning more difficult. Greenhouse gasses increase the current and future effects of climate change, with a resulting economic impact.
Trends 2012-2022
Overall the costs associated with pollution in Maryland decreased by 15% from 2012 to 202. This was driven by decreases in the cost of air pollution and greenhouse gasses, which fell by 39% and 32%, respectively. These decreases reflect implementation of federal and state air pollution and climate mitigation laws. The cost of water pollution increased by over 11%, but this does not indicate that water pollution increased, but is indicative of spending increasing to meet water quality goals as part of the Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint, an interstate effort to clean up the Bay by 2025. The cost of solid waste increased by over 150%, but this cost is relatively small compared to the others in this category.
- GHG Emissions
Costs of greenhouse gas emissions have shown an decreasing trend from 2012 to 2022, reflecting progress being made through the actions required by the Maryland Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act of 2006 and the Climate Solutions Now Act of 2022. Maryland has one of the most ambitious climate goals of any state- a 60% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by the year of 2030 and climate neutrality by 2045.
Calculation
The cost of air pollution in Maryland was calculated from the amount of pollutant emitted (extrapolated using data from the USEPA National Emissions Inventory) and costs per amount of pollutant from literature values (Muller et al. 2011). The cost of noise pollution was calculated using the spatial analysis of noise done by the National Park Service and costs from modifying the Transport Noise Marginal Values Model (U.K. Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs, publication number 142228) for the conditions in Maryland. Costs for decibel levels greater than 45 were calculated and applied to areas in Maryland meeting those conditions. Greenhouse gas emissions were derived from the Energy Information Administration state database and the cost was estimated to be a median estimate of the social cost of carbon from the US EPA, of $110 per ton of carbon emitted. The cost of water pollution was assumed to be equal to the costs incurred to meet clean water goals, i.e. spending by the Bay Restoration Fund, the Chesapeake & Atlantic Coastal Bays Trust Fund and MDA Water Quality Cost Share. The cost of solid waste was calculated using waste generated data from Maryland Department of the Environment (link), with costs for waste landfilled and recycled estimated at $88 per ton and $215 per ton, respectively. These costs were less revenue from homeowner associations (from household expenditures) and sale of recycled materials (estimated to be $125 per ton).
Muller, Nicholas Z., Robert Mendelsohn, and William Nordhaus. 2011. "Environmental Accounting for Pollution in the United States Economy." American Economic Review, 101(5): 1649-75.
