New Publication: Saari et al. "Modeling the unequal benefits of U.S. environmental policy"

/

A new publication by Rebecca Saari (Ph.D. 2015) in Environmental Science and Technology was highlighted in MIT News. The paper provided a first breakdown of ozone exposure, health, and economic impacts by household income across the U.S. It used a modified version of the MIT Joint Program’s U.S. Regional Energy Policy (USREP) model to simulate the health and economic impacts of ozone exposure and ozone-reduction policy on nine U.S. income groups. Comparing a set of policies under consideration in 2014 with a business-as-usual scenario, the researchers found the policies to be most effective in reducing mortality risks among lowest-income (less than $10,000 per year) households, which netted twice the relative economic gains as their highest-income (more than $150,000 per year) counterparts.