SOX Emissions Reduction Policy and Economic Development: A Case of Yokkaichi

We find an inverted U-shape relationship between local income and SOX emissions, i.e., the so-called environmental Kuznets curve, in the Yokkaichi area. It is then shown (1) that the income level at the peak of the curve is fairly low relative to those reported for countries and/or the world in the literature, and (2) SOX that the drastic decline in emissions after the peak of the inverted U-shape was brought about by technical progress in cleaning up the environment but not by the declining output levels, despite increases in output level. It should be noted that the local residents’ campaigns moved and backed up the local governments, in contrast to the SOX reductions in developed economies in 1980 pushed by the international agreements, i.e. Sulphur Protocols. The administrative agencies supported by local residents’ campaigns, rather than decreasing returns in production technology, played a critical role even at such a low income level.