Climate Amenities, Climate Change, and American Quality of Life

76 Pages Posted: 20 Apr 2013

See all articles by David Albouy

David Albouy

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - Department of Economics; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Walter Graf

University of California, Berkeley

Ryan Kellogg

University of California, Berkeley

Hendrik Wolff

University of Washington - Department of Economics; IZA Institute of Labor Economics

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Abstract

We present a hedonic framework to estimate U.S. households' preferences over local climates, using detailed weather and 2000 Census data. We find that Americans favor an average daily temperature of 65 degrees Fahrenheit, will pay more on the margin to avoid excess heat than cold, and are not substantially more averse to extremes than to temperatures that are merely uncomfortable. These preferences vary by location due to sorting or adaptation. Changes in climate amenities under business-as-usual predictions imply annual welfare losses of 1 to 3 percent of income by 2100, holding technology and preferences constant.

Keywords: climate amenities, climate change, quality of life, temperature profiles, heterogeneous preferences

JEL Classification: H49, I39, Q54, R10

Suggested Citation

Albouy, David and Graf, Walter and Kellogg, Ryan and Wolff, Hendrik, Climate Amenities, Climate Change, and American Quality of Life. IZA Discussion Paper No. 7339, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2254192 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2254192

David Albouy (Contact Author)

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - Department of Economics ( email )

611 Tappan Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1220
United States

National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) ( email )

1050 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
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Walter Graf

University of California, Berkeley ( email )

No Address Available

Ryan Kellogg

University of California, Berkeley ( email )

310 Barrows Hall
Berkeley, CA 94720
United States

HOME PAGE: http://are.berkeley.edu/~kellogg/index.html

Hendrik Wolff

University of Washington - Department of Economics

Box 353330
Seattle, WA 98195-3330
United States

IZA Institute of Labor Economics

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

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