European environmental taxes and charges: recent experience, issues and trends

The use of environmental taxes and charges in OECD countries increased by over 50% between 1987 and 1994. While revenues raised by environmental taxes and charges remain small relative to overall taxation, they comprise a rising proportion in most European countries. Several European countries have either undertaken or are considering systematic shifts in taxes away from labour and onto the use of environmental resources. Potential negative effects on competitiveness, and regressive distributional effects, are the major cause of concern with regard to the introduction of environmental taxes. A number of ways of mitigating such effects exist and have been implemented. © 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.