我國民眾減緩全球暖化之願付價格研究

Abstract

能源以不同形式存在於地球上，不僅提供了生態系運作的基礎，亦是人類經濟活動和文明發展之關鍵。工業革命後，人類大量開發與使用能源，造成能源耗竭、環境汙染、全球暖化等各種問題，亟需各國運用有效的能源與環境保護政策予以解決。然而，全球暖化與能源的選擇息息相關，而這些選擇又與民眾面對能源問題時的社會偏好與成本效益概念等有關。本研究採用條件評估法(Contingent Value Method, CVM)調查我國民眾減緩全球暖化的願付價格，從經濟學角度探討我國民眾認知的減緩全球暖化的整體社會效益與成本，同時調查民眾對能源相關議題的瞭解、觀念與行動，與前述這些能源素養內涵和減緩全球暖化願付價格之間的關係。 本研究之調查採立意取樣，全國共計回收596份有效問卷。調查結果顯示，受測民眾平均願付價格為每個月482元，相當於每年5,784元，折合估計我國民眾減緩全球暖化的願付價格約為每個月89億元，相當於每年1,068億元。民眾關於能源的使用態度和落實節約能源的行為，對減緩全球暖化的願付價格有顯著之影響。具備較正面積極的態度和較多行動經驗的民眾，願意支付較高的金額減緩全球暖化；此外，學歷與個人收入亦會影響民眾減緩全球暖化的願付價格。Energy exists in this world in different forms. Energy is not only a basic composition of ecosystem but also a key factor of economic activities and civilization development. Since the Industrial Revolution, the human beings have excessively exploited and consumed energy, resulting in various problems such as energy depletion, environmental pollution, and global warming, which need to be dealt with through implementing effective energy and environmental policies. However, global warming closely relates to energy utilization, which can be affected by people's social preference and cost/benefit concept. Thus, the CVM (Contingent Value Method) was employed in this study for conducting the survey on people's willingness to pay (WTP) of mitigation of global warming, which can reflect their opinions on the overall social benefit and cost of mitigation of global warming. The understanding, attitude, and behavior toward energy related issues, and the relationships between these energy literacy factors and their WTP of global warming mitigation of the general public were also examined. Purposive sampling was employed for collecting 596 valid samples. The findings showed that people in Taiwan were willing to spend NTD 482 per person per month, which equals to NTD 5,784 per year, for global warming mitigation. According to this the willingness to pay for global warming mitigation in Taiwan was estimated as about 8.9 billion NTD per month, or 106.8 billion per year. It was also found that people's attitude toward energy utilization and their energy saving behaviors have a remarkable influence on their willing to pay for global warming mitigation. Those who expressed a more positive attitude are willing to pay for money. Education and personal income were also key factors.