They recently studied oil refineries in the Los Angeles basin area, home to some of the worst pollution in the country, during a period of increased environmental regulation. Yet we found no evidence that environmental regulation cost jobs. If anything, air quality regulation probably increased employment slightly. In their latest study, Berman and Bui found that during a period of increased regulation, between 1987 and 1992, productivity rose sharply in L.A. oil refineries, even as it decreased for refineries in less stringently regulated regions. We discovered that in this case, environmental regulations forced plants to install cleaner, more efficient technologies, and they ended up with a more profitable business in the long run.
Abatement can be productive, at least in the refining industry, which is a major polluter.