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This study investigates the within-country heterogeneity of material footprints implied by households' consumption in Germany. Material footprints are defined as the amount of biomass, minerals, and fossil fuels extracted to produce the goods that households consume. Combining input-output data with households' consumption expenditures from the German sample survey of income and expenditure (EVS), we present the first comprehensive study on the distribution of material footprints among households, highlighting hot spots of unsustainable consumption patterns by household groups. Households in the quartile with the highest consumption expenditures have material footprints three times as large as those in the quartile with the lowest expenditures. We use a microeconomic model to study households' consumption behavior using EVS data. The results suggest that price-based instruments can reduce material footprints of luxury consumption such as leisure and private transport without imposing large burdens on less affluent households. The material footprints caused by energy consumption do not react sensitively to price changes, which suggests that non-price policies are more effective to reduce them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper quantifies changes in the trend of greenhouse gas footprints associated with household consumption covering a period of 20 years. We combine greenhouse gas emissions related to the supply chain (embedded) and consumption (direct) with households' consumption expenditures from the sample survey of income and expenditure (EVS), and present the first comprehensive study on trends in greenhouse gas footprints of German households. We find a decay in changes in GHG footprints as a response to increases in household expenditure over time. In addition, our estimated own-price elasticities for electricity and heating indicate an increasing demand response to higher energy prices. However, this does not translate to a clear decreasing trend in the total GHG footprint because of the role of changes in the demand of other commodities and changes in expenditure levels across years. Further, comparing results of the more advanced EASI demand system with those of the more widely used QUAIDS approach, we find sizable differences. • Mean GHG footprints of German households have fallen by 21% from 1998 to 2018. • Heating, transport and food contribute most to the mean GHG footprint in all years. • The expenditure elasticity of GHG footprints is quite stable at 0.92 (+/− 0.01). • Own-price elasticities for electricity and heating show increasing demand responses. • QUAIDS is too restrictive compared to the more flexible EASI demand system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]