Anti-pollution technology strengths indicators: International rankings

This paper uses innovation strengths indicators based on patents lodged at the US Patent and Trademark Office from 1975 to 2002: (i) to analyse trends in the patenting of pollution prevention and abatement (or anti-pollution) technologies in the USA; and (ii) to provide international rankings for the development of anti-pollution technologies. As the indicators are not directly measurable, accurate approximations are used, namely patent shares for international presence, the technological specialisation index for national priorities, and the rate of assigned patents for potential economic benefits. The findings of the paper demonstrate the clear advantage Japan and France have out of the group of the top 12 foreign countries patenting in the USA.