scholarly journals Revisiting the Environmental Kuznets Curve Hypothesis: A Case of Central Europe

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (12) ◽  
pp. 3415
Author(s):  
Bartosz Jóźwik ◽  
Antonina-Victoria Gavryshkiv ◽  
Phouphet Kyophilavong ◽  
Lech Euzebiusz Gruszecki

The rapid economic growth observed in Central European countries in the last thirty years has been the result of profound political changes and economic liberalization. This growth is partly connected with reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. However, the problem of CO2 emissions seems to remain unresolved. The aim of this paper is to test whether the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis holds true for Central European countries in an annual sample data that covers 1995–2016 in most countries. We examine cointegration by applying the Autoregressive Distributed Lag bound testing. This is the first study examining the relationship between CO2 emissions and economic growth in individual Central European countries from a long-run perspective, which allows the results to be compared. We confirmed the cointegration, but our estimates confirmed the EKC hypothesis only in Poland. It should also be noted that in all nine countries, energy consumption leads to increased CO2 emissions. The long-run elasticity ranges between 1.5 in Bulgaria and 2.0 in Croatia. We observed exceptionally low long-run elasticity in Estonia (0.49). Our findings suggest that to solve the environmental degradation problem in Central Europe, it is necessary to individualize the policies implemented in the European Union.

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 93
Author(s):  
Jihuan Zhang

China is the largest CO2 emitter in the world, and it shared 28% of the global CO2 emissions in 2017. According to the Paris Agreement, it is estimated that China’s CO2 emissions will reach its peak by 2030. However, whether or not the CO2 emissions in China will rise again from its peak is still unknown. If the emission level continues to increase, the Chinese policymakers might have to introduce a severe CO2 reduction policy. The aim of this paper is to conduct an empirical analysis on the long-standing relationship between CO2 emissions and income while controlling energy consumption, trade openness, and urbanization. The autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model and the bounds test were adopted in evaluating the validity of the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis. The quantile regression was also used as an inference approach. The study reveals two major findings: first, instead of the conventional U-shaped EKC hypothesis, there is the N-shaped relationship between CO2 emissions and real gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in the long run. Second, a positive effect of energy consumption and a negative effect of urbanization on CO2 emissions, in the long run, are also estimated. Quantitatively, if energy consumption rises by 1%, then CO2 emissions will increase by 0.9% in the long run. Therefore, the findings suggest that a breakthrough, in terms of policymaking and energy innovation under China’s specific socioeconomic and political circumstances, are required for future decades.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-27
Author(s):  
Takashi Fukuda

This paper investigated Malaysia’s energy-growth nexus and environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis over the period 1971-2014 by taking the globalization variables of trade openness and foreign direct investment (FDI) and the structural break dummy of the Asian financial crisis of 1997 into estimation. To give interference, the Granger causality tests were implemented in the framework of two cointegration techniques: vector error correction model (VECM) and autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL). As per Malaysia’s energy-growth nexus, referring to different results of the two approaches, we concluded that the presence of the energy-growth nexus was statistically confirmed, but it has not been fully established yet in the country. On the other hand, both the VECM and ARDL results provided the same conclusion for Malaysia’s EKC hypothesis, that is, in the initial stage, as the higher economic growth, the less CO2 emissions, but after a threshold, the higher economic growth, the more CO2 emissions.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 194-210
Author(s):  
Ritu Rani ◽  
Naresh Kumar

The Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis advocates a reversed U-shaped association between different pollutants and per capita income. EKC postulates that speedy growth certainly results in environmental degradation due to glut use of natural resources and emission of pollutants. The study used carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, economic growth, energy consumption, and the annual growth rate of population to investigate the EKC hypothesis in India and China for the period of 1971–2013. Furthermore, to explore the long-run and short-run relationship among competing variables, the autoregressive distributed lag model (ARDL) is used. Granger causality test is used to investigate the long-run and short-run causality between variables under study. The results support the EKC hypothesis in India and China, in both long-run and short-run, and inverse U-shaped association is found between CO2 emission and economic growth. Unidirectional causality seen in both countries in terms of economic growth and CO2 emissions. In addition, the coefficient of economic growth in a short-run model provides the evidence that there has been a gradual decline in environmental degradation (downward sloping of EKC) and the quality of the environment is gradually improving in China. Based on the findings, the study suggests that environmental policymakers, especially in India, should seriously address the issue of CO2 emissions as it has a tendency to move faster in the coming years.


2013 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
OLUWOLE OWOYE ◽  
OLUGBENGA A. ONAFOWORA

This paper examines the long-run and dynamic temporal relationships between economic growth, energy consumption, population density, trade openness, and carbon dioxide    (CO2) emissions in Brazil, China, Egypt, Japan, Mexico, Nigeria, South Korea, and South Africa based on the environment Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis. We employ the ARDL Bounds test to cointegration and CUSUM and CUSUMSQ tests to ensure long-run cointegration and parameter stability.  The estimated results show that the inverted U-shaped EKC hypothesis holds in Japan and South Korea.  In the other six countries, the long-run relationship between economic growth and CO2 emissions follows an N-shaped trajectory and the estimated turning points are much higher than the sample mean. In addition, the results indicate that energy consumption Granger-causes both CO2 emissions and economic growth in all the countries.  An important implication of our findings is that it would be ill-advised for the policy decision makers to adopt the EKC postulate as the conceptual basis for policies favoring economic growth unconditionally. A wide range of policy initiatives that would induce increased demand for better environment quality and its sustainability should be explored in tandem with measures to spur economic growth.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soumen Rej ◽  
Barnali Nag

Abstract India’s sustainable development goals consist of higher economic growth through strengthening of the manufacturing sector on the one hand and ambitious carbon emission reduction plans through increased renewables on the other. This paper studies the dynamic association between CO2 emissions, economic growth, renewable energy (RE) consumption and gross capital formation and tests for the existence of Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis for India over the time period 1970-2018. It also tries to see if there is any possible conflict between the economic and energy goals using an interaction term between RE consumption and gross capital formation. The empirical results not only confirm long run relationship among the underlying variables but also indicate an ‘N’ shaped EKC in the long run for India indicating a departure from the traditional inverted U-shaped EKC hypothesis. RE consumption is found to reduce emissions, whereas gross capital formation and the interaction term between RE consumption and gross capital formation are found to raise emissions in the long run. The study concludes that India needs to align its economic policy of ‘Make in India’ with its energy policy so that investments under the former facilitate extensive penetration, adaptation and usage of renewable energy. A policy dichotomy between the two goals may defeat India’s INDC objective of drastic reduction in CO2 emissions through increased renewables by 2030.


2015 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 108-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Mazur ◽  
Zaur Phutkaradze ◽  
Jaba Phutkaradze

Abstract This research empirically explores the relation between carbon dioxide emission and economic growth during the period 1992-2010, using panel data on the European Union countries. Both fixed and random effect models are employed to test the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) relationship between CO2 emissions and GDP per capita. While no U-shaped EKC was confirmed empirically for all 28 current EU member states, the graphical analysis demonstrates a justified turning point for CO2 emissions as GDP per capita reaches the level of 23,000 USD. Furthermore, there is a firm empirical ground for the EKC hypothesis based on data from 16 older, relatively high-income EU states. Thus, though not empirically confirmed, there is ample data verifying the existence of the EKC in EU economies.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (21) ◽  
pp. 9117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nutnaree Maneejuk ◽  
Sutthipat Ratchakom ◽  
Paravee Maneejuk ◽  
Woraphon Yamaka

This study aims to examine the relationship between economic development and environmental degradation based on the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis. The level of CO2 emissions is used as the indicator of environmental damage to determine whether or not greater economic growth can lower environmental degradation under the EKC hypothesis. The investigation was performed on eight major international economic communities covering 44 countries across the world. The relationship between economic growth and environmental condition was estimated using the kink regression model, which identifies the turning point of the change in the relationship. The findings indicate that the EKC hypothesis is valid in only three out of the eight international economic communities, namely the European Union (EU), Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and Group of Seven (G7). In addition, interesting results were obtained from the inclusion of four other control variables into the estimation model for groups of countries to explain the impact on environmental quality. Financial development (FIN), the industrial sector (IND), and urbanization (URB) were found to lead to increasing CO2 emissions, while renewable energies (RNE) appeared to reduce the environmental degradation. In addition, when we further investigated the existence of the EKC hypothesis in an individual country, the results showed that the EKC hypothesis is valid in only 9 out of the 44 individual countries.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuanpei Cui ◽  
Zikun Wei ◽  
Qinglin Xue ◽  
Sidra Sohail

Abstract The primary focus of this study is to evaluate the impact of various levels of education on CO2 emissions in China. Moreover, the study also tested the EKC hypothesis for different levels of education and economic development. The analysis employed disaggregate and aggregate data for education that included enrollment at primary, secondary, and tertiary levels and the average year of schooling. For empirical analysis, we employed an error correction model and bounds testing approach to cointegration. The results of the study provided some useful information both in the short and long run. All the proxies of education positively impact CO2 emissions at the initial level both in the short and long run; however, when we take the square of these variables, the effects of education on CO2 emissions become negative. Similarly, the impact of economic growth on CO2 emissions is positive in the short and long run, and the square of economic growth on CO2 emissions is negative, supporting the EKC hypothesis.


2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Habib-ur Rahman ◽  
Ahmad Ghazali ◽  
Ghulam Ali Bhatti ◽  
Safdar Ullah Khan

This paper examines the long-run relationship between carbon dioxide (CO2) emission and economic growth, financial development, trade, energy consumption, and foreign direct investment in the case of Lithuania by employing time series data of 1989-2018. In particular, this paper aims to test whether the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) relationship for economic growth and financial development holds or not. The autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds testing procedure is employed for the empirical analysis. The results validate the existence of EKC in the long-run as well as in the short-run since there is an inverted U-shaped relation between CO2 emissions and economic growth. Conversely, we could not validate the EKC relationship between CO2 emissions and financial development. Trade and energy consumption are other significant determinants of CO2 emissions. The causality analysis results show that unidirectional causality runs from economic growth to CO2 emissions and trade to CO2 emissions. The validity of the EKC hypothesis indicates that Lithuania can achieve short-term, medium-term, and long-term climate change mitigation and adoption goals and objectives approved by the Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania without deteriorating its economic growth.


2014 ◽  
Vol 53 (4II) ◽  
pp. 383-401 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Tariq Mahmood ◽  
Sadaf Shahab

It is now an established fact that the most important environmental problem of our era is global warming.1 The rising quantity of worldwide carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions seems to be escalating this problem. As the emissions generally result from consumption of fossil fuels, decreasing energy spending seems to be the direct way of handling the emissions problem. However, because of the possible negative impacts on economic growth, cutting the energy utilisation is likely to be the “less preferred road”. Moreover, if the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis applies to the emissions and income link, economic growth by itself may become a solution to the problem of environmental degradation [Rothman and de Bruyn (1998)]. Coondoo and Dinda (2002), however, argue that both developing and developed economies must sacrifice economic growth. Still, countries may opt for different policies to fight global environmental problems, mainly depending on the type of relationship between CO2 emissions, income, and energy consumption over the long run [Soytas and Sari (2006)]. Hence, the emissions-energy-income nexus needs to be studied carefully and in detail for every economy, but more so for the developing countries. In this paper, we investigate the relationship between energy consumption, CO2 emissions and the economy in Pakistan from a long run perspective, in a multivariate framework controlling for gross fixed capital, labour and exports by employing ARDL bounds testing approach.


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