The use of ecological footprint in estimating the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis for BRICST by considering cross-section dependence and heterogeneity

DOĞAN E., ULUCAK R., KOÇAK E., Isik C.

SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT, cilt.723, 2020 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 723
  • Basım Tarihi: 2020
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.138063
  • Dergi Adı: SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, PASCAL, Aerospace Database, Analytical Abstracts, Aqualine, Aquatic Science & Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA), BIOSIS, Biotechnology Research Abstracts, CAB Abstracts, Chimica, Communication Abstracts, Compendex, EMBASE, Environment Index, Food Science & Technology Abstracts, Geobase, Greenfile, MEDLINE, Metadex, Pollution Abstracts, Public Affairs Index, Veterinary Science Database, Civil Engineering Abstracts
  • Abdullah Gül Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

A vast body of literature estimates the impact of economic growth on environmental degradation in the framework of EKC model. Typical empirical studies proxy environmental degradation with CO2 emissions; however, this indicator does not consider the complex nature of environmental degradation. To fulfill this omission, ecological footprint that tracks the use of multiple categories of productive surface areas is used as proxy for the environment. Moreover, studies that do not consider issues of heterogeneity and cross-sectional dependence may not produce reliable outcomes. Hence, the present study re-investigates the validity of the EKC hypothesis for BRICST (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Turkey) by using ecological footprint and considering the mentioned issues in the estimation process. Based on the annual data covering the period of 1980-2014, excluding Russia due to data unavailability, empirical results show that the EKC hypothesis is not valid, and energy intensity and energy structure are important determinants of environmental degradation. In line with the empirical outputs, possible policy suggestions are discussed in the present study. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.