The ecological footprint facing asymmetric natural resources challenges: evidence from the USA


Çağlar A. E., Yavuz E., Mert M., Kilic E.

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH, vol.29, no.7, pp.10521-10534, 2022 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 29 Issue: 7
  • Publication Date: 2022
  • Doi Number: 10.1007/s11356-021-16406-9
  • Journal Name: ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus, IBZ Online, ABI/INFORM, Aerospace Database, Aqualine, Aquatic Science & Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA), BIOSIS, CAB Abstracts, EMBASE, Environment Index, Geobase, MEDLINE, Pollution Abstracts, Veterinary Science Database, Civil Engineering Abstracts
  • Page Numbers: pp.10521-10534
  • Keywords: Economic growth, Renewable energy consumption, Ecological footprint, Natural resources, Asymmetric ARDL, ENVIRONMENTAL KUZNETS CURVE, RENEWABLE ENERGY-CONSUMPTION, UNIT-ROOT TEST, CO2 EMISSIONS, ECONOMIC-GROWTH, FINANCIAL DEVELOPMENT, NONRENEWABLE ENERGY, EKC HYPOTHESIS, REAL INCOME, COINTEGRATION
  • Akdeniz University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

One of the most critical problems of today is the environmental policies with the focus on economy. Despite the many efforts of global organizations, environmental pollution is the subject of human beings. For this, the most polluting countries attract the attention of researchers. Many studies produce economy-centered environmental policies for the USA. However, the asymmetric effect of natural resources on environmental pollution has been neglected in the literature. In this paper, the effects of economic growth, renewable energy, biocapacity, and natural resources on the ecological footprint are addressed within the framework of the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis over the period 1980-2017. Empirical findings confirm that economic growth and biocapacity increase environmental degradation, while renewable energy consumption helps reduce environmental damage. More specifically, when the results are analyzed in terms of natural resources, positive shocks in natural resources contribute to reducing environmental damage, while negative shocks in it negatively affect the environmental quality. The paper presents important policy implications for economy-centered environmental issues.