Economic growth and environmental pollution in West Africa: Testing the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis
Date
2017-12-12
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Kasetsart Journal of Social Sciences
Abstract
Several studies suggest that increased economic activities result in poor environmental
quality while others argue otherwise, due to the demand for improved environmental
quality as a result of higher incomes. This paper empirically tested the Environmental
Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis by analyzing the relationship between economic growth
and environmental pollution (carbon dioxide emission, CO2 and combustible renewable
waste, CoWaste) using a panel dataset from 1970 to 2013 for selected West African
countries with similar income status. This study is important in order to ascertain if
economic growth really lead to a reduction in environmental pollution and at what income
level would this be achieved. The results revealed that economic growth in the short-run
significantly increases CO2 emissions and CoWaste but does not significantly decrease CO2
emission and CoWaste in the long-run. The non-significant relationship between economic
growth and environmental pollution indicates the non-existence of EKC inWest Africa. The
results of the study further revealed a very low turning point at which CO2 emission and
CoWaste start to decrease; however, the non-existence of the EKC implies that the relationship
between economic growth and environmental degradation in West African
countries cannot be explained by an inverted U-shaped curve. The study recommends that
West African economies should pursue efficiency improvement policy intervention to
prevent environmental degradation.
Description
Research Article
Keywords
carbon dioxide emissions, combustible renewable waste, economic growth, Environmental Kuznets Curve, West Africa