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Re-visiting environmental Kuznets curve: role of scale, composite, and technology factors in OECD countries

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Abstract

This study assesses environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis corroborating the role of scale, composite, and technology effects in OECD countries. To this end, we analyze the panel time series data from 1980 to 2017 using cross-sectional-autoregressive distributed lags (CS-ARDL). We document that economic growth and carbon emissions follow a U-shaped relationship, contrary to the EKC hypothesis, which our analysis attributes to the substantial contributions of the industrial, manufacturing, and service sectors to GDP. Technological progress has a somewhat marginal impact in reducing carbon emissions through energy efficiency but is unable to validate the existence of EKC hypothesis.

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Acknowledgments

The authors greatly acknowledge DSR’s technical and financial support.

Funding

This project was funded by the Deanship of Scientific Research (DSR) at King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, under grant no. KEP-1-120-39.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate School of Economics and Management, Ural Federal University, Mira 19, Yekaterinburg, 620002, Russia

    Kazi Sohag

  2. Center of Research Excellence in Renewable Energy & Power Systems, King Abdulaziz University (KAU), Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

    Kazi Sohag & Nahla Samargandi

  3. Department of Foreign Languages, Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, 49 Leningradsky Prospect, Moscow, Russia, 125993

    Olga Kalugina

  4. Department of Economics, Faculty of Economics and Administration, King Abdulaziz University (KAU), Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

    Nahla Samargandi

  5. Macroeconomic & Fiscal Policies, Ministry of Finance, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    Nahla Samargandi

Authors
  1. Kazi Sohag
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  2. Olga Kalugina
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  3. Nahla Samargandi
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kazi Sohag.

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Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues

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Sohag, K., Kalugina, O. & Samargandi, N. Re-visiting environmental Kuznets curve: role of scale, composite, and technology factors in OECD countries. Environ Sci Pollut Res 26, 27726–27737 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-05965-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-05965-7

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