ECONOMIC GROWTH AND AIR POLLUTION IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC: DECOUPLING CURVES

Year 2012, Volume: 4 Issue: 2, 205 - 213, 01.12.2012

Petr šauer Marek Mádr

Abstract

The decoupling curve, together with the Environmental Kuznets Curve, has been
recognized as one of the important indicators showing relations between
economic growth and environmental degradation/pollution. Many both theoretical
and empirical studies have been published on it. Our paper brings models which
investigate relations between the economic growth per capita and selected
indicators of air pollution in the Czech Republic. The analysis tried to go before
the year 1990, despite the difficulties when dealing with different macroeconomic
indicators published during the socialist period and those introduced after the
transition to a market economy. The results might be somehow surprising for
those dealing only with data generated after the year 1990: it is possible to
discover the turning points for some of the airborne pollutants already in the
1980s.

Keywords

Economic development, Air pollution, GDP

References

• Arrow, K., B. Bolin, R. Costanza, P. Dasgupta C. Folke, C. S. Holling, B. O. Jansson, S. Levin, K. G. Meller, C. Perrings, and D. Pimentel (1995), “Economic Growth, Carrying Capacity, and the Environment,” Science 268:520-1.
• Bruha, J., Scasny, M. (2006). Economic Analysis of Driving Forces of Environmental Burden during the Transition Process: EKC hypothesis testing in the Czech Republic. Paper presented at the the 3rd Annual Congress of Association of Environmental and Resource Economics AERE, Kyoto, 4-7 July, 2006.
• Bruha, J., Scasny, M., Machalek, P. (2005), Decomposition Analysis of Air Pollution Reduction in the Czech Republic: Focused on Driving Forces of Environmental Pressure Changes during the transition. In: Ritschelová, I. (eds.), Environmental Accounting and Sustainable Development Indicators. Proceedings. International Conference, Prague 25-27 September 2005. ISBN: 80-7044-676-5. pp. 277-287.
• Kovanda, J., Hak, T. (2007): What are the possibilities for graphical presentation of decoupling? An example of economy-wide material flow indicators in the Czech Republic, Ecological Indicators 7 : 123–132
• Kovanda, J., Hak, T., Janacek, J. (2008): Economy-wide material flow indicators in the Czech Republic: trends, decoupling analysis and uncertainties, Int. J. Environment and Pollution, 35, No. 1
• Scasny, M., Kovanda, J., Hak, T. (2003): Material flow accounts, balances and derived indicators for the Czech Republic during the 1990s: results and recommendations for methodological improvements, Ecological Economics 45 : 41-57
• Scasny M., Tsuchimoto, F. (2011): Decomposition analysis of air pollutants in Czech Republic, Paper presented at European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, 18th Annual Conference, 29 June - 2 July 2011, Rome, on- line:
• Accessed 15.03.2012]. EAERE/2011/m/viewpaper.asp?pid=787, Details about the data sources: ČSÚ:
• http://www.czso.cz/csu/redakce.nsf/i/statisticke_rocenky_ceske_republiky
• Accessed 20.12.2011]. 1977-2010, databáze ČSÚ,
• on-line: EEA (2012). Air pollutant emission limits exceeded in twelve EU Member States, European
• http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search? www.eea.europa.
• Accessed 15.03.2012]. Agency,
• on-line: q=cache:1MkFisP3AhsJ: eu/highlights/air-pollutant-emission-limits-exceeded/, EMEP (2010): European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme - Centre on Emission Inventories and Projections: Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution, UNECE, databáze oficiálních şdajů o emisích jednotlivých zemí, on-line:
• parties/, [Accessed 20.12.2011]
• IRZ (2005): Integrovaný registr znečišťování: Informace o látkách zařazených do Integrovaného registru znečišťování: oxidy dusíku, oxidy síry, oxid uhelnatý, oxid uhličitý,
• http://www.irz.cz/obsah/ohlasovane-latky, [Accessed 20.12.2011] aromatické uhlovodíky, Praha. on-line: OECD:
• http://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DatasetCode=CSP2009;, [Accessed 20.12.2011]. statistical
• profiles 2009/2010, on-line: