The energy-growth nexus in Canada: new empirical insights.

Over the past two decades, numerous developed and developing nations have witnessed a remarkable shift from manufacturing-based economies to those that center around the service sector. This development has led to a staggering growth in the consumption of energy-intensive goods, and Canada has not been immune to this trend. Despite being home to abundant energy reserves, the country's economic expansion has manifestly relied on prodigious energy consumption. Within this context of symbiotic energy-economic growth, this study investigates the empirical relationship between energy consumption and economic growth using Canadian time-series data from 1980 to 2020. In doing so, this paper offers a vital contribution to the development of theoretical frameworks within the sphere of endogenous growth. Besides, to arrive at empirical findings, a model known as the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model, renowned for its ability to discern both short- and long-term coefficients, is employed. The results reveal that economic growth has a significant positive long-run effect on energy consumption and other explanatory variables. All variables other than trade openness demonstrate a positive relationship with economic growth in the short run. From Toda-Yamamoto causality test, it is evident that there exist bidirectional causal links between economic growth and energy consumption and between economic growth and financial development. Several unidirectional causalities were also observed for other variables. Based on these findings, it is recommended that Canada boosts its investment in energy infrastructure, especially in rural and backward regions, to deliver necessary energy services. An optimal trade-off between Canada's vast energy resources and economic growth can perhaps be achieved by minimizing the disparity in access to energy services across all parts of the country. Other policy implications are discussed.

Natural radioactivity and its radiological implications from soils and rocks in Jaintiapur area, North-east Bangladesh.

Natural radioactivity concentrations in recent alluvial soils from swampy areas and Tertiary rocks from Jaintiapur were measured using gamma-ray spectrometer equipped with HPGe detector. The average radioactivity concentration of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K were 47 ± 6, 64 ± 5 and 762 ± 40 Bqkg-1 in soils, whereas, 25 ± 2, 37 ± 4 and 884 ± 41 Bqkg-1 in rock samples, respectively. Average radioactivity concentrations of studied soil and rock samples exceeded the world average except 226Ra for rocks. Radio-elemental ratios suggest that an oxic depositional environment with low uranium and high thorium content. Regarding radiological hazard indices, radium equivalent activities (Raeq), external hazard index (H ex) and internal hazard index (H in) was found to be below the world permissible limits. Whereas, absorbed dose rate (D), and annual effective dose equivalent (AEDE) averages exceeded the world admissible values. Statistical studies show that radioactivity for 226Ra and 232Th linked to a source enriched in radioactive minerals and 40K related to a different sources high in K enriched minerals.

Renewable and non-renewable energy consumption driven sustainable development in ASEAN countries: do financial development and institutional quality matter?

Energy consumption for sustainable development has become a crucial issue in recent years. The anthropogenic effects of traditional energy sources (non-renewables) underscore the need for renewable energy and efforts to promote its adoption have comprised policy makers' strategies to achieve sustainable development. At the same time, institutional stability is a necessary element needed to meet the goal of sustainable development via improved management of resources and technology diffusion. The literature shows some contradictory findings on this matter and this study aims to clarify. Thus, this research scrutinizes the contribution of renewable and non-renewable energies in sustainable development while also taking into account financial development and institutional quality in ASEAN countries from 1980 to 2018. To assess for co-integration, a pooled mean group (PMG) regression technique is employed and the findings from this technique are verified by using fully modified ordinary least square (FMOLS), dynamic ordinary least square (DOLS), and canonical cointegration regression (CCR) techniques in conjunction with other panel-based econometric procedures to evaluate the robustness of the model. The findings reveal a significantly positive influence for renewable energy and a significantly adverse impact for non-renewable energy with respect to sustainable development in ASEAN countries. In addition, the results indicate that institutional quality and financial development have adverse effects on sustainable development. Therefore, this research recommends sustainable management of non-renewables and greater promotion of renewables by strengthening institutional quality in ASEAN countries.

Renewable energy and environmental quality: A second-generation panel evidence from the Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) countries.

This study employs dynamic panel data for 34 Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) countries for the period 1984-2016 to estimate the effects of renewable energy on environmental quality measured by three indicators, namely, per capita CO2 emissions, energy intensity (EI) and Aggregate National Savings (ANS). The study leveraged a battery of second-generation econometric tests and estimation and causality methods to obtain the coefficients between the regressed and the regressors. Results reveal that use of renewable energy reduces CO2 emissions and energy intensity while it enhances ANS. Economic growth still seems to be expensive for the region as it stimulates CO2 emissions. However, it has a positive effect on ANS. As expected, fossil fuels exacerbate CO2 emissions and energy intensity. FDI is found to be detrimental for the environment of SSA region with its positive significant coefficient on CO2 emissions. Financial development is reported to reduce CO2 emissions. Some causal links between variables are also noted.

Urbanization-globalization-CO2 emissions nexus revisited: empirical evidence from South Africa.

The environmental effects of urbanization and globalization are still subject to debate among scholars. South Africa is the most globalized, most urbanized and the most carbon-intensive economy in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) region. Taking this into cognizance, this study examines the effects of urbanization and globalization on CO2 emissions for South Africa using time series annual data for the period 1980-2017. Zivot and Andrews single and Bai and Perron multiple structural break unit root tests are employed to assess if all the series are stationary. This procedure follows ARDL cointegration test to check the presence of a long-run association among variables. Having been confirmed about such a cointegrating relation, ARDL short-run and long run coefficients indicate that urbanization induces CO2 emissions while only long-run significant emissions effect of globalization was noted. Toda-Yamamoto non-causality test reports a bi-directional causal link between urbanization and CO2 emissions. No causal link is observed between globalization and CO2 emissions. Variance decomposition results do not rule out these effects in future. Policy implications are discussed.

The effects of urbanization and globalization on CO2 emissions: evidence from the Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries.

Ecological modernization theories suggest that it is hard to determine a priori the environmental effects of urbanization, while neoliberal doctrine advocates a positive role of globalization in developing economies especially in terms of reducing poverty and inequality. Yet, the environmental effect of globalization is not unanimous. This study employs second-generation panel regression techniques that account for heterogeneous slope coefficients and cross-sectional dependence to estimate the impacts that urbanization and globalization have on CO2 emissions for a panel of 44 Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries for the period 1984-2016. Also, a causality test that considers both these issues is performed. The estimated coefficient of urbanization is positive, statistically significant, and highly consistent across different estimation techniques. The magnitude of the coefficient and level of significance are different in different econometric estimations. In most specifications, the estimated coefficient on the globalization variable is statistically insignificant. Urbanization is found to cause emissions. The environmental implications of these results are discussed with a set of policy recommendations for an environmentally better SSA region.