Temperature and environmental degradation: an international evidence

ABSTRACT

Introduction

The effects of temperature have largely been under-examined in climate change studies. This study examines both direct and indirect effects of temperature on environmental degradation using the sample of 103 middle-income countries from 1985 to 2019. Unlike previous studies in which a single equation approach is utilized, our study considers the simultaneous equations modelling to examine the energy-growth-environment nexus incorporating temperature and corruption. The difference and system generalized method of moments estimations for panel data are used.

Outcomes

Empirical results from this paper confirm both the direct and indirect effects (via energy consumption) of temperature on environmental degradation. We find corruption harms economic growth in middle-income countries. The continued use of fossil fuel energy in energy consumption deteriorates environmental quality. Our findings confirm the critical role of the services sector in supporting economic growth and reducing emerging consumption, leading to increased environmental quality.

Conclusion

Findings from our study reconfirm the vital role of renewable energy and its extended use in achieving dual objectives of supporting economic growth and improving the environmental quality in middle-income countries.

KEYWORDS:

• Temperature
• corruption
• energy consumption
• services sector
• simultaneous equations modeling

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge financial assistance from Ho Chi Minh City Open University Vietnam.

Authors’ contributions

Conceptualization: Duc Hong Vo; Methodology: Duc Hong Vo; Formal analysis and investigation: Duc Hong Vo; Writing - original draft preparation: Duc Hong Vo; Writing - review and editing: Duc Hong Vo; Funding acquisition: Duc Hong Vo; Resources: Duc Hong Vo; Supervision: Duc Hong Vo.

Availability of data and materials

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This study is funded by Ho Chi Minh City Open University (E2022.1.01)