Influence of green technology, green energy consumption, energy efficiency, trade, economic development and FDI on climate change in South Asia

• Published in: Scientific reports Vol. 12; no. 1; p. 16376
• Main Authors: Tariq, Gulzara, Sun, Huaping, Ali, Imad, Pasha, Amjad Ali, Khan, Muhammad Sohail, Rahman, Mustafa Mutiur, Mohamed, Abdullah, Shah, Qasim
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 30-09-2022; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 704/158; 704/172; Clean technology; Climate change; Climate change mitigation; Climate policy; Economic development; Economic growth; Economics; Emissions; Energy consumption; Energy efficiency; Environmental policy; Environmental security; Exports; Green development; Green energy; Greenhouse gases; Growth rate; Humanities and Social Sciences; Imports; International trade; Legislation; multidisciplinary; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Sustainable development; South Asia
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-20432-z

Climate change policy has several potential risks. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of green technology development, green energy consumption, energy efficiency, foreign direct investment, economic growth, and trade (imports and exports) on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in South Asia from 1981 to 2018. We employed Breusch Pagan LM, bias-corrected scaled LM, and Pesaran CD as part of a series of techniques that can assist in resolving the problem of cross-sectional dependence. First and second generation unit root tests are used to assess the stationarity of the series, Pedroni and Kao tests are used to test co-integration. The long-term associations are examined using fully modified ordinary least square (FMOLS) and panel dynamic ordinary least square (DOLS) for robustness. The results revealed that trade, growth rate, and exports significantly increase GHG emissions. This accepted the leakage phenomenon. The results also demonstrated that green technology development, green energy consumption, energy efficiency, and imports all have a significant negative correlation with GHG emissions. Imports, advanced technical processes, a transition from non-green energy to green energy consumption, and energy efficiency are thus critical components in executing climate change legislation. These findings highlight the profound importance of green technology development and green energy for ecologically sustainable development in the South Asian countries and act as a crucial resource for other nations throughout the world when it comes to ecological security. This research recommends the consumption of environmentally friendly and energy-efficient technologies in order to mitigate climate change and the government's implementation of the most recent policies to neutralize GHG emissions in order to achieve sustainable development.