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The Great Recession, the Treadmill of Production and Ecological Disorganization: Did the Recession Decrease Toxic Releases Across US States, 2005–2014?

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  • Long, Michael A.
  • Lynch, Michael J.
  • Stretesky, Paul B.

Abstract

The treadmill of production, ecological Marxist, steady-state economics and the natural science literatures suggest that economic growth and pollution are linked. We use the economic downturn resulting from the Great Recession in 2008–2009 as a natural experiment to test this hypothesis. Specifically, we examine the effect of the Great Recession on pollution measured by the Environmental Protection Agency's Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) using maps and fixed-effects regression models for US states for the period 2005–2014. Multivariate time-series analysis demonstrates that even when adjusting for controls there is a unique and negative effect of the recession on TRI levels. We situate our findings in the relevant literature, suggest possibilities for what the recession effect may be capturing, and discuss some implications of increased pollution levels.

Suggested Citation

  • Long, Michael A. & Lynch, Michael J. & Stretesky, Paul B., 2018. "The Great Recession, the Treadmill of Production and Ecological Disorganization: Did the Recession Decrease Toxic Releases Across US States, 2005–2014?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 146(C), pages 184-192.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:146:y:2018:i:c:p:184-192
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2017.10.022
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Muhammad Azher Hassan & Tariq Mehmood & Ehtisham Lodhi & Muhammad Bilal & Afzal Ahmed Dar & Junjie Liu, 2022. "Lockdown Amid COVID-19 Ascendancy over Ambient Particulate Matter Pollution Anomaly," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-31, October.
    3. Xuan Yang & Geng Chen & Chunzi Qu & Zhixuan Chen & Yang Wen & Lei Shi & Feng Long, 2024. "Economic Policy Uncertainty and Co-Control of Air Pollutants and CO 2 : Evidence from 282 Cities in China," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(11), pages 1-23, May.
    4. Nalan IŞIK, 2024. "Journey to Discover the Footprint of Tourism from the Perspective of Ecological Modernization," Sosyoekonomi Journal, Sosyoekonomi Society, issue 32(60).

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