Coal–environmental quality nexus in EU-part of the Eastern Bloc: Do socioeconomic factors and bureaucracy play a substantial role?

Based on the fact that the EU-part of the Eastern Bloc has not fared well in transitioning to renewable energy in the last decade compared to other regions of the bloc, this study investigated the impacts of coal consumption, socioeconomic factors and bureaucracy on the environment and the moderating effect of socioeconomic factors and bureaucracy on the coal consumption–environment relationship in the selected bloc. The study used the AMG, FMOLS and DOLS modelling framework and a panel of six countries in the selected bloc from 1990 to 2018. The study established that coal consumption has a significant dampening effect on CO 2 emissions in the EU-part of the Eastern Bloc and that bureaucracy in the region amplifies this effect instead of mitigating it. In another corridor, we found that in the midst of the coal–environmental nexus, socioeconomic factors offer a mitigating path towards emission reduction in the region. Policy recommendations directed at addressing bureaucratic hitches associated with the transition to renewable energy in Eastern Europe. The authors propose the inauguration of hybrid courts (specialised) to settle disputes that may arise from indigenes and standing technical committees to increase bureaucratic expertise, which would reduce the permit acquisition period required for wind, hydropower, and solar installation farms and other technicalities associated with the EU funding for the Eastern Bloc.