IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/pra/mprapa/52601.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Economic Convergence with Divergence in Environmental Quality? Desertification Risk and the Economic Structure of a Mediterranean Country (1960-2010)

Author

Listed:
  • Esposito, Piero
  • Patriarca, Fabrizio
  • Perini, Luigi
  • Salvati, Luca

Abstract

The present study investigates the relationship between land vulnerability to desertification and the evolution of the productive structure in Italy during the last fifty years (1960-2010). The objectives of the study are two-fold: (i) to present and discuss an original analysis of the income-environment relationship in an economic-convergent and environmental-divergent country and (ii) to evaluate the impact of the (changing) productive structure and selected socio-demographic characteristics on the level of land vulnerability. The econometric analysis indicates that the relationship between per capita GDP and land vulnerability across Italian provinces is completely reverted once we move from a cross section analysis to panel estimates. While economic and environmental disparities between provinces go in the same direction, with richer provinces having a better land, over time the growth process increases the desertification risk, with the economic structure acting as a significant variable.

Suggested Citation

  • Esposito, Piero & Patriarca, Fabrizio & Perini, Luigi & Salvati, Luca, 2013. "Economic Convergence with Divergence in Environmental Quality? Desertification Risk and the Economic Structure of a Mediterranean Country (1960-2010)," MPRA Paper 52601, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:52601
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/52601/1/MPRA_paper_52601.pdf
    File Function: original version
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Cavlovic, Therese A. & Baker, Kenneth H. & Berrens, Robert P. & Gawande, Kishore, 2000. "A Meta-Analysis of Environmental Kuznets Curve Studies," Agricultural and Resource Economics Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 29(1), pages 32-42, April.
    2. Fabrizio Patriarca & Francesco Vona, 2012. "Environmental Taxes, Inequality and Technical Change," Revue de l'OFCE, Presses de Sciences-Po, vol. 0(5), pages 389-413.
    3. Joseph Romm, 2011. "The next dust bowl," Nature, Nature, vol. 478(7370), pages 450-451, October.
    4. Sacchidananda Mukherjee & Vinish Kathuria, 2006. "Is Economic Growth Sustainable? Environmental Quality Of Indian States Post 1991," Development Economics Working Papers 22504, East Asian Bureau of Economic Research.
    5. Susmita Dasgupta & Benoit Laplante & Hua Wang & David Wheeler, 2002. "Confronting the Environmental Kuznets Curve," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 16(1), pages 147-168, Winter.
    6. Vona, Francesco & Patriarca, Fabrizio, 2011. "Income inequality and the development of environmental technologies," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(11), pages 2201-2213, September.
    7. Barrett, Scott & Graddy, Kathryn, 2000. "Freedom, growth, and the environment," Environment and Development Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 5(4), pages 433-456, October.
    8. Dasgupta, Susmita & Hamilton, Kirk & Pandey, Kiran D. & Wheeler, David, 2006. "Environment During growth: Accounting for governance and vulnerability," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 34(9), pages 1597-1611, September.
    9. Annegrete Bruvoll & Hege Medin, 2003. "Factors Behind the Environmental Kuznets Curve. A Decomposition of the Changes in Air Pollution," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 24(1), pages 27-48, January.
    10. Alberto Ansuategi, 2003. "Economic Growth and Transboundary Pollution in Europe: An Empirical Analysis," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 26(2), pages 305-328, October.
    11. Xiaomei Tan, 2006. "Environment, governance and GDP: discovering their connections," International Journal of Sustainable Development, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 9(4), pages 311-335.
    12. Bimonte, Salvatore, 2002. "Information access, income distribution, and the Environmental Kuznets Curve," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(1), pages 145-156, April.
    13. Muller-Furstenberger, Georg & Wagner, Martin, 2007. "Exploring the environmental Kuznets hypothesis: Theoretical and econometric problems," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(3-4), pages 648-660, May.
    14. Caviglia-Harris, Jill L. & Chambers, Dustin & Kahn, James R., 2009. "Taking the "U" out of Kuznets: A comprehensive analysis of the EKC and environmental degradation," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(4), pages 1149-1159, February.
    15. Ranjan, Ram & Shortle, James, 2007. "The environmental Kuznets curve when the environment exhibits hysteresis," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(1), pages 204-215, October.
    16. Krishna Paudel & Hector Zapata & Dwi Susanto, 2005. "An Empirical Test of Environmental Kuznets Curve for Water Pollution," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 31(3), pages 325-348, July.
    17. Marzio Galeotti, 2007. "Economic Growth And The Quality Of The Environment: Taking Stock," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 9(4), pages 427-454, November.
    18. James Boyce, 1994. "Inequality as a Cause of Environmental Degradation," Published Studies ps1, Political Economy Research Institute, University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
    19. Chimeli, Ariaster B., 2007. "Growth and the environment: Are we looking at the right data?," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 96(1), pages 89-96, July.
    20. Magnani, Elisabetta, 2000. "The Environmental Kuznets Curve, environmental protection policy and income distribution," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 431-443, March.
    21. Sacchidananda Mukherjee & Vinish Kathuria, 2006. "Is economic growth sustainable? Environmental quality of Indian States after 1991," International Journal of Sustainable Development, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 9(1), pages 38-60.
    22. Stern, David I., 2004. "The Rise and Fall of the Environmental Kuznets Curve," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 32(8), pages 1419-1439, August.
    23. Auffhammer, Maximilian & Carson, Richard T., 2008. "Forecasting the path of China's CO2 emissions using province-level information," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 55(3), pages 229-247, May.
    24. Luca Salvati & Marco Zitti, 2009. "Convergence or divergence in desertification risk? Scale-based assessment and policy implications in a Mediterranean country," Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 52(7), pages 957-971.
    25. Maddison, David, 2006. "Environmental Kuznets curves: A spatial econometric approach," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 51(2), pages 218-230, March.
    26. A. Kahuthu, 2006. "Economic Growth and Environmental Degradation in a Global Context," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 8(1), pages 55-68, February.
    27. Boyce, James K., 1994. "Inequality as a cause of environmental degradation," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 11(3), pages 169-178, December.
    28. Heerink, Nico & Mulatu, Abay & Bulte, Erwin, 2001. "Income inequality and the environment: aggregation bias in environmental Kuznets curves," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(3), pages 359-367, September.
    29. Bertrand Zuindeau, 2007. "Territorial equity and sustainable development," Post-Print halshs-00200677, HAL.
    30. Dinda, Soumyananda, 2004. "Environmental Kuznets Curve Hypothesis: A Survey," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(4), pages 431-455, August.
    31. Papyrakis, Elissaios & Gerlagh, Reyer, 2007. "Resource abundance and economic growth in the United States," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(4), pages 1011-1039, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Enrico Maria Mosconi & Andrea Colantoni & Filippo Gambella & Eva Cudlinová & Luca Salvati & Jesús Rodrigo-Comino, 2020. "Revisiting the Environmental Kuznets Curve: The Spatial Interaction between Economy and Territory," Economies, MDPI, vol. 8(3), pages 1-20, September.
    2. Nyakundi M. Michieka & John Deal & Kyle Lahman, 2022. "Air pollution and income inequality: a spatial econometric approach," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 69(1), pages 1-31, August.
    3. Caviglia-Harris, Jill L. & Chambers, Dustin & Kahn, James R., 2009. "Taking the "U" out of Kuznets: A comprehensive analysis of the EKC and environmental degradation," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(4), pages 1149-1159, February.
    4. Atwi, Majed & Barberán, Ramón & Mur, Jesús & Angulo, Ana, 2018. "CO2 Kuznets Curve Revisited: From Cross-Sections to Panel Data Models," INVESTIGACIONES REGIONALES - Journal of REGIONAL RESEARCH, Asociación Española de Ciencia Regional, issue 40, pages 169-196.
    5. Aslanidis Nektarios, 2009. "Environmental Kuznets curves for carbon emissions: A critical survey," wp.comunite 0051, Department of Communication, University of Teramo.
    6. Henninger, Ella & Smith, E. Keith, 2024. "Beyond the haze: Decomposing the effect of economic inequality on global air quality from 2000 to 2020," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 222(C).
    7. Nektarios Aslanidis, 2009. "Environmental Kuznets Curves for Carbon Emissions: A Critical Survey," Working Papers 2009.75, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    8. Hatem M'henni & Mohamed El Hedi Arouri & Adel Ben Youssef & Christophe Rault, 2011. "Income Level and Environmental Quality in The MENA Countries: Discussing the Environmental Kuznets Curve Hypothesis," Working Papers 587, Economic Research Forum, revised 05 Jan 2011.
    9. Nicolli, Francesco & Gilli, Marianna & Vona, Francesco, 2022. "Inequality and Climate Change: Two Problems, One Solution?," FEEM Working Papers 329340, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM).
    10. Michael Cary, 2020. "Have greenhouse gas emissions from US energy production peaked? State level evidence from six subsectors," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 40(1), pages 125-134, March.
    11. Fateh Belaïd, Sabri Boubaker, Rajwane Kafrouni, 2020. "Carbon emissions, income inequality and environmental degradation: the case of Mediterranean countries," European Journal of Comparative Economics, Cattaneo University (LIUC), vol. 17(1), pages 73-102, June.
    12. Zhang, Chuanguo & Zhao, Wei, 2014. "Panel estimation for income inequality and CO2 emissions: A regional analysis in China," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 136(C), pages 382-392.
    13. Aslanidis, Nektarios, 2009. "Environmental Kuznets Curves for Carbon Emissions: A Critical Survey," Working Papers 2072/15847, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Department of Economics.
    14. Inmaculada Martinez-Zarzoso & Leon Pilgrim, 2023. "Revisiting the link between income inequality and emissions," Working Papers 2023.04, International Network for Economic Research - INFER.
    15. Buehn, Andreas & Farzanegan, Mohammad Reza, 2013. "Hold your breath: A new index of air pollution," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 104-113.
    16. Berthe, Alexandre & Elie, Luc, 2015. "Mechanisms explaining the impact of economic inequality on environmental deterioration," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 191-200.
    17. Carson, Richard T, 2009. "Searching for Empirical Regularity and Theoretical Structure: The Environmental Kuznets Curve," University of California at San Diego, Economics Working Paper Series qt4m6263c2, Department of Economics, UC San Diego.
    18. Bimonte, Salvatore & Stabile, Arsenio, 2017. "Land consumption and income in Italy: a case of inverted EKC," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 36-43.
    19. Salvati Luca, 2013. "Land Quality, Development and Space: Does Scale Matter?," European Spatial Research and Policy, Sciendo, vol. 20(2), pages 99-112, December.
    20. Alexandre BERTHE & Luc ELIE, 2014. "Les conséquences environnementales des inégalités économiques : structuration théorique et perspectives de recherche (In French)," Cahiers du GREThA (2007-2019) 2014-18, Groupe de Recherche en Economie Théorique et Appliquée (GREThA).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Environmental quality; Economic growth; Land degradation; Regional disparities; Italy; Panel data.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C23 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models
    • Q24 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Renewable Resources and Conservation - - - Land
    • Q56 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environment and Development; Environment and Trade; Sustainability; Environmental Accounts and Accounting; Environmental Equity; Population Growth
    • R11 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:52601. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Joachim Winter (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/vfmunde.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.