Policy Research

Renewable energy consumption in EU-28 countries: Policy toward pollution mitigation and economic sustainability

Seyi Saint Akadiri, Andrew Adewale Alola, Ada Chigozie Akadiri, Uju Violet Alola

Summary

It has become increasingly clear that the issue of climate change is one that will need to be addressed by changes in policy that reflect the severity of the issue. The EU has shown that it is possible to find a balance between reducing environmental degradation and sustainable economic growth. This article shows a long-term positive relationship between energy consumption and economic growth for 28 EU countries, proving that they likely have a sound idea of effective environmental policy. Some of the changes they have made are subsidies and tax credits for companies that make the switch to more renewable energy, this often offsetting the initial cost to the company for making the change.

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Policy Implications

These changes have been connected to things like fewer carbon emissions, more job creation, improved health, and more innovation. The popular idea that reducing energy use will see a decrease in economic growth may be true for the short run, but this study looked at the period of time from 1995-2015 and found in the long-term this is not the case. The EU is one of the few international institutions that seems to be nearing its goals for the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals as well. If their ideas were to grow to other countries, we would see larger steps towards achieving a more sustainable planet