RT Journal Article
T1 Interaction between renewable energy consumption and dematerialization: insights based on the material footprint and the Environmental Kuznets Curve
A1 Regueiro Ferreira, Rosa María
A1 Alonso Fernández, Pablo
K1 Renewable energy
K1 Material footprint
K1 Dematerialization
K1 Fossil fuels
K1 Environmental kuznets curve
AB This paper investigates the effect of renewable energy consumption on material consumption, considering the relationship between Material Footrprint and Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and testing the assumptions of the Environmental Kuznets Curve. A STIRPAT variation is used to specify a model relating the Material Footprint to renewable energy consumption and GDP. The effect is tested for the Material Footprint of fossil fuels and for the Material Footprint of the other categories. The analysis is applied to the seven European countries with the highest proportion of renewable energy consumption. The model estimation shows that the relationship between GDP and Material Footprint follows an inverted N-shaped form, and that the renewable energy favours the reduction of the material consumption of fossil fuels. However, there is a positive effect between the renewable energy consumption and the Material Footprint of the other categories beyond fossil fuels. These results must be interpreted considering the context, as the development of renewable energy coincides with the effects of the 2008 crisis, which may distort the relation between the variables. To pose dematerialization scenarios, it seems necessary to consider reducing energy consumption even if it comes from renewable sources
PB Elsevier
YR 2022
FD 2022
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10347/29879
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10347/29879
LA eng
NO Energy 266 (2023) 126477
DS Minerva
RD 20 may 2026