Renewable Energy and the State of Environmental Quality in Nigeria

Abstract

The study aimed at examining the effect of renewable energy on quality of the environment in Nigeria from 1980 to 2019. The ARDL bound test of cointegration shows the presence of a cointegration relationship among the analyzed variables. In the long run renewable energy is related negatively with to CO2 emissions, meaning that an increase in renewable energy enhances the quality of the environment by reducing the number of CO2 emissions in the long run while in the short-run renewable energy is positively related to carbon emissions, meaning that increases in the number of renewable energy deteriorate the quality of environment in the short run. The Granger causality test proposed by Toda and Yamamota (1995) reveals that a bidirectional causal relationship exists between renewable energy and the number of CO2 emissions, meaning that changes in renewable energy affect the quality of environment and at the same time changes in the quality of environment affect the renewable energy in Nigeria. Policymakers should implement a multilateral mechanism to ensure energy efficiency and to promote the use of renewable energy.