The Impact of Renewable Versus Non-renewable Natural Capital on Economic Growth

Abstract

In a dataset on 83 countries covering the years 1960 through 2009, we find a negative indirect effect of the share of renewable natural capital in wealth on economic growth transmitted through demographic factors, more specifically, population fertility. In contrast, in countries with lower income inequality and higher institutional quality, the share of non-renewable natural capital in wealth has a direct positive impact on growth. We also find that countries with higher income per capita, human development, and institutional quality have a higher share of renewable natural capital per capita, but a lower share of renewable natural capital in wealth. Renewable natural capital is thus valuable for the population and of primary concern for empowered countries, even though it contributes less to wealth and economic growth. Our results raise serious questions about the way wealth and growth are defined in economics when one investigates the impact of natural capital and point to the importance of preserving natural capital, particularly, in less developed countries.

Spatiotemporal Evolution and Influencing Factors of the Rural Natural Capital Utilization Efficiency: A Case Study of Chongqing, China

“…Second, this study discusses the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics and influencing factors of the RNCUE from the perspective of spatial heterogeneity. The diversity of the relationship between human and natural capital means that more sophisticated and complex policy decisions are needed [34]. This study highlights the spatial differences in natural capital.…”

“…Natural capital has an important impact on economic growth [34]. Through the coordination of various components of natural capital, high-quality economic development can be achieved [35].…”

“…The differences in the ways natural capital affects economic development and the differing results of it will also affect the well-being of residents [34]. Ambrey et al [37] believed that by measuring the real value of natural capital, we can further clarify the important contribution of natural capital to economic growth.…”

“…Existing studies have attempted to explore RNCUE from multiple perspectives, such as productivity [38], inclusive wealth [62,63], and the impact of renewable and non-renewable natural capital on economic growth [34]. These studies enrich the research perspective of natural capital and its important role in meeting human well-being.…”

Renewable Energy, Economic Growth and Economic Development Nexus: A Bibliometric Analysis

“…Most studies are analyses of statistical inferences of countries or a country studied in isolation. There are many studies covering various economies [28][29][30][31][32][33][34], for example [35][36][37][38]. Ref.…”