IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jeners/v16y2023i22p7655-d1283178.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Are Most Polluted Regions Most Active in Energy Transition Processes? A Case Study of Polish Regions Acquiring EU Funds for Local Investments in Renewable Energy Sources

Author

Listed:
  • Agnieszka Kozera

    (Faculty of Finance and Accounting, Poznan University of Life Sciences, 60637 Poznań, Poland)

  • Aldona Standar

    (Faculty of Economics and Economic Policy in Agribusiness, Poznan University of Life Sciences, 60637 Poznań, Poland)

  • Natalia Genstwa

    (Faculty of Economics and Economic Policy in Agribusiness, Poznan University of Life Sciences, 60637 Poznań, Poland)

Abstract

The primary aim of this study was to assess the investment activity of basic local government units in the development of renewable energy sources co-financed by EU funds depending on CO 2 emissions and other socio-economic conditions in terms of regions of Poland in the years 2007–2020. Empirical studies aimed at the verification of the research hypothesis that “the greatest investment activity in local projects co-financed from EU funds related to the development of renewable energy sources is observed for local government units in regions with highest CO 2 emissions”. Empirical studies were conducted based on data from the Ministry of Investment and Economic Development in Poland, the Local Data Bank, and the National Centre for Emissions Management. Thus, the conducted analyses provide both cognitive and applicatory values for the establishment of an appropriate energy transition policy in individual regions of Poland, which may be implemented by local government authorities within the current financial framework. Data concerning CO 2 emissions at the regional level were estimated by applying the original disaggregation method as modified by the authors, which made it possible to fill the research gap resulting from the lack of data on emissions at the regional level. In order to show the regional diversification in investment activity of local government units in terms of renewable energy sources, its multi-faceted analysis was conducted by applying the Ward method. Clusters of regions with similar investment activity of local government units were described based on characteristics included in the typological classification (so-called active characteristics) and selected indexes showing CO 2 emission levels, as well as selected socio-economic indexes (so-called passive characteristics). Based on the empirical studies, the research hypothesis presented in this paper was negatively verified. Considering both multiannual financial frameworks, the EU financial support for the development of renewable energy sources was used primarily by local government units of a predominantly agricultural character, and less advanced in terms of their development but exhibiting conditions conducive to renewable energy development.

Suggested Citation

  • Agnieszka Kozera & Aldona Standar & Natalia Genstwa, 2023. "Are Most Polluted Regions Most Active in Energy Transition Processes? A Case Study of Polish Regions Acquiring EU Funds for Local Investments in Renewable Energy Sources," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(22), pages 1-27, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:16:y:2023:i:22:p:7655-:d:1283178
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/22/7655/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/22/7655/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Luiza Ossowska & Dorota Janiszewska & Natalia Bartkowiak-Bakun & Grzegorz Kwiatkowski, 2020. "Energy Consumption Versus Greenhouse Gas Emissions in EU," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(3), pages 185-198.
    2. Gustafsson, Bo, 1998. "Scope and limits of the market mechanism in environmental management," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 24(2-3), pages 259-274, February.
    3. Banaszewska Monika & Bischoff Ivo, 2017. "The Political Economy of EU-funds: Evidence from Poland," Journal of Economics and Statistics (Jahrbuecher fuer Nationaloekonomie und Statistik), De Gruyter, vol. 237(3), pages 191-224, June.
    4. Chai, Song & Liu, Qiyun & Yang, Jin, 2023. "Renewable power generation policies in China: Policy instrument choices and influencing factors from the central and local government perspectives," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    5. Sammy Zahran & Samuel D Brody & Arnold Vedlitz & Himanshu Grover & Caitlyn Miller, 2008. "Vulnerability and Capacity: Explaining Local Commitment to Climate-Change Policy," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 26(3), pages 544-562, June.
    6. Galeotti, Marzio & Lanza, Alessandro & Pauli, Francesco, 2006. "Reassessing the environmental Kuznets curve for CO2 emissions: A robustness exercise," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 57(1), pages 152-163, April.
    7. Cherniwchan, Jevan, 2012. "Economic growth, industrialization, and the environment," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 442-467.
    8. Pagiola, Stefano, 2008. "Payments for environmental services in Costa Rica," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(4), pages 712-724, May.
    9. Elaine Fouché & Alan Brent, 2019. "Journey towards Renewable Energy for Sustainable Development at the Local Government Level: The Case of Hessequa Municipality in South Africa," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-18, January.
    10. Soleimani Dahaj, Arash & Cozzarin, Brian Paul, 2019. "Government venture capital and cross-border investment," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 113-127.
    11. Nicolas Antheaume, 2004. "Valuing external costs - from theory to practice: implications for full cost environmental accounting," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 13(3), pages 443-464.
    12. Engel, Stefanie & Pagiola, Stefano & Wunder, Sven, 2008. "Designing payments for environmental services in theory and practice: An overview of the issues," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(4), pages 663-674, May.
    13. Palm, Jenny, 2018. "Household installation of solar panels – Motives and barriers in a 10-year perspective," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 1-8.
    14. Mohammad Fazle Rabbi & József Popp & Domicián Máté & Sándor Kovács, 2022. "Energy Security and Energy Transition to Achieve Carbon Neutrality," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(21), pages 1-18, October.
    15. Gradziuk, Barbara & Gradziuk, Piotr, 2016. "Gospodarka niskoemisyjna – nowe wyzwanie dla gmin wiejskich," Village and Agriculture (Wieś i Rolnictwo), Polish Academy of Sciences (IRWiR PAN), Institute of Rural and Agricultural Development, vol. 1(170).
    16. Veronika Slakaityte & Izabela Surwillo & Trine Villumsen Berling, 2023. "A new cooperation agenda for European energy security," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 8(10), pages 1051-1053, October.
    17. Dinda, Soumyananda, 2004. "Environmental Kuznets Curve Hypothesis: A Survey," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(4), pages 431-455, August.
    18. Howarth, Richard B. & Farber, Stephen, 2002. "Accounting for the value of ecosystem services," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(3), pages 421-429, June.
    19. Ellabban, Omar & Abu-Rub, Haitham & Blaabjerg, Frede, 2014. "Renewable energy resources: Current status, future prospects and their enabling technology," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 748-764.
    20. Tatyana P. Soubbotina, 2004. "Beyond Economic Growth : An Introduction to Sustainable Development, Second Edition," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 14865, April.
    21. Yu, Donglei & Wenhui, Xiong & Anser, Muhammad Khalid & Nassani, Abdelmohsen A. & Imran, Muhammad & Zaman, Khalid & Haffar, Mohamed, 2023. "Navigating the global mineral market: A study of resource wealth and the energy transition," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Jarosław Jaworski & Jakub Dowejko, 2024. "Renewable Energy Expansion in West Pomerania: Integrating Local Potential with Global Sustainability Goals," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(1), pages 1-15, December.
    2. Agnieszka Kozera & Aldona Standar & Joanna Stanisławska & Anna Rosa, 2024. "Investments in Renewable Energy in Rural Communes: An Analysis of Regional Disparities in Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(23), pages 1-32, December.

    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. Aldona Standar & Agnieszka Kozera & Łukasz Satoła, 2021. "The Importance of Local Investments Co-Financed by the European Union in the Field of Renewable Energy Sources in Rural Areas of Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-23, January.
    2. Lapatinas, Athanasios & Garas, Antonios & Boleti, Eirini & Kyriakou, Alexandra, 2019. "Economic complexity and environmental performance: Evidence from a world sample," MPRA Paper 92833, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Antonios Garas & Sophie Guthmuller & Athanasios Lapatinas, 2021. "The development of nations conditions the disease space," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(1), pages 1-35, January.
    4. Kaika, Dimitra & Zervas, Efthimios, 2013. "The environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) theory. Part B: Critical issues," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 1403-1411.
    5. Sebri, Maamar, 2009. "La Zone Méditerranéenne Face à la Pollution de L’air : Une Investigation Econométrique [The Mediterranean Zone in front of Air pollution: an Econometric Investigation]," MPRA Paper 32382, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. George Halkos & Iacovos Psarianos, 2016. "Exploring the effect of including the environment in the neoclassical growth model," Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Springer;Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - SEEPS, vol. 18(3), pages 339-358, July.
    7. Jens Abildtrup & Anne Stenger, 2022. "Report on valuation methods," Working Papers hal-04068881, HAL.
    8. Devleena Chakravarty & Sabuj Kumar Mandal, 2019. "Environmental Kuznets curve for local and global pollutants: application of GMM and random coefficient panel data models," Journal of Social and Economic Development, Springer;Institute for Social and Economic Change, vol. 21(2), pages 212-233, December.
    9. Wenhao Song & Chunhui Ye & Yuheng Liu & Weisong Cheng, 2021. "Do China’s Urban–Environmental Quality and Economic Growth Conform to the Environmental Kuznets Curve?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(24), pages 1-15, December.
    10. Marc Audi & Marc Poulin & Khalil Ahmad & Amjad Ali, 2025. "Modeling Disaggregate Globalization to Carbon Emissions in BRICS: A Panel Quantile Regression Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(6), pages 1-24, March.
    11. Kisaka, Lily & Obi, Ajuruchukwu, 2015. "Farmers’ Preferences for Management Options as Payment for Environmental Services Scheme," International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, vol. 18(3), pages 1-22, September.
    12. 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.
    13. Xiaoping Li & Yan Yan & Liuyang Yao, 2020. "‘Get a Fish’ vs. ‘Get a Fishing Skill’: Farmers’ Preferred Compensation Methods to Control Agricultural Nonpoint Source Pollution," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-13, April.
    14. Ahmed Elkhatat & Shaheen Al-Muhtaseb, 2024. "Climate Change and Energy Security: A Comparative Analysis of the Role of Energy Policies in Advancing Environmental Sustainability," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(13), pages 1-31, June.
    15. Dale Whittington & Stefano Pagiola, 2012. "Using Contingent Valuation in the Design of Payments for Environmental Services Mechanisms: A Review and Assessment," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 27(2), pages 261-287, August.
    16. Barra, Cristian & Zotti, Roberto, 2016. "Investigating the impact of national income on environmental pollution. International evidence," MPRA Paper 74149, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    17. Paolo Buonanno & Leopoldo Fergusson & Juan F. Vargas, 2014. "The Crime Kuznets Curve," Documentos CEDE 11012, Universidad de los Andes, Facultad de Economía, CEDE.
    18. Rahel Aichele, 2013. "Trade, Climate Policy and Carbon Leakage - Theory and Empirical Evidence," ifo Beiträge zur Wirtschaftsforschung, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, number 49, May.
    19. Azam, Muhammad & Khan, Abdul Qayyum, 2016. "Testing the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis: A comparative empirical study for low, lower middle, upper middle and high income countries," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 556-567.
    20. Yin, Jianhua & Zheng, Mingzheng & Chen, Jian, 2015. "The effects of environmental regulation and technical progress on CO2 Kuznets curve: An evidence from China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 97-108.

    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:gam:jeners:v:16:y:2023:i:22:p:7655-:d:1283178. 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: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    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.