The Decoupling Effect in Italian Agricultural Waste: An Empirical Analysis

Antonella Vastola, Mauro Viccaro (), Valeria Grippo, Francesco Genovese, Severino Romano and Mario Cozzi
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Antonella Vastola: Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Italy
Mauro Viccaro: School of Agricultural, Forestry, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Basilicata, Viale dell’Ateneo Lucano n. 10, 85100 Potenza, Italy
Valeria Grippo: Fondazione Utilitatis, Piazza Cola di Rienzo 80/A, 00192 Roma, Italy
Francesco Genovese: School of Agricultural, Forestry, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Basilicata, Viale dell’Ateneo Lucano n. 10, 85100 Potenza, Italy
Severino Romano: School of Agricultural, Forestry, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Basilicata, Viale dell’Ateneo Lucano n. 10, 85100 Potenza, Italy
Mario Cozzi: School of Agricultural, Forestry, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Basilicata, Viale dell’Ateneo Lucano n. 10, 85100 Potenza, Italy

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 24, 1-14

Abstract: The environmental Kuznets curve has received widespread attention from scholars for its ability to vividly capture the dynamics between economic growth and waste generation. The so-called waste Kuznets curve (KWC) has been used in different fields (e.g., municipal waste, e-waste, construction waste, tourism waste, etc.); nonetheless, WKC studies into agricultural waste remain relatively scarce. Due to the impact of agriculture on socio-economic development and environmental protection, this study applied KWC to the Italian agricultural sector. The aim was to investigate whether a “decoupling effect” exists between agricultural production and waste generation and assess the effects of certain socio-economic variables. The analysis was based on a panel dataset, including geographical observations at a regional level and a time series of 14 years (2002–2015). Empirical results show that the delinking point has not yet been reached, but can be reached if specific policy instruments are applied. Our evidence suggests that public expenditure for environmental protection or the promotion of organic farming could help to achieve this goal. Future studies are recommended to further validate the waste Kuznets curve for agriculture using a wider set of economies and longer panel data.

Keywords: agricultural waste; GDP–waste decoupling; waste Kuznets curve (WKC); Italian agricultural sector (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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