Effect of Battery-Electric and Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles on PM2.5 Emissions in 29 European Countries

Emad Kazemzadeh, Matheus Koengkan and José Alberto Fuinhas ()
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Matheus Koengkan: Governance, Competitiveness and Public Policies (GOVCOPP), Department of Economics, Management, Industrial Engineering and Tourism (DEGEIT), University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 4, 1-22

Abstract: The contribution of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) to mitigating/reducing fine particulate matter (PM2.5) emissions was researched through a panel of 29 European countries from 2010 to 2019, using the econometric technique of method of moments quantile regression (MM-QR). This research is innovative by connecting the increasing use of electric vehicles with PM2.5 emissions and using the MM-QR to explore this relationship. Two models were estimated to analyse their contribution to reducing PM2.5 in European countries. The nonlinearity of the models were confirmed. The statistical significance of the variables is strong for the upper quantiles (75th and 90th), resulting from the effectiveness of European policies to improve the environment. Electric vehicles (BEVs and PHEVs), economic growth, and urbanisation reduce the PM2.5 problem, but energy intensity and fossil fuel consumption aggravate it. This research sheds light on how policymakers and governments can design proposals to encourage electric vehicle use in European countries. To achieve the long-term climate neutral strategy by 2050, it is imperative to implement effective policies to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels and promote the adoption of electric vehicles using renewable energy sources.

Keywords: plug-in hybrid electric vehicles; battery-electric vehicles; PM2.5 emissions; european countries; method of moments quantile regression (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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