Environmental–Economic Nexus and Air Pollution in Oman: Comparison
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Academics and decision-makers have paid close attention to the relationship between air pollution, climate change, and economic growth. It is important to highlight that a large number of “conventional” air pollution sources are also major producers of greenhouse gases (GHGs), such as CO2, which are essential to global warming. An unparalleled rise in the need for energy consumption has been caused by the quick development of economic activity, urbanization, and population growth. All of these things work together to cause environmental deterioration and rising greenhouse gas emissions. Consequently, attaining sustainable economic growth rates while carefully balancing this expansion with environmental preservation is one of the most important developmental concerns facing the world today. 

  • air pollution
  • urbanization
  • energy consumption
  • economic growth

1. Introduction

In recent years, academics and decision-makers have paid close attention to the relationship between air pollution, climate change, and economic growth. It is important to highlight that a large number of “conventional” air pollution sources are also major producers of greenhouse gases (GHGs), such as CO2, which are essential to global warming [1]. The substantial and far-reaching effects of climate change on human existence on Earth continue to be a source of concern for all people.
An unparalleled rise in the need for energy consumption has been caused by the quick development of economic activity, urbanization, and population growth. All of these things work together to cause environmental deterioration and rising greenhouse gas emissions. Consequently, attaining sustainable economic growth rates while carefully balancing this expansion with environmental preservation is one of the most important developmental concerns facing the world today. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries’ CO2 emissions and air pollution have been the subject of numerous research projects. In the GCC countries, research shows positive relationships between energy use, urbanization, and CO2 emissions [2].
Moreover, it has been noted that a number of meteorological factors, such as temperature, rainfall, relative humidity, wind direction, and speed, have a major impact on the amounts of hydrocarbons and CO2 in the atmosphere [3]. The complex linkages between urbanization, energy consumption, GDP growth, foreign direct investment, financial development, and climatic conditions in the GCC countries are clarified by the combined findings of these studies [4].

2. Environmental–Economic Nexus and Air Pollution

2.1. Economic Growth and Air Pollution

The relationship between economic growth and air pollution has been the subject of numerous prior studies, with an emphasis on utilizing the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) theory to analyze the long-term dynamics. The inverted U-shaped relationship between a nation’s income and carbon emissions is the basis of the EKC theory. The EKC hypothesis was first put forth by [16][5] and seeks to investigate the relationship between environmental characteristics and per capita income. However, because their empirical research produced a wide range of results, it complicated the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) theory. The relationship between CO2 emissions and economic growth has also been the subject of much investigation in recent years, yielding a patchwork of conflicting and varied conclusions. For example, research by [17,18,19,20,21,22][6][7][8][9][10][11] has shown that economic growth and carbon emissions are positively correlated. Research by [23,24,25,26][12][13][14][15] has shown that, contrary to the EKC hypothesis’s predictions, economic expansion eventually results in a decrease in carbon emissions. Additionally, ref. [27][16] carried out a thorough analysis of the relationship between Germany’s exports, economic expansion, use of agricultural land, and N2O emissions. They used time series data from 1970 to 2012 and the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) approach. The study’s findings revealed a nonlinear, long-term correlation between greenhouse gas emissions and economic growth, supporting the existence of an environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) pattern in the German setting. Researchers can discuss the relationship between GDP growth and air pollution by tackling this complicated subject with contradictory findings. Certain studies indicate that economic expansion may lead to an increase in air pollution, particularly if these expectations are high [28][17]. The decoupling between economic growth and air pollution, however, may be much improved, according to another study [29][18]. Research has indicated that air pollution significantly hinders China’s economic expansion, underscoring the negative effects of air pollution on economic growth [30][19]. The relationship between economic growth and air pollution is also influenced by factors such as a country’s degree of economic development, energy consumption, and industrial output as stated in [31][20], which gives an overview of air pollution in the MENA area [32][21]. The air pollutants were classified into two groups: those linked to climate change and those linked to health. They found that in the MENA region, GHS is the main pollutant that poses a risk to public health. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries’ economic growth and air pollution have been the subject of multiple articles. A favorable correlation has been found in the GCC countries between economic growth and air pollution. According to research [33[22][23],34], rising economic growth affects CO2 emissions favorably while having a negative impact on energy use. Reduction in CO2 emissions is achieved by energy consumption [35,36][24][25]. Long-term reduction in pollutant emissions and attainment of sustainable development can be facilitated by urbanization and the use of clean energy, as per studies [37][26]. Overall, the research indicates that the GCC countries’ air pollution is mostly caused by economic development and energy use. The relationship between air pollution and economic growth in Oman depends on a number of different factors. Intriguing revelations have been made by recent research, such as a study by [9][27]. Carbon dioxide emissions have been linked, both short- and long-term, to positive shocks to capital investments, economic growth, and foreign direct investment inflows. On the other hand, as demonstrated by [38][28], negative shocks to economic growth and foreign direct investment inflows have been seen to cause emissions to decrease. The role of economic growth, capital investments, and foreign direct investment in Oman’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions in its economy has been detailed in a prior study [38][28].
It is evident from the results of [9][27] that Oman has an environmental Kuznets curve. According to this theoretical paradigm, when a nation’s economy grows, environmental quality may first deteriorate before finally improving, as academics like [36,39][25][29] have explained. With the objective of lowering carbon dioxide emissions worldwide, it is highly advised that Oman adopts green economic growth strategies in light of these findings. According to [40][30], this strategy entails reducing investments that have negative environmental effects while also reviving the banking industry.

2.2. Urbanization and Air Pollution

Air pollution has been proven to be significantly impacted by urbanization. Research has demonstrated that the marginal harm caused by air pollution emissions in urban areas rises as the world’s population moves from rural to urban places [41][31]. Depending on the nation and income level, urbanization has varying effects on air pollution. PM2.5 concentrations are positively impacted by demographic urbanization, but they are negatively impacted by spatial urbanization in high-income nations and positively impacted in other nations. The opposite trend is demonstrated by social urbanization [42][32]. The urban form also affects PM2.5 and N2O concentrations; aggregation index, fractal dimension, and population density are some of the elements that influence these levels. The magnitude, altitude, and density of the road network of a city determine how these factors affect it [43][33]. Furthermore, the growth of urban areas can modify the meteorological features of the city and reduce the ability of pollutants to diffuse, resulting in higher concentrations of pollutants [44][34]. The necessity for focused actions to reduce pollution and enhance air quality is highlighted by the complex and varied effects that urbanization and its numerous components have on air pollution [45][35]. Air pollution has increased as a result of Oman’s increasing urbanization [41][31]. Sohar, Muscat, Sur, Salalah, and other important industrialized and urban cities in Oman are examples of local emission sources from transportation, industry, and energy producing activities [40][30]. In certain locations, conditions of stagnation and recirculation lead to poor air quality [46][36]. Furthermore, a comparison of the air quality in the two areas by [15][37] revealed higher levels of pollution in Kuwait’s urban residential area. This suggests that high levels of air pollution may also be a result of urbanization in Oman’s metropolitan areas. In order to address the issues raised by pollution associated with urbanization, it is imperative to develop sustainable urbanization practices, as stated in [34][23]. Finally, a number of research studies looking at the relationship between urbanization and air quality found a positive indirect effect. The rate at which people move from rural to urban areas will increase with urbanization. The quality of the air will deteriorate due to rising energy consumption and carbon emissions and [47,48,49,50,51[38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49],52,53,54,55,56,57,58], among others, have all investigated this beneficial connection.

2.3. Energy Consumption and Air Pollution

Energy use has a major influence on air pollution. Several studies have shown that using more energy, particularly fossil fuels, raises pollution levels and has negative health impacts [59,60][50][51]. Nonetheless, it has been found that utilizing renewable energy sources contributes to a decrease in air pollution [61][52]. Furthermore, the implementation of strict legislation and clean energy programs has been successful in improving air quality and lowering detrimental effects on health [55][46]. In Oman, energy usage has a big impact on air pollution [62][53]. In their study titled “Assessing the Influence of Clean Energy Usage and Resource Allocation on Air Pollution in China: A Spatial Econometric Analysis” the authors investigate the effects of clean energy consumption and resource allocation on air pollution in China. Their research highlights the growing concern surrounding air pollution in China and under-scores the necessity of quantifying the influence of clean energy consumption and resource allocation on pollutant levels [61][52].
In many emerging nations, including Oman, the introduction of energy-intensive sectors without adequate planning has resulted in air pollution being a major public health hazard [63][54]. Improving air quality requires reducing energy usage, as stated in [58][49]. It has been discovered that using renewable energy sources helps to reduce air pollution [64][55]. Therefore, when formulating energy and economic policies, it is crucial that the government takes into account the relationship between energy use, economic development, and environmental protection. Oman can endeavor to address its air pollution issues by enhancing energy efficiency and striking a balance between energy, economics, and environmental protection.

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