Abstract:

With the beginning of the industrial revolution, the demand for energy in the economies has rapidly increased. Energy, in addition to being one of the input used in production, has also become a constantly needed meth in every field of life. Energy consumption is also an important indicator of economic development. Therefore, countries with high energy consumption are also seen as economically more developed countries. However, the countries, while ensuring their economic growth, on the one hand, damage ecological balance. The rapid increase in energy consumption also results in an increase in carbon and sulfur emissions that are harmful to the environment. Economies, on the one hand, need to consume energy to ensure their growth, while on the other hand, they damage the environment, disrupt ecological balance and damage ecological sustainability. This study examined the relationship between economic growth and carbon emissions in Russia, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan and Belarus, which were members of the Eurasian Economic Union between 1992-2014 years, with the help of the panel data analysis method. During the current period, the relationship between carbon emissions and economic growth variables in the Member States was statically meaningless, so the conclusion was that the Environmental Kuznets Curve Hypothesis was not valid. Energy consumption and population intensity variables used as control variables have also been shown to have a positive impact on carbon emissions. According to the findings, environmental standards should be implemented and the use of renewable energy resources should be increased in order to prevent environmental damage by the members of the unity.

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