Analyzing the interplay between money supply, mineral extraction, industrialization, and ecological footprint in latin America's global south: A symmetrical perspective

Abstract

The primary goal of this study is to examine the long-term impact of money supply, natural resource use, mineral extraction, industrialization, green energy use, and population density on the ecological footprint (EFP) in 11 high natural resource–based Latin American Global South nations from 1990 to 2021. The study employs Westerlund bootstrap LM, pooled mean group autoregressive distributed lag (PMG-ARDL), and Dumitrescu and Hurlin causality tests. Initially, Westerlund Bootstrap LM statistics reveal significant evidence of cointegration among the variables. Second, the PMG model results show that all regressors except green energy use have a significant positive effect on EFP in the long run, whereas, in the short run, all variables are found to have insignificant impact, excluding green energy use and industrialization. Finally, Dumitrescu and Hurlin tests indicate unidirectional causality of all the regressors with EFP, except mineral extraction and population density. The findings reveal some valuable policy implications for reducing EFP. Initially, central banks must initially limit money supply while altering the interest rate minimally. Over time, central banks must also promote green lending practices in industrial production sectors and charge higher interest on loans to firms that use outdated technology in industrial production. Furthermore, firms engaged in mineral and natural resource extraction must replace old equipment with new technologies that use green energy to curtail pollution emissions.