Detection of the interdependence of economic development and environmental performance at the industry level

Abstract

The aim of the research is to identify the connection between economic development and environmental performance at the industrial level. The subject of the research is a set of processes of correlation analysis of economic and environmental indicators of the oil and gas producing industry. The urgency of the task of mitigating anthropogenic climate change caused by rising concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is proven. Statistical data on emissions for the past 15 years are analyzed, change trends are identified. The authors establish the cause of the growth in greenhouse gas emissions, the energy sector being the main contributor. A description of the mechanism of the effect of greenhouse gases on the climate system is provided. The requirements set by international agreements and Russian documents aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions are unified. The main gases that cause the greenhouse effect are identified, their classification and brief characteristics are provided in the article. The necessity to promote the monitoring of greenhouse gas emissions and reporting system at the global level is substantiated. The purpose of the advanced metering system is to obtain relevant and reliable data for timely response to and planned reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. In accordance with the recommendations of the international standard for non-financial reporting, GRI, the effectiveness of reducing greenhouse gas emissions should be disclosed in the aspect of "Emissions". The progress of economic science has made it important to take into account the natural component, and the value of bioresources will increase over time, therefore, the company's economic development can not be isolated. In accordance with the hypothesis, it is assumed that the economy and ecology are interrelated and affect each other. To determine economic development and its environmental footprint at the industry level in the aspect of global warming, new approaches and methods must be applied. Based on statistical methods, a correlation model between economic development and environmental performance has been developed to identify their interrelations based on non-financial reporting data. The developed model can be used by the owners of oil and gas companies and its general principles by the companies of different industries. The results may be of interest to all categories of non-financial reporting users, including government agencies in managing sustainable development at the industry level. The correlation model was tested on the non-financial reports of the oil and gas industry represented by the largest companies - British Petroleum, Lukoil, Shell and Surgutneftegas. Approbation showed different types of interrelations between the two development systems of individual companies: economy and ecology. Thus, the correlation coefficients prove the hypothesis that there is a connection between economic development and environmental performance. The overall result for the industry presented a weak positive relationship. The results obtained show the difference in the approach of companies to the issue of environmental and the lack of attention to the environment at the industry level. Further research in this area, using detailed data from a larger number of industry participants, will improve our understanding of the relationship between the two most important systems of sustainable development and will help to draw practical conclusions.