Do we have to Sacrifice Economic Growth in order to Decrease Carbon Emissions?

Which is more important, decreasing carbon emissions or maintaining economic growth?

The straightforward answer would be to do our utmost to preserve the planet for future generations. Western countries, whose GDP per capita is generally higher than Eastern countries, are financially able to take greater scales of climate action. Therefore, European countries occupy all ten spots in the “Most Eco-friendly Countries 2023” list. 

On the other hand, the economy must be considered so that everyone can financially access basic needs. Underdeveloped countries often rely on unsustainable industries to sustain economic growth. Pressure towards zero emissions during global climate summits connotes less income and prolonged industrial development, delaying reaching the financial ability to convert to renewable energy. 

The environment is the source of all resources. According to the Oxford Languages Dictionary, the economy is defined by how we manage it, each complementing the other for human society. 

Economic growth is the rate of change in real gross domestic product (GDP). This essay will examine to what extent economic growth has to be sacrificed to decrease our carbon footprint, considering the People’s Republic of China, the United Kingdom, and the Islamic Republic of Iran, countries in different states of development as case studies. 

China

As a developed country, China, the world’s largest population, is located in Asia. Manufacturing is the most significant industry in China, accounting for over 46% of the country's GDP, as China’s industrious and cheap labor proved attractive to foreign investments. China Baowu, the world’s top steelmaker, also employs over 227,000 people, who are indispensable to GDP growth. Unfortunately, the manufacturing industry produces significant carbon emissions due to large-scale coal burning, mining, power stations, and blast furnaces being involved in production. China Baowu put more carbon into the atmosphere last year than Pakistan. 

With significant economic development, China has begun to take action. For instance, according to the 2023 roadmap, China aims to develop a green and low-carbon direction in its energy-intensive industrial technologies and efficiently reuse resources. China invested nearly 4 trillion RMB towards solar, wind energy, electric vehicles, and batteries, accounting for almost half of global low-carbon spending in 2022. Furthermore, China’s utility-scale solar capacity has reached 228GW, more than the rest of the world combined. As for wind, China’s combined onshore and offshore capacity now surpasses 310GW, double its 2017 level and equivalent to the following top seven countries combined. China will add 379GW in solar and 371GW in wind energy capacity before 2025. China can decrease carbon emissions immensely because of economic growth built from manufacturing and other industries. 

United Kingdom

A developed country in Northwestern Europe, The UK was the first industrialized nation). Its many colonies meant the country’s economy could survive on free trade alone, with manufactured goods being traded for agriculture and food. However, industrialization caused the UK to be the world’s first carbon emitter of fossil fuels in 1751. In the 20th century, the UK's economy was dominated by high-grossing service industries. In 2021, service industries contributed 1.7 trillion pounds in gross value added (GVA, GDP minus costs incurred in production) to the UK economy, 80% of the total UK GVA. However, just a subsection of the UK's finance sector was already responsible for financing 805 million tonnes of carbon emissions in 2019, equating to 1.8 times the UK's annual net emissions, through lending and investment activities. 

Reaching sufficient economic growth early on, the UK parliament passed climate change acts as early as 2006 and 2008, representing the first time governments legally mandated greenhouse gas emissions reduction, which contained targets requiring 100% carbon emissions reduction by 2050. At the time, the UK's GDP per capita was over 36,000 pounds when the world average was just 7,300 pounds. From 2015 to 21, the UK has committed over 5.8 billion pounds in international climate finance. The 2022 aid strategy aims to increase funding to £11.6 billion from 2021 until 2026. The UK can afford this without sacrificing economic growth, as its net worth was estimated at 10.7 trillion pounds in 2020.

Iran

Iran, an underdeveloped country in the Middle East, has the fourth largest reserves of oil and second largest reserves of gas globally, and production is its main source of income. Data from 1970-2021 showed that the oil industry occupied 21.76 percent of the country’s GDP. Moreover, around 34% of employed Iranians work in the oil and gas industry. The oil/gas industries are the main components of Iran’s economy and essential for continued economic growth. Regardless, the production of oil/gas involves burning fossil fuels, emitting more than 800 million tonnes of carbon in 2021. As a result, many urge Iranians to reduce oil/gas production. However, if it is completely halted, the country’s current GDP annual growth rate of 4.7% would become -17%. Around 8.2 million Iranian citizens would also become unemployed. 

Learning from other countries, the recommended path for Iran to decrease carbon emissions is first to continue growing their economy through the oil/gas industry. Instead of emitting tons of carbon, researching sustainable ways to extract oil/gas would be beneficial. For instance, incorporating freshwater usage, improving streamlining processes, increasing oil recycling, and taking measures to reduce methane leaks. Iran would gain the financial ability to use renewable energy so that economic growth and decreased carbon emissions could occur harmoniously. 

In conclusion, as countries in different development points, China, the United Kingdom, and Iran produced a timeline showcasing how actions emitting carbon can be effective and efficient towards economic growth for less developed countries, providing those countries with the financial ability to reduce carbon emissions. Countries with stronger and richer economies can often indulge in larger scales of environmentally conscious development. As you can see, while combating climate change is a top priority in our world, it is not mandatory to sacrifice economic growth to decrease carbon emissions. Instead, there are many ways to achieve both simultaneously, establishing an environmentally and economically strong world. 

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