Decoupling as a Measurement of the Environmental Impact of Economic Growth

Abstract

Accelerated population growth on the planet leads to an increase in production, which causes the need to increase the production of raw materials, expand the construction of industrial structures, increase social infrastructure facilities, and so on. Consequently, the creation of appropriate conditions for the existence of modern civilisation leads to an exhaustible use of natural resource potential and an aggravation of global environmental problems that have a destructive impact on the environment. Considering the above, the issue of monitoring environmental consequences from economic activities acquires significant theoretical and practical significance, which determines the relevance of the subject matter. The purpose of this study is to substantiate the theoretical and methodological foundations and applied aspects of measuring the decoupling effect under the condition of an environmentally oriented course of social development. The methodological basis of the study is the methods of empirical research and theoretical cognition, in particular the method of formalisation, abstract and logical, observation, measurement, and comparison. The study used general scientific methods and techniques, in particular, analysis and synthesis, analogy and economic modelling, induction and deduction. The paper systematises the opinions of leading researchers on understanding the concept of decoupling based on the resource approach and environmental impact. The analysis provided the basis for investigating the impact of production on the environment in the context of regions in 2016-2020 and visualising an integral indicator of the regional decoupling effect. Generalisation of the value of factors in Ukraine as a whole allowed projecting the environmental consequences of economic activities for the future. The practical significance of the study is to substantiate practical recommendations for strengthening environmental policy and minimising the destructive impact on the environment, considering the challenges associated with military operations on the territory of Ukraine. Further research is aimed at considering the achieved effect of decoupling within certain branches of the national economy