The Impact of Agriculture on Greenhouse Gas Emissions in the Visegrad Group Countries after the World Economic Crisis of 2008. Comparative Study of the Researched Countries

Abstract

The aim of this study is to identify the correlation between the amount of greenhouse gas emissions, added value from agriculture and economic growth in the Visegrad Group countries. Four countries of Central Europe were studied the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia in 2008–2019. Due to the objectives of the article, it was decided to use the panel model. The temporal scope of the research covers the years 2008–2019, i.e., two economic periods: 2008–2014 (a downward trend, including agriculture), and 2015–2019 (an upward trend). Greenhouse gas emissions are positively correlated with value added from agriculture and economic growth. The increase in the level of these variables stimulates of the amount of greenhouse gas emissions in the countries of the Visegrad Group. The analysis of the eco-efficiency of greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture, in relation to the gross added value produced, shows that the country with the least pollution of this value was Hungary, followed by Slovakia. The Czech Republic was third, and Poland was the last. The results of the research can be treated as a premise for a strategy for the development of agriculture, limiting the negative effects of its industrial development for more sustainable development.