Assessing the impact of digital connectivity and ICT trade on black carbon emissions in Sri Lanka from 2000 to 2022

Abstract

Introduction

Black carbon emissions (BCE) refer to the release of soot particles to the atmosphere from the incomplete combustion of fossil fuel, biomass and waste and they are major contributors to climate change and air pollution. Two main contributing factors to this situation are urbanization and industrialization. As a result it causes significant environmental and public health issues. During the covid-19 lockdown Sri Lanka has observed a significant decrease in air pollution like PM 2.5 levels. The literature highlights the importance of country specific studies on how technical and behavioral factors affect to mitigate BCE (Pushpawela et al., 2023). In the South Asian region BCE has significantly affected environmentally sensitive Tibetan Plateau as identified in the literature which demands global mitigation strategies.

Murshed (2024) argues that carbon emission growth rate can be reduces directly and indirectly using the internet penetration and digitalization effectively. A study by Anita et al., (2024) revealed that black carbon as a component of “Particulate Matter (PM2.5)” associate with significant health risks, especially among children under the age 5. The deaths due to PM 2.5 have reached approximately 306,800 during 2010 to 2014 in South Asia demanding the urgent need of effective air quality improvement initiatives. Further, ICT goods also significantly contributes environmental pollution (Bhujabal et al. (2021)). The negative effects include e-waste, carbon leakage and pollution in the manufacturing processes.

By focusing on Sri Lanka's BCE as opposed to the well-researched CO₂ emissions, this study fills a crucial research gap. It examines the often-overlooked impact of wireless and broadband adoption as well as the trade in ICT commodities on BCE and provide new insights for evidence-based mitigation solutions and policy initiatives.