Exploring the influence of economic freedom index on fishing grounds footprint in environmental Kuznets curve framework through spatial econometrics technique: evidence from Asia-Pacific countries.

Environmental challenges are as vast as the universe, allowing for numerous studies on their various dimensions. Using 17 data sets from Asia-Pacific countries between 2000 and 2017, this study attempted to investigate the economic factors influencing the ecological footprint of the fishing sector. The primary contribution of this study is to examine the effects of nine economic freedom indicators, as well as other control variables, on the status of fishery resources due to environmental pressure. The findings confirm the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis in the fishing grounds footprint, indicating that GDP per capita growth has a positive and significant effect, even though its squared form coefficient is negative. Other control variables, including natural resource rents, urbanization, and energy intensity, do not significantly affect the fishing footprint. The different components of economic freedom show different effects, while their cumulative effects in the form of the total economic freedom index positively affect the footprint of fishing and lead to increased extraction from fishing resources. The results show that the government integrity, tax burden, business freedom, and monetary freedom indices increase the fishing footprint. In contrast, indices of trade freedom and investment freedom, by highlighting the adverse effects of fishing on the environment, help countries reduce pressure on their aquatic resources. The findings of this study highlight the importance of examining how various dimensions of economic freedom affect the ability to manage fishery resources effectively.