Economic growth and transitions between renewable and nonrenewable energy resources

We study transitions between nonrenewable and renewable energy forms at different development stages of an economy. It is shown that in the historical context the emphasis on energy production may evolve from renewables to nonrenewables and back to renewables. Typically both energy forms are used simultaneously. Along the equilibrium path, nonrenewable resource consumption may increase and their price decrease. An inverted-U relation between carbon emissions and income level may follow even without environmental policy, (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.