Economic Development and Environment in Southeast Asia: An Introductory Note

Economic development in Southeast Asia has been associated with environmental degradation. Its cause is mainly attributed to rapid industrialization, coupled with urbanization and export growth, whereas the vicious circle of the poverty and the contamination is a minor case. The environmental damage in those countries will be partly reduced along with the rising income level, as the hypothesis of the "Environmental Kuznets Curves" argues. However, some of the major problems, CO2 emissions for example, would not be solved automatically on the basis of the market mechanism. The governments have indeed tried to prevent contamination, drawing lessons from experiences in the industrialized countries, but their continued efforts are indispensable for the well-being of the people.