Toward a sustainable environment within the framework of carbon neutrality scenarios: Evidence from the novel Fourier-NARDL approach

Sustainable energy policies are directly proportional to countries' achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Economies that want to achieve their 2030 and 2050 targets are looking for alternative energy sources until renewable energy sources mature. In this context, this study models the environmental quality of France, which is the leader in the use of nuclear energy in Europe, from a different perspective through nuclear energy technologies. This study empirically uses the novel Fourier asymmetric autoregressive distributed lag approach. It confirms that increases and decreases in nuclear technology have different effects on the load capacity factor within the framework of the load capacity curve (LCC) hypothesis. It also provides evidence for the existence of the LCC hypothesis and offers sustainable energy policies for France. The French government should allocate funds to cleaner energies instead of investing in nuclear energy technologies. Thus, the long-term transition to a low-carbon economy can be accelerated instead of short-term targets. By eliminating nuclear energy, a severe burden on the French economy, infrastructure can be created for alternative energy sources. Finally, the French government can gain momentum in achieving SDGs 7 and 13 by withdrawing support from nuclear energy technologies.