IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/urbstu/v54y2017i15p3579-3596.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Urbanisation and the geographic concentration of industrial SO2 emissions in China

Author

Listed:
  • Zekai He

    (Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, China)

  • Xiuzhen Shi

    (Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, China)

  • Xinhao Wang

    (University of Cincinnati, USA)

  • Yuwei Xu

    (Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, China)

Abstract

This paper studies the mechanisms linking urbanisation and industrial SO 2 emissions using panel data that enable us to trace the environmental impact of the urban transformation of China’s economy from a rural to a largely urban society. We provide evidence of stylised facts on spatial patterns and temporal changes of industrial SO 2 emissions in China. Over time, industrial SO 2 emissions show increasing levels in small and medium-sized cities but slightly decreasing levels in some large cities. The results show that urbanisation is one of the main driving forces behind emissions and the increase in the urbanisation level is likely to exacerbate emissions. Emissions are more sensitive to industrialisation than urbanisation, indicating that industrialisation remains a key industrial SO 2 pollution contributor in China. Industrial emissions abatement policies in China should be designed by considering the spatial differences of emissions and the pace of urbanisation, although the increase of urbanisation is associated with benefits such as poverty reduction and economic growth. The reduction of industrial SO 2 emissions requires coordinated approaches by adjusting the pace of urbanisation.

Suggested Citation

  • Zekai He & Xiuzhen Shi & Xinhao Wang & Yuwei Xu, 2017. "Urbanisation and the geographic concentration of industrial SO2 emissions in China," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 54(15), pages 3579-3596, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:54:y:2017:i:15:p:3579-3596
    DOI: 10.1177/0042098016669915
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0042098016669915
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/0042098016669915?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Henderson, Daniel J. & Tochkov, Kiril & Badunenko, Oleg, 2007. "A drive up the capital coast? Contributions to post-reform growth across Chinese provinces," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 29(3), pages 569-594, September.
    2. Werner Antweiler & Brian R. Copeland & M. Scott Taylor, 2001. "Is Free Trade Good for the Environment?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 91(4), pages 877-908, September.
    3. Stern, David I., 2004. "The Rise and Fall of the Environmental Kuznets Curve," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 32(8), pages 1419-1439, August.
    4. Qi, Tianyu & Winchester, Niven & Karplus, Valerie J. & Zhang, Xiliang, 2014. "Will economic restructuring in China reduce trade-embodied CO2 emissions?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 204-212.
    5. Zhang, Xing-Ping & Cheng, Xiao-Mei, 2009. "Energy consumption, carbon emissions, and economic growth in China," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(10), pages 2706-2712, August.
    6. Damania, Richard & Fredriksson, Per G. & List, John A., 2003. "Trade liberalization, corruption, and environmental policy formation: theory and evidence," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 46(3), pages 490-512, November.
    7. Janet Currie & Matthew Neidell, 2005. "Air Pollution and Infant Health: What Can We Learn from California's Recent Experience?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 120(3), pages 1003-1030.
    8. Auffhammer, Maximilian & Carson, Richard T., 2008. "Forecasting the path of China's CO2 emissions using province-level information," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 55(3), pages 229-247, May.
    9. York, Richard & Rosa, Eugene A. & Dietz, Thomas, 2003. "STIRPAT, IPAT and ImPACT: analytic tools for unpacking the driving forces of environmental impacts," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(3), pages 351-365, October.
    10. Yuan Xu, 2011. "The use of a goal for SO2 mitigation planning and management in China's 11th Five-Year Plan," Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 54(6), pages 769-783.
    11. Avraham Ebenstein, 2012. "The Consequences of Industrialization: Evidence from Water Pollution and Digestive Cancers in China," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 94(1), pages 186-201, February.
    12. Gene M. Grossman & Alan B. Krueger, 1995. "Economic Growth and the Environment," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 110(2), pages 353-377.
    13. Jeffrey A. Frankel & Andrew K. Rose, 2005. "Is Trade Good or Bad for the Environment? Sorting Out the Causality," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 87(1), pages 85-91, February.
    14. Matthew A. Cole & Eric Neumayer, 2003. "Examining the Impact of Demographic Factors On Air Pollution," Labor and Demography 0312005, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 13 May 2004.
    15. Ang, James B., 2009. "CO2 emissions, research and technology transfer in China," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(10), pages 2658-2665, August.
    16. He, Jie & Wang, Hua, 2012. "Economic structure, development policy and environmental quality: An empirical analysis of environmental Kuznets curves with Chinese municipal data," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 49-59.
    17. Lozano, Sebastián & Gutiérrez, Ester, 2008. "Non-parametric frontier approach to modelling the relationships among population, GDP, energy consumption and CO2 emissions," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 66(4), pages 687-699, July.
    18. Minihan, Erin S. & Wu, Ziping, 2012. "Economic structure and strategies for greenhouse gas mitigation," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 34(1), pages 350-357.
    19. Cherniwchan, Jevan, 2012. "Economic growth, industrialization, and the environment," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 442-467.
    20. Martin Gassebner & Michael J. Lamla & Jan-Egbert Sturm, 2011. "Determinants of pollution: what do we really know?," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 63(3), pages 568-595, July.
    21. Henderson, J. Vernon & Wang, Hyoung Gun, 2007. "Urbanization and city growth: The role of institutions," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(3), pages 283-313, May.
    22. Dhakal, Shobhakar, 2009. "Urban energy use and carbon emissions from cities in China and policy implications," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(11), pages 4208-4219, November.
    23. Poumanyvong, Phetkeo & Kaneko, Shinji, 2010. "Does urbanization lead to less energy use and lower CO2 emissions? A cross-country analysis," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(2), pages 434-444, December.
    24. Sadorsky, Perry, 2014. "The effect of urbanization on CO2 emissions in emerging economies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 147-153.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Yiming Wang & Pengcheng Xiang, 2018. "Urban Sprawl Sustainability of Mountainous Cities in the Context of Climate Change Adaptability Using a Coupled Coordination Model: A Case Study of Chongqing, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-20, December.
    2. Yun Luo & Pengcheng Xiang & Yiming Wang, 2020. "Investigate the Relationship between Urbanization and Industrialization using a Coordination Model: A Case Study of China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-17, January.
    3. Ruoyu Yang & Weidong Chen, 2019. "Spatial Correlation, Influencing Factors and Environmental Supervision on Mechanism Construction of Atmospheric Pollution: An Empirical Study on SO 2 Emissions in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-13, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Kais, Saidi & Sami, Hammami, 2016. "An econometric study of the impact of economic growth and energy use on carbon emissions: Panel data evidence from fifty eight countries," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 1101-1110.
    2. Lapatinas, Athanasios & Garas, Antonios & Boleti, Eirini & Kyriakou, Alexandra, 2019. "Economic complexity and environmental performance: Evidence from a world sample," MPRA Paper 92833, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Mansor H. Ibrahim & Siong Hook Law, 2016. "Institutional Quality and CO 2 Emission–Trade Relations: Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 84(2), pages 323-340, June.
    4. Le Hoang Phong & Dang Thi Bach Van & Ho Hoang Gia Bao, 2018. "The Role of Globalization on CO2 Emission in Vietnam Incorporating Industrialization, Urbanization, GDP per Capita and Energy Use," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 8(6), pages 275-283.
    5. Fang, Wen Shwo & Miller, Stephen M. & Yeh, Chih-Chuan, 2012. "The effect of ESCOs on energy use," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 558-568.
    6. Charfeddine, Lanouar, 2017. "The impact of energy consumption and economic development on Ecological Footprint and CO2 emissions: Evidence from a Markov Switching Equilibrium Correction Model," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 355-374.
    7. Charfeddine, Lanouar & Ben Khediri, Karim, 2016. "Financial development and environmental quality in UAE: Cointegration with structural breaks," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 1322-1335.
    8. Iftikhar Yasin & Nawaz Ahmad & M. Aslam Chaudhary, 2020. "Catechizing the Environmental-Impression of Urbanization, Financial Development, and Political Institutions: A Circumstance of Ecological Footprints in 110 Developed and Less-Developed Countries," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 147(2), pages 621-649, January.
    9. Onafowora, Olugbenga A. & Owoye, Oluwole, 2014. "Bounds testing approach to analysis of the environment Kuznets curve hypothesis," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 47-62.
    10. Zhou, Yang & Liu, Yansui & Wu, Wenxiang & Li, Yurui, 2015. "Effects of rural–urban development transformation on energy consumption and CO2 emissions: A regional analysis in China," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 863-875.
    11. Hao, Yu & Zhang, Zong-Yong & Yang, Chuxiao & Wu, Haitao, 2021. "Does structural labor change affect CO2 emissions? Theoretical and empirical evidence from China," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    12. Acheampong, Alex O. & Dzator, Janet & Dzator, Michael & Salim, Ruhul, 2022. "Unveiling the effect of transport infrastructure and technological innovation on economic growth, energy consumption and CO2 emissions," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 182(C).
    13. WenShwo Fang & Stephen M. Miller, 2013. "The effect of ESCO s on carbon dioxide emissions," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 45(34), pages 4796-4804, December.
    14. Acheampong, Alex O., 2019. "Modelling for insight: Does financial development improve environmental quality?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 156-179.
    15. Mina Baliamoune-Lutz, 2017. "Trade and Environmental Quality in African Countries: Do Institutions Matter?," Eastern Economic Journal, Palgrave Macmillan;Eastern Economic Association, vol. 43(1), pages 155-172, January.
    16. Opoku, Eric Evans Osei & Boachie, Micheal Kofi, 2020. "The environmental impact of industrialization and foreign direct investment," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 137(C).
    17. Arminen, Heli & Menegaki, Angeliki N., 2019. "Corruption, climate and the energy-environment-growth nexus," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 621-634.
    18. Ameer, Ayesha & Munir, Kashif, 2016. "Effect of Economic Growth, Trade Openness, Urbanization, and Technology on Environment of Selected Asian Countries," MPRA Paper 74571, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Rasool, Samma Faiz & Zaman, Shah & Jehan, Noor & Chin, Tachia & Khan, Saleem & Zaman, Qamar uz, 2022. "Investigating the role of the tech industry, renewable energy, and urbanization in sustainable environment: Policy directions in the context of developing economies," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 183(C).
    20. Shahbaz, Muhammad & Haouas, Ilham & Hoang, Thi Hong Van, 2019. "Economic growth and environmental degradation in Vietnam: Is the environmental Kuznets curve a complete picture?," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 197-218.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:54:y:2017:i:15:p:3579-3596. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.gla.ac.uk/departments/urbanstudiesjournal .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.