IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/endesu/v27y2025i3d10.1007_s10668-023-04146-4.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Energy efficiency suppression and spatial spillover effect: a quasi-natural experiment based on China’s environmental protection tax law

Author

Listed:
  • Shiqin Su

    (Wuhan University)

  • Siying Li

    (Wuhan University)

Abstract

The environmental protection tax law (EPTL) is China’s inaugural formally legislated market-based environmental tax regime. Whether the EPTL can improve green total factor energy efficiency (GTFEE) is of great importance for China’s sustainable development. Utilizing a sample of China’s 284 prefecture-level cities from 2015 to 2019 and the difference-in-differences method, this study explores the impact of China’s environmental protection tax law (EPTL) on green total factor energy efficiency (GTFEE). Results show that: (1) The EPTL exerts a significant negative impact on GTFEE, a conclusion reinforced by a series of robustness checks; (2) two potential mechanisms are reduced green technology innovation and shifted industrial structure; (3) heterogeneity analysis underscores that the negative effects are more significant in eastern regions, old industrial cities, and cities under high fiscal pressure; and (4) based on the spatial difference-in-differences method, the subsequent analysis reveals a negative spatial spillover effect of the EPTL on GTFEE of neighboring cities. Derived from the above conclusions, this study provides policy recommendations for the long-term formulation of the EPTL.

Suggested Citation

  • Shiqin Su & Siying Li, 2025. "Energy efficiency suppression and spatial spillover effect: a quasi-natural experiment based on China’s environmental protection tax law," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 27(3), pages 6397-6422, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:endesu:v:27:y:2025:i:3:d:10.1007_s10668-023-04146-4
    DOI: 10.1007/s10668-023-04146-4
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10668-023-04146-4
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10668-023-04146-4?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
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Chang, Tzu-Pu & Hu, Jin-Li, 2010. "Total-factor energy productivity growth, technical progress, and efficiency change: An empirical study of China," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 87(10), pages 3262-3270, October.
    2. Candau, Fabien & Dienesch, Elisa, 2017. "Pollution Haven and Corruption Paradise," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 171-192.
    3. Bruno Ferman, 2023. "Inference in difference‐in‐differences: How much should we trust in independent clusters?," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 38(3), pages 358-369, April.
    4. Wang, Kunlun & Zheng, Leven J. & Zhang, Justin Zuopeng & Yao, Hongjiang, 2022. "The impact of promoting new energy vehicles on carbon intensity: Causal evidence from China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    5. Cai, Xiqian & Lu, Yi & Wu, Mingqin & Yu, Linhui, 2016. "Does environmental regulation drive away inbound foreign direct investment? Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment in China," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 73-85.
    6. He, Yu & Zhu, Xiaobo & Zheng, Huan, 2022. "The influence of environmental protection tax law on total factor productivity: Evidence from listed firms in China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 113(C).
    7. Jacobson, Louis S & LaLonde, Robert J & Sullivan, Daniel G, 1993. "Earnings Losses of Displaced Workers," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 83(4), pages 685-709, September.
    8. Rubashkina, Yana & Galeotti, Marzio & Verdolini, Elena, 2015. "Environmental regulation and competitiveness: Empirical evidence on the Porter Hypothesis from European manufacturing sectors," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 288-300.
    9. Du, Kerui & Cheng, Yuanyuan & Yao, Xin, 2021. "Environmental regulation, green technology innovation, and industrial structure upgrading: The road to the green transformation of Chinese cities," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    10. Orlov, Anton & Grethe, Harald & McDonald, Scott, 2013. "Carbon taxation in Russia: Prospects for a double dividend and improved energy efficiency," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 128-140.
    11. Chagas, André L.S. & Azzoni, Carlos R. & Almeida, Alexandre N., 2016. "A spatial difference-in-differences analysis of the impact of sugarcane production on respiratory diseases," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 24-36.
    12. Louis S. Jacobson & Robert J. LaLonde & Daniel G. Sullivan, 1993. "Long-term earnings losses of high-seniority displaced workers," Economic Perspectives, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, vol. 17(Nov), pages 2-20.
    13. Zhou, Chaobo & Qi, Shaozhou, 2022. "Has the pilot carbon trading policy improved China's green total factor energy efficiency?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    14. Dubé, Jean & Legros, Diègo & Thériault, Marius & Des Rosiers, François, 2014. "A spatial Difference-in-Differences estimator to evaluate the effect of change in public mass transit systems on house prices," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 24-40.
    15. de Miguel, Carlos & Labandeira, Xavier & Löschel, Andreas, 2015. "Frontiers in the economics of energy efficiency," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(S1), pages 1-4.
    16. Tan, Ruipeng & Tang, Di & Lin, Boqiang, 2018. "Policy impact of new energy vehicles promotion on air quality in Chinese cities," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 33-40.
    17. Hering, Laura & Poncet, Sandra, 2014. "Environmental policy and exports: Evidence from Chinese cities," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 68(2), pages 296-318.
    18. Brian R. Copeland & M. Scott Taylor, 2004. "Trade, Growth, and the Environment," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 42(1), pages 7-71, March.
    19. Li, Bo & Han, Yukai & Wang, Chensheng & Sun, Wei, 2022. "Did civilized city policy improve energy efficiency of resource-based cities? Prefecture-level evidence from China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    20. He, Pinglin & Sun, Yulong & Niu, Hanlu & Long, Chengfeng & Li, Shufeng, 2021. "The long and short-term effects of environmental tax on energy efficiency: Perspective of OECD energy tax and vehicle traffic tax," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 307-325.
    21. Hancevic, Pedro Ignacio, 2016. "Environmental regulation and productivity: The case of electricity generation under the CAAA-1990," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 131-143.
    22. Bjorner, Thomas Bue & Jensen, Henrik Holm, 2002. "Energy taxes, voluntary agreements and investment subsidies--a micro-panel analysis of the effect on Danish industrial companies' energy demand," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 24(3), pages 229-249, June.
    23. Neves, Sónia Almeida & Marques, António Cardoso & Patrício, Margarida, 2020. "Determinants of CO2 emissions in European Union countries: Does environmental regulation reduce environmental pollution?," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 114-125.
    24. Cairns, Robert D., 2014. "The green paradox of the economics of exhaustible resources," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 78-85.
    25. Hao, Yu & Gai, Zhiqiang & Wu, Haitao, 2020. "How do resource misallocation and government corruption affect green total factor energy efficiency? Evidence from China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    26. Wang, Xipan & Song, Junnian & Duan, Haiyan & Wang, Xian'en, 2021. "Coupling between energy efficiency and industrial structure: An urban agglomeration case," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 234(C).
    27. van der Ploeg, Frederick & Withagen, Cees, 2012. "Is there really a green paradox?," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 64(3), pages 342-363.
    28. Bashir, Muhammad Farhan & MA, Benjiang & Shahbaz, Muhammad & Shahzad, Umer & Vo, Xuan Vinh, 2021. "Unveiling the heterogeneous impacts of environmental taxes on energy consumption and energy intensity: Empirical evidence from OECD countries," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 226(C).
    29. Diao, Mi & Leonard, Delon & Sing, Tien Foo, 2017. "Spatial-difference-in-differences models for impact of new mass rapid transit line on private housing values," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 64-77.
    30. Sun, Huaping & Edziah, Bless Kofi & Sun, Chuanwang & Kporsu, Anthony Kwaku, 2019. "Institutional quality, green innovation and energy efficiency," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 135(C).
    31. Sunak, Yasin & Madlener, Reinhard, 2016. "The impact of wind farm visibility on property values: A spatial difference-in-differences analysis," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 79-91.
    32. Ebru Alpay & Joe Kerkvliet & Steven Buccola, 2002. "Productivity Growth and Environmental Regulation in Mexican and U.S. Food Manufacturing," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 84(4), pages 887-901.
    33. Geng, Yong & Liu, Wei & Li, Kai & Chen, Hanshu, 2021. "Environmental regulation and corporate tax avoidance: A quasi-natural experiment based on the eleventh Five-Year Plan in China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    34. Ramzan, Muhammad & Abbasi, Kashif Raza & Iqbal, Hafiz Arslan & Adebayo, Tomiwa Sunday, 2023. "What's at Stake? The empirical importance of government revenue and debt and renewable energy for environmental neutrality in the US economy," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 205(C), pages 475-489.
    35. Yang, Tingru & Li, Hui & Zhang, Lingyue & Chen, Tianqi, 2022. "The impact of city gas on income inequality in China: A regional heterogeneity analysis," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).
    36. Wu, Haitao & Hao, Yu & Ren, Siyu, 2020. "How do environmental regulation and environmental decentralization affect green total factor energy efficiency: Evidence from China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    37. Antonietti, Roberto & Fontini, Fulvio, 2019. "Does energy price affect energy efficiency? Cross-country panel evidence," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 896-906.
    38. Haider, Salman & Mishra, Prajna Paramita, 2021. "Does innovative capability enhance the energy efficiency of Indian Iron and Steel firms? A Bayesian stochastic frontier analysis," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    39. Shi, Xinzheng & Xu, Zhufeng, 2018. "Environmental regulation and firm exports: Evidence from the eleventh Five-Year Plan in China," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 89(C), pages 187-200.
    40. Shi, Beibei & Feng, Chen & Qiu, Meng & Ekeland, Anders, 2018. "Innovation suppression and migration effect: The unintentional consequences of environmental regulation," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 1-23.
    41. Zhang, Jinzhu & Liu, Yu & Zhou, Meifang & Chen, Boyang & Liu, Yawen & Cheng, Baodong & Xue, Jinjun & Zhang, Wei, 2022. "Regulatory effect of improving environmental information disclosure under environmental tax in China: From the perspectives of temporal and industrial heterogeneity," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    42. Magdalena Radulescu & Crenguta Ileana Sinisi & Constanta Popescu & Silvia Elena Iacob & Luigi Popescu, 2017. "Environmental Tax Policy in Romania in the Context of the EU: Double Dividend Theory," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(11), pages 1-20, October.
    43. Pengsheng Li & Yanying Chen, 2019. "The Influence of Enterprises’ Bargaining Power on the Green Total Factor Productivity Effect of Environmental Regulation—Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(18), pages 1-20, September.
    44. Muhammad Farhan Bashir & Benjiang MA & Muhammad Shahbaz & Zhilun Jiao, 2020. "The nexus between environmental tax and carbon emissions with the roles of environmental technology and financial development," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(11), pages 1-20, November.
    45. Zhang, Dongyang, 2022. "Environmental regulation, green innovation, and export product quality: What is the role of greenwashing?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    46. Takeda, Shiro, 2007. "The double dividend from carbon regulations in Japan," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 21(3), pages 336-364, September.
    47. Wu, Haitao & Hao, Yu & Ren, Siyu & Yang, Xiaodong & Xie, Guo, 2021. "Does internet development improve green total factor energy efficiency? Evidence from China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).
    48. Wang, Zhaohua & Feng, Chao, 2015. "A performance evaluation of the energy, environmental, and economic efficiency and productivity in China: An application of global data envelopment analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 617-626.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Wu, Haitao & Hao, Yu & Ren, Siyu, 2020. "How do environmental regulation and environmental decentralization affect green total factor energy efficiency: Evidence from China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    2. Liu, Cenjie & Fang, Jiayu & Xie, Rui, 2021. "Energy policy and corporate financial performance: Evidence from China's 11th five-year plan," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    3. Yu Hao & Jingwen Huang & Yunxia Guo & Haitao Wu & Siyu Ren, 2022. "Does the legacy of state planning put pressure on ecological efficiency? Evidence from China," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(7), pages 3100-3121, November.
    4. Geng, Yong & Liu, Wei & Li, Kai & Chen, Hanshu, 2021. "Environmental regulation and corporate tax avoidance: A quasi-natural experiment based on the eleventh Five-Year Plan in China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    5. Yang Liu & Ruochan Xiong & Shigong Lv & Da Gao, 2022. "The Impact of Digital Finance on Green Total Factor Energy Efficiency: Evidence at China’s City Level," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(15), pages 1-17, July.
    6. Zhou, Peng & Song, Frank M. & Huang, Xiaoqi, 2023. "Environmental regulations and firms' green innovations: Transforming pressure into incentives," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    7. Yu Hao & Yunxia Guo & Haitao Wu, 2022. "The role of information and communication technology on green total factor energy efficiency: Does environmental regulation work?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(1), pages 403-424, January.
    8. Yi Li & Lili Ding & Yongliang Yang, 2020. "Can the Introduction of an Environmental Target Assessment Policy Improve the TFP of Textile Enterprises? A Quasi-Natural Experiment Based on the Huai River Basin in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-19, February.
    9. Zhang, Fan & Wang, Feng & Yao, Shujie, 2024. "Does government-driven infrastructure boost green innovation? Evidence of new infrastructure plan in China," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    10. Yan, Zheming & Zhou, Zicheng & Du, Kerui, 2023. "How does environmental regulatory stringency affect energy consumption? Evidence from Chinese firms," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    11. Wu, Haitao & Xue, Yan & Hao, Yu & Ren, Siyu, 2021. "How does internet development affect energy-saving and emission reduction? Evidence from China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    12. Chunji Zheng & Feng Deng & Chengyou Li, 2022. "Energy-Saving Effect of Regional Development Strategy in Western China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-22, May.
    13. Liu, Duan & Yu, Nizhou & Wan, Hong, 2022. "Does water rights trading affect corporate investment? The role of resource allocation and risk mitigation channels," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    14. Guo, Shu & Zhang, ZhongXiang, 2023. "Green credit policy and total factor productivity: Evidence from Chinese listed companies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 128(C).
    15. Du, Kerui & Liu, Xueyue & Zhao, Cheng, 2023. "Environmental regulation mitigates energy rebound effect," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    16. Rui Ding & Fangcheng Sun, 2023. "Impact of River Chief System on Green Technology Innovation: Empirical Evidence from the Yangtze River Economic Belt," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-22, April.
    17. Yong Geng & Wei Liu & Hanshu Chen & Xinyu Zou, 2023. "The Spillover Effects of Environmental Regulations: A Perspective of Chinese Unregulated Firms' Tax Burden," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 31(2), pages 84-111, March.
    18. Zhou, Chaobo & Qi, Shaozhou, 2022. "Has the pilot carbon trading policy improved China's green total factor energy efficiency?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    19. Sun, Chuanwang & Zhan, Yanhong & Gao, Xiang, 2023. "Does environmental regulation increase domestic value-added in exports? An empirical study of cleaner production standards in China," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 163(C).
    20. Wu, Haitao & Wang, Bingjie & Lu, Mingyue & Irfan, Muhammad & Miao, Xin & Luo, Shiyue & Hao, Yu, 2023. "The strategy to achieve zero‑carbon in agricultural sector: Does digitalization matter under the background of COP26 targets?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).

    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:spr:endesu:v:27:y:2025:i:3:d:10.1007_s10668-023-04146-4. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    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.