The impact of environmental regulation, shadow economy, and corruption on environmental quality: Theory and empirical evidence from China

AbstractAs a wide-reaching institutional reform, China's fiscal decentralization was launched in the early 1980s to encourage provincial economic growth by granting more financial autonomy to provincial governments. In this paper, the impact of fiscal decentralization on China's environmental quality is investigated both theoretically and empirically. A neoclassical model is developed based on the primary characteristics of China's fiscal decentralization. Using provincial panel data for the period 1995-2015, a two-equation regression model is employed to empirically verify the three propositions of the theoretical model: (1) there exists an inverted-U shaped relationship between fiscal decentralization and GDP per capita; (2) fiscal decentralization is positively related to GDP per capita at the steady state; (3) there is an inverted-U shaped Environmental Kuznets Curve relationship between pollution emissions and economic growth.

Download Full-text

Assessing the Impact of Environmental Regulation on Livestock Manure Waste Recycling: Empirical Evidence from Households in China

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11205737 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (20) ◽

pp. 5737

Author(s):

Si ◽

Pan ◽

Yuan ◽

Lu ◽

Zhang

Keyword(s):

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Empirical Evidence ◽

Environmental Regulation ◽

Waste Recycling ◽

Livestock Manure ◽

Gas Emissions ◽

Long Time ◽

The Government ◽

The Impact

Livestock manure waste (LMW) has turned into an important source of greenhouse gas emissions. Livestock manure waste recycling (LMWR) has great significance for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the LMW management process. For a long time, the government has mainly adopted environmental regulation to accelerate LMWR, but the recycling degree is still low. The objective of this study was to assess the impact of environmental regulation on LMWR. Empirical evidence was obtained through methods of in-depth measures and questionnaire investigation from 465 households engaged in breeding pigs in Hebei, Henan, and Hubei, China. The double hurdle model was employed to empirically assess the impact of environmental regulation on household LMWR behavior, and the moderating effects of guiding regulation were further verified. The results were that (1) 62.30% of the households in the sample were willing to implement LMWR behavior, but the recycling degree was only 42.50% of the LMW emission amount. (2) Environmental regulation was found to positively impact household LMWR behavior, while the effects were mainly contributed by imperative and guiding regulation. (3) Guiding regulation was shown to positively moderate the influences of imperative and incentive regulation on household LMWR behavior. (4) The impact of environmental regulation on different scales of household LMWR behavior was found to be heterogeneous. Finally, some recommendations, such as improving subsidy standards, classifying to promote LMWR technology, as well as increasing the matched proportions of planting and breeding, were proposed.

Download Full-text

Can a Win–Win Situation of Economy and Environment Be Achieved in Cities by the Government’s Environmental Regulations?

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13115829 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (11) ◽

pp. 5829

Author(s):

Xinfei Li ◽

Baodong Cheng ◽

Qiling Hong ◽

Chang Xu

Keyword(s):

Environmental Regulation ◽

Total Factor Productivity ◽

Environmental Quality ◽

Negative Impact ◽

Environmental Regulations ◽

Removal Rate ◽

Utilization Rate ◽

Factor Productivity ◽

Regulatory Policies ◽

The Impact

Based on the panel data of 216 prefecture-level cities in China from 2003 to 2016, this study selected five emission-reduction indicators (industrial SO2 removal rate, soot removal rate, comprehensive utilization rate of industrial solid waste, domestic sewage treatment rate, and harmless treatment of domestic waste rate) to quantify the intensity of urban environmental regulations. Based on the intensity of environmental regulations, the authors further studied the impact of environmental regulations on economic quality (green total factor productivity) and environmental quality (PM2.5). The test results showed that the impact of environmental regulation on PM2.5 is a U-type change that first declines and then rises, while the impact of the implementation of environmental regulation on green total factor productivity is an inverted U-shaped change, which first increases and then decreases. On the one hand, appropriate environmental regulations are conducive to improving environmental quality and improving urban green total factor productivity. On the other hand, excessive environmental regulations have not only failed to improve environmental quality, but also have a negative impact on the improvement of economic quality. In addition, there are regional differences in the impact of environmental regulations, so it is necessary to formulate appropriate and local environmental regulatory policies.

Download Full-text

The specifics of shadow economic activity in Russia

Economic Analysis Theory and Practice ◽

10.24891/ea.19.10.1896 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 19 (10) ◽

pp. 1896-1915

Author(s):

E.R. Ermakova ◽

O.M. Lizina

Keyword(s):

Economic Activity ◽

Shadow Economy ◽

Integrated Approach ◽

Economic Activities ◽

Reproductive Process ◽

Scientific Methods ◽

Current Period ◽

Russian Economy ◽

Analysis And Synthesis ◽

The Impact

Subject. The article addresses the specifics of shadow economic activities in reformed Russia in the context of systemic transformations. Objectives. We focus on determining the role of shadow economy in the reproductive process, identifying and understanding the specifics of underground economic activity of the Russian economy. Methods. The study rests on general scientific methods (scientific abstraction, unity of historical and logical, analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, comparison and analogy) and special methods of cognition (monetary methods). We employ the systems and integrated approach. The official statistics, regulations, works of leading researchers on shadow economy expansion, resources of reference and legal systems like Garant and ConsultantPlus serve as the study's information base. Results. We present a retrospective rapid analysis of the extent of shadow economic activity in the domestic economy, establishing the relationships with the processes that take place at different stages of the country's development. We also reveal the specifics of shadow economy relations in Russia, factors that play a key role in expansion for a particular period, a shift to another form of shadow economy. The study characterizes the current period of development, assesses the impact of external shocks on shadow economy expansion. Conclusions. The current period is characterized by the digitization of shadow relations, the shift of corruption to the upper echelons of power, the continued outflow of capital abroad, and increased penalties for underground activities.

Download Full-text