The impact of media reports on energy and environmental efficiency in China: evidence from modified dynamic DEA with undesirable outputs.

BACKGROUND: Rapid economic growth in China has resulted in a commensurate increase in energy consumption, which in turn has seen an increase in environmental pollution problems. Past research has tended to focus on energy and environmental efficiency analyses and has rarely examined the media influence on environmental protection efforts. Further, most studies have used static models and ignored the dynamic changes over time. METHODS: To go some way to filling this research gap, this study developed a modified undesirable Dynamic DEA model that included air quality index (AQI) and CO2 indicators to explore the relationships between energy, the environment, and media report efficiencies in 31 Chinese cities from 2013 to 2016. RESULTS: It was found that: (1) Chongqing, Guangzhou, Nanjing and Shanghai had efficiencies of 1, but Lanzhou, Shijiazhuang, Taiyuan, Xining and Yinchuan needed significant improvements; (2) Chongqing, Guangzhou, Kunming, Nanning and Shanghai had relatively high media efficiencies, but the other cities had low efficiencies and required improvements; (3) the CO2 emissions efficiencies in most cities were better than the air quality index efficiencies; and 4. the media reports in most cities were found to have a more positive impact on the CO2 emissions efficiency than on the AQI efficiency. CONCLUSIONS: Environmental awareness enhances civilian health and promotes economic growth. Therefore, as the news media should be responsible for promoting environmental protection, they need to increase their environmental pollution coverage. It was found that the environmental pollution media report quality and especially air pollution reports needed improvements, and greater media coverage on environmental pollution and awareness was needed.

Efficiency assessment of coal energy and non-coal energy under bound dynamic DDF DEA.

The demand for energy has continued to increase because of global economic development, which has led to rising fuel prices and continued pollution problems. China is currently the largest coal consumer and is also the largest emitter of coal-fired CO2 emissions. However, past efficiency studies have been mostly limited to static analyses and have not considered undesirable outputs. Therefore, this study developed a bound dynamic directional distance function (DDF) data envelopment analysis (DEA) model to explore the energy and environmental efficiencies in 30 Chinese provinces from 2011 to 2015, from which it was found that (1) the overall efficiency was the best in the eastern region, but relatively low in the western region; (2) Beijing, Guangdong, Jiangsu, Shandong, Shanghai, Tianjin, Jiangxi, Jilin, and some other regions had efficiencies of 1; (3) the revenue and non-coal indicator efficiencies were reasonably good, but the expenditure and emissions efficiencies were generally poor; and (4) the key direction for primary improvements was found to be the emissions index.

Dynamic analysis of residential and enterprise water supply and leakage efficiencies.

With per capita water resources at only around a quarter of the world average, China's water resources are limited and unevenly distributed. Past research on water resource utilization has mainly focused on industrial water use (agriculture and industry), water plant ownership efficiencies (private or public operation), or water resources and economic production; however, there have been few studies focused on water supply livelihood. Therefore, this paper considered both industrial production water services, non-production water services (public sector and residential water use), and water leakage losses, which is a water supply problem seldom mentioned in other studies. An undesirable directional distance function (DDF) dynamic data envelopment analysis (DEA) model was employed for the dynamic analysis as it was able to deal with both desirable and undesirable outputs at the same time. The model examined collected water supply and water leak efficiency data from 30 Chinese provinces/municipalities from 2007 to 2018, from which it was found that (1) Beijing, Gansu, Guangdong, and Ningxia had efficient water supply and water leak losses from 2007 to 2018 and the most improved province was Jiangxi; (2) the eastern provinces, in general, had better water efficiencies and the central and western provinces needed greater improvements; and (3) the lowest water leakage loss efficiencies were in Inner Mongolia, Jiangxi, and Heilongjiang, all of which required significant improvements.