The impact of semi-urbanization on carbon emissions: a spatial econometric perspective.

Whether semi-urbanization can effectively help reduce carbon emissions has become increasingly attractive to scholars and policymakers. To the knowledge of the authors, there are no empirical studies that were conducted to explore the impact of semi-urbanization on carbon emissions from a spatial perspective. By employing panel data for the years between 2000 and 2014 of 30 Chinese provinces, this paper examines the relationship between semi-urbanization and carbon emissions by using a spatial regression method. Also, the spatial transmission mechanisms between semi-urbanization and carbon emissions are analyzed. Empirical results indicate a positive spatial spillover effect on carbon emissions across various regions. Simultaneously, we find that semi-urbanization not only facilitates emission reduction in a particular region, but also significantly reduces the carbon emissions in surrounding regions, ultimately implying a significant and negative total effect. Moreover, semi-urbanization has decreased carbon emissions, that is, for every 1% increase in semi-urbanization, the carbon emissions will decrease by 0.803%. Furthermore, semi-urbanization, industrial structure, technological progress, human capital, and energy consumption show spillover impacts on carbon emissions, yet their impact mechanisms vary substantially across various regions. Based on these findings, we suggest several related policy implications for mitigating carbon emissions and promoting semi-urbanization in China.

How does financial development alleviate pollutant emissions in China? A spatial regression analysis.

Assessing the environmental effects of financial development has an important theoretical and practical reference for the government to achieve the goal of sustainable development. Financial development is affected dramatically by the real economy and typically shows nonlinear characteristics. This study aims to investigate the nonlinearity between financial development and pollutant emissions while considering the various stages of financial development among regions. Also, the spatial transmission mechanism between financial development and pollutant emissions is analyzed theoretically. Industrial sulfur dioxide ([Formula: see text]) and solid waste (SW) emissions are used to quantify pollutant emissions in China. The results show a positive spatial spillover effect on pollutant emissions across various regions. Moreover, a region's pollutant emissions can be influenced by the financial development of its surrounding regions, suggesting that financial development reduces [Formula: see text] emissions in a particular region, but it significantly increases [Formula: see text] emissions in surrounding regions, indicating a strong spillover effect. However, financial development significantly decreases SW emissions of a particular region but does not exert a significant impact on its surrounding regions, implying a weak spillover effect. Our results reveal that whereas the relationship of financial development with [Formula: see text] and SW emissions shows a significant U-shaped pattern, that of economic growth exhibit a significant inverted U-shaped pattern. The investigation can help in designing appropriate environmental policies for promoting financial development.