Does Public Participation Reduce Regional Carbon Emissions? A Quasi-Natural Experiment from Environmental Information Disclosure in China

Abstract

Informal environmental regulation, represented by public participation, has an increasingly significant role in environmental governance. This paper utilizes panel data of 285 cities in China from 2003 to 2017. It examines the difference-in-differences (DID) and instrumental variable method (IV) to investigate the causal effect of public participation represented by Environmental Non-Governmental Organizations(ENGOs) on regional carbon emissions. The empirical results show that public participation reduces regional carbon emissions, which still holds after a series of endogeneity and robustness tests. This paper proves an inverted U-shaped nonlinear relationship between the intensity of public participation and regional carbon emissions. Furthermore, this paper demonstrates that regional green technology innovation and strengthening formal environmental regulations are the primary mechanisms for public involvement in promoting regional carbon emission reduction. Finally, this paper discusses the heterogeneity governance effect among cities and finds that the governance effect of the sample is more pronounced in eastern cities, non-resource-based cities, large cities, and provincial capitals. The results reveal the importance of public participation in regional carbon emission reduction and provide an empirical basis for promoting informal environmental regulation.

Entrepreneur Heterogeneity and Environmental Information Disclosure in New Energy Industry: Mediating Role of Environmental Management Practice

“…The mediating effect of EMP is further tested by the process plug-in in SPSS 25.0. According to the mediation test process proposed by Wen and Ye [20] , the total effect formula of the mediation test is shown in (1), and indirect effect formula is shown in (2,3).…”

“…Therefore, companies with higher profitability are being demanded to undertake more environmental responsibility. Corporate environmental information disclosure (EID) is seen as a logical way for companies to integrate their environmental concerns and commitments into their goals, values and cultures [2]. Active EID provides more information to stakeholders, including investors,…”

The Impact of the Green Economy on Carbon Emission Intensity: Comparisons, Challenges, and Mitigating Strategies

“…The green coverage rate of built-up areas showcases a trend of initial growth followed by a decline, whereas the impact of the per capita park green area exhibits a decreasing trend. 4 Pertaining to government policy, environmental protection expenditure exerts a pronounced impact on carbon emissions, demonstrating a declining trend annually. The harmless treatment rate of domestic waste presents feeble fluctuations and consistently maintains a negative impact on carbon emissions.…”

“…North China has the primary concentration of high-value regions for green coverage rate of built-up areas and Sulfur dioxide emissions, while the low-value areas are concentrated in Easteast China and Southwestsouthwest China, respectively. 4 Under government policy, high-value areas of science and technology expenditure and domestic waste harmless treatment rate are primarily located in northwest and southwest regions, with low-value regions mostly concentrated in the north and east. Few regions, specifically Gansu Province, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Shaanxi Province, and Liaoning Province, display high values of environmental protection expenditure.…”

“…In 2020, such emissions related to energy production represented approximately 87% of total global carbon dioxide output. Not only does this excessive production of carbon dioxide exacerbate climate change, but it also impedes the progression towards sustainable economic development [4]. Presently, nations worldwide are endeavoring to align their economic growth with sustainability objectives [5].…”