The Impact of Industrial Agglomeration on Urban Land Green Use Efficiency and Its Spatio-Temporal Pattern: Evidence from 283 Cities in China

Abstract

Industrial agglomeration is one of the primary driving factors in city creation, and the improvement of urban land green use efficiency (ULGUE) is an important part in green development. This study concentrates on the impact of industrial agglomeration on ULGUE in the process of urbanization. Based on the panel data of 283 cities in China from 2003 to 2019, this paper constructs a super efficiency SBM-DEA model including unexpected outputs to evaluate ULGUE. Using a spatial Durbin model, we examine the spatial spillover effects of manufacturing and productive services agglomeration on ULGUE. The results show the following: (1) There has been fluctuation over the study period, which can be classified into three stages, and ULGUE in China as a whole is on the rise. (2) Chinese ULGUE has increased greatly in the western and northeastern regions, changed massively in the eastern region, and stayed largely steady in the middle region. The degree of manufacturing agglomeration is further improved, exhibiting a feature resembling a ladder, with high concentrations in the southeast coastal region and low concentrations in the interior. Production service industry agglomeration intensity has declined, revealing a more dispersed spatial pattern. (3) The rise in local ULGUE will have a beneficial impact on the ULGUE of spatially correlated regions, according to ULGUE’s relatively strong spillover effect. (4) Manufacturing agglomerations can enhance the ULGUE in the neighborhood, but it is not obvious how this will impact the local regions. The agglomeration of production service industry can enhance the improvement of ULGUE in local and spatially correlated regions, but the direct effect is weak. (5) The integration of the manufacturing and productive service industry does not quite strengthen its stimulatory effects on the growth of ULGUE.

Impact of China’s Energy-Consuming Right Trading on Urban Land Green Utilization Efficiency

“…Although the ECRT is not combined with LGUE, the literature presents a near consensus that market-oriented ER improves LGUE. Xu et al (2021) [14] found that a certain degree of ER can increase the environmental pressure on enterprises, thereby improving the LGUE of cities. Bian and Zhong (2023) [41] found that market-oriented ER can optimize multi-dimensional output per unit of land through market-oriented means and reduce pollution emissions, thereby improving the LGUE.…”

“…Scholars have used an improved unexpected output super efficiency SBM model to measure LGUE comprehensively, analyzed the current situation and characteristics of urban LGUE in China [10], and pointed out that economic development [11] and the degree of openness to the outside world [12] can affect urban LGUE. The important role of local government behavior in improving the LGUE has also been studied [13,14]. Hence, can the ECRT pilot promote the improvement of urban LGUE?…”

How does the green efficiency of urban land use evolve in the urban agglomeration of China's middle Yangtze river?

“…Lu et al (2022) indicate that the degree of marketization of land elements significantly contributes to the improvement of construction land and promotes the overall efficiency of ULGUE. GOV: Denoted by the utilization rate of industrial solid waste. The disposal of industrial waste reflects the government's awareness of environmental protection and the implementation of environmental protection policies, which profoundly impact the transformation of polluting enterprises and efficiency gain (Xu et al, 2021). …”

“…GOV: Denoted by the utilization rate of industrial solid waste. The disposal of industrial waste reflects the government's awareness of environmental protection and the implementation of environmental protection policies, which profoundly impact the transformation of polluting enterprises and efficiency gain (Xu et al, 2021).…”

The Effects of Urbanization on Urban Land Green Use Efficiency of Yangtze River Delta Urban Agglomeration: Mechanism from the Technological Innovation

“…As green development and related theoretical analysis have gradually matured, studies on ULGUE have gradually shifted toward empirical research measuring ULGUE and analyzing its spatiotemporal characteristics and driving factors, according to the concept of sustainable land use. In terms of choosing the measurement and empirical research methods for analyzing the spatial of ULGUE, existing studies have generally adopted classical models such as DEA, the spatial Durbin model, and the STIRPAT model [8,9]. In addition to this, the non-radial directional distance function approach has been used to measure the green utilization efficiency of agricultural land [10].…”