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Research on the relationship between energy consumption and air quality in the Yangtze River Delta of China: an empirical analysis based on 20 sample cities

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Abstract

This paper uses static and dynamic panel regression to measure the effect of energy consumption on air quality of 20 heavily polluted cities in the Yangtze River Delta of China. Further, the influence of the relevant policies on the relationship between energy consumption and air quality is tested with the method of regression discontinuity. This study concluded the following: (1) When energy consumption structure, industrial structure, and energy efficiency are taken into account, the effect coefficient of energy consumption on air quality is 0.4579, meaning that controlling energy consumption tends to improve the air quality positively. (2) The emission of sulfur dioxide is characterized by inertia; the annual increase in sulfur dioxide emissions in the previous year will lead to an increase of 0.427% in the annual emissions. (3) The relationship between energy consumption and air quality of different cities varies, and these cities can be divided into four categories. (4) The relevant policies for improving air quality are effective to some extent. This study indicates that the Yangtze River Delta should focus on actively changing the mode of energy development.

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Funding

The authors would like to thank the financial support provided by the National Statistical Scientific Research Project of China (Grant No.2016LZ13), the Ministry of Education of Humanities and Social Science Project of China (Grant No. 16YJAZH015), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.71874185), and the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (Grant No. BK20170268).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Management, China University of Mining and Technology, No.1 Daxue Road, Quanshan District, Xuzhou, 221116, China

    Lingyun He, Deqing Wang, Xiaolei Yang & Fengmin Xie

  2. SUNGROW Co. Ltd, Hefei, 230000, China

    Fang Yin

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  1. Lingyun He
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  2. Fang Yin
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  3. Deqing Wang
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  4. Xiaolei Yang
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  5. Fengmin Xie
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Correspondence to Deqing Wang.

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He, L., Yin, F., Wang, D. et al. Research on the relationship between energy consumption and air quality in the Yangtze River Delta of China: an empirical analysis based on 20 sample cities. Environ Sci Pollut Res 27, 4786–4798 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-06984-0

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