A study on the dynamic spatial spillover effect of urban form on PM2.5 concentration at county scale in China

Abstract

Urban development has brought serious air pollution around the world. Understanding the relationship between urban form and the concentration of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is very important for urban sustainable development in China. Based on the panel data of 2745 counties in China during 2001–2018, the dynamic spatial Durbin model, combining with meteorological factors, was used to analyze and compare the dynamic impact of urban form on PM2.5 concentration in the whole country and urban agglomerations. The results showed that urban form and meteorological factors were closely related to the concentration of PM2.5. From a national point of view, the decentralized, multi-center urban development model has a lower concentration of PM2.5. There are obvious differences in the relationship between urban form and PM2.5 concentration in different urban agglomerations. The urban form of the Pearl River Delta (PRD) is more conducive to the reduction of PM2.5 concentration than that of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) and Yangtze River Delta (YRD). Therefore, the formulation of different urban development strategies for different regions is an important way to solve PM2.5 pollution. In addition, Spatial autocorrelation and time lag effect significantly worsen PM2.5 pollution in China, while time lag effect can alleviate this effect to some extent. Therefore, regional joint treatment and long-term control should be strengthened to control haze pollution.