Abstract
From the Kyoto Protocol to the Copenhagen Conference and the Paris Agreement, eco-environmental problems have gradually become a matter of common concern worldwide. Eco-efficiency (EE) is an essential indicator for measuring levels of sustainable development. This study uses an epsilon-based measure (EBM) model with undesirable outputs to evaluate the EEs of 30 Chinese provinces during the research period 2008 to 2017, and a spatial Durbin model (SDM) to search for the impact factors of EE. The results indicate that most provinces in China have a low EE level. The EE value of the eastern area is higher than are those for the central, western, or northeastern areas. The EE in China as a whole demonstrates an inverted V-shaped trend with a high point in 2011. The SDM shows that economic development level, foreign trade dependence, and technological progress exert significant positive effects on EE, while population density exerts significant negative influences on EE. This paper provides scientific bases for the formulation of policies resulting in sustainable development.
Highlights
Introduction and Influencing FactorsBased on aThe global mean temperature has risen 0.85 ◦ C between 1880 and 2012, and this was mainly caused by human activities [1]
The epsilon-based measure (EBM) model with undesirable outputs is a recent approach to evaluate the EE, which can compensate for the weakness of traditional data envelopment analysis (DEA) methods as well as deal with undesirable outputs [15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23,24,25,26]
The economic development level played a significant role in promoting EE in China, which is consistent with the work of Zhu et al [55], Dong et al [58], and Liu et al [80]
Summary
Introduction and Influencing FactorsBased on aThe global mean temperature has risen 0.85 ◦ C between 1880 and 2012, and this was mainly caused by human activities [1]. According to the IPCC report, average temperatures across the world are likely to rise by 4 ◦ C above pre-industrial levels without effective action to inhibit greenhouse gas emissions [2] In this context, the Paris Agreement was signed to prevent the global mean temperature from rising to more than 2 ◦ C above pre-industrial levels, while working to curb the rise to 1.5 ◦ C above pre-industrial levels [3]. Eco-efficiency (EE) is an essential indicator for measuring levels of sustainable development [4]; it was first proposed by Schaltegger and Sturm [5] and emphasized the creation of more goods and services while consuming fewer resources and producing less waste and pollution [6]. This accords with the core idea of sustainable development, which fosters the harmonious development of the economy, resources, and environment
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