Abstract
In recent years, haze pollution has had a wide impact in China. This research systematically studies the influence mechanism of haze pollution from a new perspective of urban innovation efficiency. We use a generalised space two-stage least squares method to analyse the correlation between urban innovation efficiency and haze pollution. The periodic and regional influences of urban innovation efficiency on haze pollution is explored using a threshold regression model. Through the mediating effect model, we accurately identify the transmission mechanism of urban innovation efficiency affecting haze pollution. The results show a significant inverted ‘U’ relationship between improvement of urban innovation efficiency and haze pollution. The regional innovation activities of innovative cities differ greatly from those of non-innovative cities. The effect of innovation efficiency improvement in innovative cities on haze governance is better than that of non-innovative pilot cities. In eastern cities with a higher level of economic development, the improvement of innovation efficiency has a stronger impact on haze governance. Industrial structure and population agglomeration have a mediating effect on the impact of urban innovation efficiency on haze pollution, providing directions for the rational formulation and effective implementation of haze governance policies in China, as well as in other countries.
Highlights
In recent years, haze pollution in China has become increasingly serious with the rapid development of urbanisation and industrialisation
The regression results in columns (1)–(4) all show that the coefficient of the primary term of the core explanatory variable, innovation efficiency (E), is significantly positive, and that of the secondary term is significantly negative
Innovative pilot and non-pilot cities have significant differences in terms of innovation efficiency, but there is no significant difference in the level of economic development
Summary
Haze pollution in China has become increasingly serious with the rapid development of urbanisation and industrialisation. The Yangtze River Delta, including Shanghai, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang provinces, and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, represented by Beijing, Tianjin, and other cities, are agglomerations with high urban innovation efficiency [7]. Is this phenomenon an inevitable result of the process of economic development? According to the mediating effect test principle [8], we construct a mediating effect model composed of three regression equations to accurately identify the transmission mechanism through which UIE affects haze pollution This is done to provide empirical support for the rational formulation and effective implementation of haze governance policies in China, as well as in other countries and regions
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