Abstract
Over the past 30 years, the economy of China has sustained rapid growth. However, the extensive development pattern severely deteriorates the ecological environment, which has been recognized as adverse effects on citizens’ physical and mental health. Simultaneously, the political trust in China has been in decline after staying at a high level for a long time. In this paper, we state that, in addition to health issues, environmental pollution can also lead to important political consequences. Using statistics on the occurrence of environmental pollution disasters and a nationally representative survey database in China, we find that environmental pollution disasters can negatively affect citizens’ trust of the government. This relationship persists after a series of endogenous tests and robustness checks. Path analysis indicates that this relationship can be partially mediated by the increase in citizens’ environmental awareness. The cross-sectional analyses on individual characteristics demonstrate that the negative effect of environmental pollution disasters on political trust is less pronounced for female citizens and citizens who are communist party members. Finally, we report that the government’s positive attitudes and activities in resolving environmental pollution problems can partially offset the negative effect of environmental pollution disasters on political trust.
Highlights
China has achieved great success in economic development in the past 30 years; the average growth rate of the GDP is higher than9% [1,2]
We find that in regions where local governments have more communication with citizens about environmental issues or invest more in governing environmental pollution, the negative effects of environmental pollution disasters are less pronounced because the residents have recognized the governments’ responsiveness and efforts in solving environmental problems
In addition to confirming the negative effects of environmental pollution disasters on political trust, we find that this relationship varies with citizens’ characteristics
Summary
China has achieved great success in economic development in the past 30 years; the average growth rate of the GDP is higher than9% [1,2]. Water, soil, photochemical, and noise pollution is serious in China, and the negative and persistent effects on people’s health over a long period have been confirmed [5,6]. As one of the most important momentums of economic growth, rapid urbanization results in tremendous pressure on waste disposal, which is a considerable challenge for soil protection and food security in China [9]. In this case, Khan et al (2008) [10] confirmed that the heavy metals in contaminated soils had significant health risks for Chinese people. Granieri (2015) indicates that asbestos exposure has a negative impact on the physical health of the population and on its psychological and community components [13]
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