Regional Differences and Influencing Factors of Carbon Emission Efficiency in the Yangtze River Economic Belt

Abstract

This paper attempts to measure the carbon emission efficiency of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, which has nine provinces and two cities, by analyzing the panel data of the economic belt from 2010 to 2019. Firstly, we used a three-stage DEA (data envelopment analysis) model to eliminate the influence of environmental factors and random noise and measured the carbon emission of the Yangtze River Economic Belt. Secondly, we used a spatially lagged time-fixed effects model to conduct an in-depth analysis of the factors affecting carbon emissions efficiency in the Yangtze River Economic Zone. The study shows that: (1) There is a significant positive spatial correlation related to the carbon emission efficiency of the Yangtze River Economic Zone. (2) There is a significant regional variability in carbon emission efficiency, and scale efficiency is the primary constraint on its improvement. (3) The higher the share of coal energy, the higher the level of urbanization, and the higher the population density, the less conducive to carbon efficiency. The more developed a region’s economy is, the more open it is to the outside world. The stronger its technological capabilities and ecological development, the higher the carbon emission value. (4) Carbon emission efficiency is influenced by a variety of factors, and each factor has a different influence on the carbon emission efficiency of the region and neighboring regions.