What is the Impact of Fiscal Technology Expenditure on Carbon Emission Reduction? Evidence from Guangdong Province in China

Abstract

China has put forward the strategic goal of striving to achieve peak carbon by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060, and reducing carbon emission intensity is a top priority. This paper analyses the impact of local government fiscal science and technology expenditures on carbon emission intensity based on a fixed panel regression model using panel data of 21 cities in Guangdong Province from 2000 to 2019, and draws the following main conclusions: (1) Higher fiscal science and technology expenditures significantly promote the reduction of carbon emission intensity. Specifically, for every 1% increase in expenditures, the carbon emission intensity decreases by 0.221%; (2) The mechanism includes promoting the level of green innovation and promoting the level of new and high technology. Therefore, local governments should pay attention to the role of environment-friendly science and technology innovation on low-carbon development, help glow-carbon research and application transformation, strengthen the regulation of heavy polluting enterprises, and guide the capital to green industries, so as to embark a new road of high-quality economic development and carbon reduction.