Abstract
The Yangtze River Basin (YRB) is an important area for China’s economic development and environmental governance. The aim of this paper is to analyze the total factor productivity across 97 cities in the YRB from 2005 to 2016. Based on the input and output indicators from 2005 to 2016, this paper selects the SE-SBM model to measure the environmental regulation efficiency (ERE) of 97 cities in the YRB and then uses the DEA–Malmquist index to measure the total factor productivity of the region. Results suggest that the overall ERE in the YRB is weakly ineffective, while ERE in the central and eastern coastal areas is relatively high. ERE matches the economic foundation and development of the city. YRB environmental regulation efficiency was in descending order in the middle stream, upstream, and downstream. The efficiency of regional environmental regulation shows an N-type development trend, with obvious characteristics of phased development. Moreover, the total factor productivity of the YRB has shown a downward trend. The scale efficiency index and the technical efficiency index have positively boosted the total factor productivity, while the technological progress index has dragged down the total factor productivity of the area. The contribution to the total factor productivity index is in order of scale efficiency, technological progress index, and technological efficiency index in the downstream. The overall inputs and outputs of the YRB have great development potential. The inputs have not been fully utilized, the outputs have not been maximized, and the regional differentiation is significantly observable.
Highlights
The Yangtze River Basin (YRB) contains a vast array of developed industries in densely populated cities and rich mineral, water, and agricultural resources; nearly half of the country’s heavy chemical, power, and steel companies are distributed along the river, and as such, environmental protection is an important facet of further development
China’s 14th FiveYear Plan in 2020 emphasizes the environmental issues and will strive to coordinate and integrate resources and promote the green development of both sides of the Yangtze River. Considering these realities, the aim of this paper is to study total factor productivity across 97 cities in the YRB from 2005 to 2016
China has issued a series of environmental protection policy documents, and many scholars have begun to pay attention to the efficiency of environmental regulations
Summary
The Yangtze River Basin (YRB) contains a vast array of developed industries in densely populated cities and rich mineral, water, and agricultural resources; nearly half of the country’s heavy chemical, power, and steel companies are distributed along the river, and as such, environmental protection is an important facet of further development. China’s 14th FiveYear Plan in 2020 emphasizes the environmental issues and will strive to coordinate and integrate resources and promote the green development of both sides of the Yangtze River Considering these realities, the aim of this paper is to study total factor productivity across 97 cities in the YRB from 2005 to 2016. Environmental regulation efficiency (ERE) in China shows a clear “polarized effect”, matches the level of economic development [3], and is often studied using data envelopment analysis (DEA) models. The agglomeration of high-tech industries can improve the regional ecological environment, and it can more effectively improve the environmental regulation efficiency in economically developed areas [10].
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