Enforcement Of Environmental Regulations Research Articles

The impact of environmental regulation on firms’ markups: evidence from China

ABSTRACT A comprehensive evaluation of the costs and benefits of environmental regulations provides empirical evidence for policymakers to formulate and introduce environmental policies. Firms’ profitability and competitiveness manifest their market power and provide the micro foundation for economic development and social stability. Therefore, this paper focus on investigating the impact of air pollution environmental regulation on manufacturing firms’ market power, measured by markups, with a difference-in-differences (DID) method. Using air pollution control policy, requiring China’s Key Cities for Air Pollution Control (KCAPC) to meet air quality standards within a specified time limit as a natural experiment, our DID estimations show that air pollution regulation significantly leads to an increase in firms’ markup rate by 0.002 in key cities that did not meet air quality standards. Heterogeneous effects show that this impact is larger for polluting firms, private-owned and foreign-owned firms, and firms located in western and central cities and cities with high marketization. Productivity and market share may be two main influencing channels to explain the positive impact of air pollution environmental regulation on firms’ markups. Our findings suggest that strengthening environmental regulation is conducive to improving the competitiveness and market power of manufacturing firms, lending support to the enforcement of environmental regulations.

Natural resources as a double-edged sword towards ecological quality: Can environmental regulations and green human capital rectify the adverse impacts?

Natural resources are the backbone of any economy and the bedrock of ecological health. However, the relentless exploitation of these resources has given rise to ecological degradation. This threatens ecosystem stability, presenting the urgent need to balance natural resource utilization with ecological integrity. Environmental regulations and green human capital are pivotal in striking this balance and progressing towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Therefore, this study explores how natural resources impact ecological quality in Ghana from 1990 to 2019 within the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) framework, considering the role of environmental regulations and green human capital. The study employs the novel dynamic ARDL simulation method, presenting insights that diverge from patterns noted in previous studies. The study's findings reveal that natural resources intensify ecological quality in the short term but degrade ecological quality over the long term. Environmental regulation reduces ecological harm, while green human capital negatively impacts ecological quality. Environmental regulation and green human capital undesirably and beneficially impact how natural resources relate to ecological quality, with the undesirable effects occurring in the short term and the beneficial effects emerging over the long term. Further, a U-shaped relationship is observed between economic growth and ecological pollution in the short term, which transforms into an inverted U-shaped relationship in the long term, thus validating the EKC hypothesis in Ghana. The study concludes by recommending the implementation and enforcement of environmental regulations as a pathway toward achieving ecological quality and SDGs, particularly SDG 13, SDG 12, and SDG 7.

Government environmental attention, credit supply and firms' green investment

This study employs textual analysis to construct a dataset reflecting the level of environmental attention by local governments and utilizes data from Chinese A-share listed companies between 2003 and 2020 as a sample to investigate the impact of local government's environmental attention on firms' green investment. The findings demonstrate that local government's environmental attention positively influences companies' green investment. Mechanism analyses reveal that local government's environmental attention primarily stimulates enterprise green investment by expanding the scale of green credit supply and reinforcing local environmental regulations. The effect of local government's environmental attention is more pronounced for state-owned enterprises, heavily polluting firms, large-scale firms, and firms with higher cash reserves and low financing constraint. Moreover, the influence is particularly significant in eastern China as well as regions characterized by lower ecological levels and stronger enforcement of environmental regulations.

An Asymmetric Approach to Evaluate Sectoral CO2 Emissions in Turkey

The increase in population and economic growth are significant factors that contribute to the deterioration of the environment, primarily through the emission of carbon pollutants. Therefore, the overuse of natural resources, degradation of natural ecosystems, and the increasing release of harmful gases poses a threat to our ability to protect the environment for future generations. Although there is a global agreement on the need for clean and carbon-free energy systems to achieve sustainable development, emerging countries persist in giving more priority to economic objectives rather than environmental preservation. The objective of this research was to explore strategies to mitigate sector-specific emissions and environmental deterioration in Turkey, where the enforcement of environmental regulations has proven to be inadequate. The connections between emissions from different sectors, the value contributed to the economy, the income per person, and the growth of human capital were examined in the research. The study's findings indicated that implementing policies to increase production and develop human capital are effective in the short term for reducing carbon emissions in the services sector. Over time, policies that priorities raising income levels and building up human capital have been proven to be successful. Analyses of strategies to reduce agricultural emissions reveal that implementing short-term investments in human capital and long-term revenue increases are successful policies to reduce emission levels in the industry. Regarding the industry, past levels of emissions in the immediate future exert a constraint on managing the present period's emission levels. Given the asymmetrical impacts, it is evident that people whose quality of life improves through investments in human capital are more likely to prioritize environmental sustainability and adopt practices that reduce emissions in production. Thus, it is evident that the enhancement of human capital may serve as a significant policy tool across all industries.

Evaluating offsetting as a component of biodiversity governance

AbstractBiodiversity offsetting is considered to be an innovative policy instrument to balance land use changes with conservation priorities. Although advocates have pushed to establish biodiversity offset markets for over 20 years and critics have contested the social and ecological implications of such policy innovations, in practice, offsetting schemes have been difficult to set up, replicate, and sustain over time. Observing the underperformance of biodiversity offsetting, we argue that a critical analysis is urgently needed. We identify a need to analyze offsetting in relation to other features of biodiversity governance rather than focus on the merits and flaws of offsetting as a standalone policy instrument. Using a set‐theoretic model, we consider how different institutional arrangements determine if and when biodiversity offsetting produces positive environmental outcomes. We find that offsetting adds to biodiversity governance only when three thorny challenges are met—muscular enforcement of environmental regulations, rigorous impact management aligned with the mitigation hierarchy, and the existence of evidence‐based and cost‐effective platforms for offsetting. Short of these conditions, outcomes are either uncertain or outright harmful to biodiversity. Reflecting more broadly on the prospects of institutionalizing offsetting mechanisms for protecting biodiversity, we conclude a need to recenter attention toward the supportive role of the state in facilitating effective policy innovations.

Integrated solid waste management for closed community: an experiment on university campus

This study addresses challenges regarding integrated solid waste management (ISWM) faced by Jahangirnagar University. These challenges have resulted in negative social, environmental, and economic consequences. This study aims to identify barriers to community engagement in ISWM and provide actionable recommendations for improvement. The study adopts a mixed-methods approach, involving surveys of 397 respondents selected through cluster random sampling from the university’s population of around 20,000. The findings underscore a range of impediments to community participation, including limited empowerment, mobilisation, organisation and resource coordination within the community. Alarmingly, only 30% of respondents practice household waste segregation. However, an encouraging 74% express their willingness to oversee door-to-door waste collection and ensure proper disposal at designated locations, with this inclination influenced by various socioeconomic factors. Notably, non-compliance with ISWM regulations is prevalent in 26% of respondents, while 12% exhibit a dearth of knowledge about ISWM, indicating a need for heightened organisational efforts. Furthermore, certain university authorities rely on outdated methods, resulting in weak enforcement of environmental regulations. The study proposes a collaborative approach between university authorities and the community, along with revised regulations and waste generator responsibility. Addressing these challenges has the potential to significantly improve waste management system at Jahangirnagar University (JU Campus).

Study on the impact of central environmental protection inspection on the health of the older adult population-A quasi-natural experiment in China.

In 2015, the central government of China established the Central Environmental Protection Inspection (CEPI) system for oversight of local governments. It enhanced local government enforcement of environmental regulations, which had a considerable influence on the health of the local older adult population. This study quantifies the effects of local government regulation brought about by CEPI on the health of the older adult. It examines the impact mechanism using the DID model and panel data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). The results show that (1) local governments' environmental protection regulations implemented by CEPI have a positive impact on the general health of the older adult. The results of the study passed the parallel trend test, PSM test, replacement variable test, and placebo test and remained significant; (2) in terms of the impact mechanism, CEPI has promoted local governments' environmental governance initiatives, which has reduced industrial wastewater emissions, industrial sulfur dioxide emissions, and industrial fumes emissions. This has improved air quality, thereby creating a good living environment for the older adult and improving their overall health; (3) according to heterogeneity research, the health of older adult living in the Yangtze River Basin, urban older adult, and older adult without chronic diseases is more significantly affected by the environmental protection regulations of the local governments brought about by CEPI.

First insights into per-and polyfluoroalkyl substance contamination in edible fish species of the Indus water system of Pakistan

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are a group of emerging contaminants, that have a wide range of applications in industrial and commercial products. The direct discharge of untreated industrial and domestic wastewater into freshwater bodies is a common practice in developing countries, which are the main contributors to PFASs in the aquatic environment. The situation is further worsened due to poor wastewater treatment facilities and weak enforcement of environmental regulations in countries like Pakistan. The current study was designed to assess PFASs contamination in muscle tissues of edible fish species from major tributaries of the Indus System, including Head Panjnad (HP), Head Trimmu (HT), Chashma Barrage (CB), Head Blloki (HB) and Head Qadirabad (HQ). The analysis of target PFAS was performed using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography coupled with a quadrupole Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry. The highest levels of ∑17PFASs were observed in S. seenghala, C. mirigala from HB, and C. mirigala from HQ with a mean value of 45.4 ng g-1, 43.7 ng g-1, and 40.8 ng g-1, respectively. Overall, the compositional profile of fish samples was predominated by long-chain PFASs such as PFOA, PFOS, PFHpS, and PFDS. The accumulation of PFASs in fish species is dependent on the physiochemical properties of PFASs, characteristics of the aquatic environment, and fish species. Significant associations of PFASs with isotopic composition (p < 0.05), feeding habits (p < 0.05), and zones (p < 0.05) indicate that dietary proxies could be an important predictor of PFASs distribution among species. The C7–C10 PFASs exhibited bio-accumulative tendency with an accumulation factor ranging from 0.5 to 3.4. However, none of the fish samples had sufficiently high levels of PFOS to cause human health risk (HR < 1). For future studies, it is s recommended to conduct seasonal monitoring and the bioaccumulation pattern along trophic levels of both legacy and emerging PFASs.

Effect of Mishandling and Vending of Used Engine Oil on the Environment, Health and Urban Planning in Kaduna Metropolis: A Call to Action for a Paradigm Shift

This study examined the effect of mishandling and vending of used engine oil (UEO) on the environment, health, and urban planning. An evaluation of UEO handling, environmental and public health effects, spatial distribution of UEO vendors and contributing factors to choice of location, and the relationship between the vending location and the contributing factors to the choice of the location was provided. The research adopted multiple approaches including questionnaire administration, interview, observation, and application of a Global Positioning System, Geographic Information System, measuring tape, and a camera. An accidental/snowball sampling technique was viable for the study. Data collected were processed using Microsoft Excel. Descriptive and inferential statistical techniques were used. Results revealed the UEO was acquired from mechanic garages (41%) and stored in plastic containers (74%) until it was completely disposed of (91%). 52% had a hazy knowledge of the environmental effect of UEO, yet 45% rated the extent of its contamination as high. 59% were aware of its potential hazard which can get into the human body through ingestion but did not know it could get into the human body through contact with skin (74%) or breathing (61%). However, 84% wash their hands before a meal, with soap/water (67%), and change clothes after handling the used engine oil (69%). Most of the spots were located within 0-20 meters from the road (11), along the highways, occupying the metalled portion of the road, the road shoulders, setbacks, and walkways, blocking drainages and affecting the visual and aesthetic value of the environment. A larger proportion (40) revealed that visibility/accessibility guided their choice of location. Also, a low correlation coefficient of 0.32 was recorded. The study recommended the promotion of awareness programs, enforcement of environmental regulations, good hygiene practices, enforcement of standards and development regulations, and application of smart technology and big data.

Land use supervision and environmental pollution: multitasking bureaucrats and spillovers across regulations

Abstract This article provides evidence on the strong spillover effects of land use regulations on environmental regulation enforcement in China. We find that the establishment of China’s Land Supervision Bureaus, which effectively reduced land use violations, led to a significant relaxation of environmental regulations by local officials and an increase in cities’ pollution intensity and overall pollution. In addition, the detrimental environmental effects of land use supervision are particularly strong among cities governed by officials with stronger promotion incentives. The results are consistent with a model in which multitasking local officials loosen environmental regulations to meet GDP growth targets in response to reduced industrial land supply. We further support the model by documenting land use supervision’s negative effect on new firm entries but significantly positive effect on incumbent firms’ outputs. (JEL D73, H77, P26, Q53, R52)

Single-use Plastics: Legal Perceptions and Self-Reported Behavior in Vietnam

Plastic pollution has become a serious global threat to ecosystems, human health, and economies, particularly in countries with coastlines such as Vietnam. The 3R approach (reduce, reuse, recycle) has been recognized as an important strategy to minimize plastic waste and reduce the risk of plastic entering the ocean. However, changing single-use plastic consumption habits is a great challenge that requires awareness, education and action. This study uses mixed methods, including a survey and semi-structured interviews, to explore: 1) Single-use plastic consumption and 3R behaviors of Vietnamese people; 2) How they perceive the current environmental regulation enforcement; and 3) How they perceive the role of stakeholders in the plastic problem. A self-nominated sample of 202 participants residing in Hoi An City, Ha Noi Capital and Ho Chi Minh City responded to the survey, and in-depth interviews were conducted with ten key informants (including workers from the public and private institutions, citizens and researchers). The results suggest that the convenience, affordability, availability and durability of plastics are the drivers of consumption, while legal bans, health and environmental concerns are motivators of reduction. For 3R behaviors, the participants reported the highest level of recycling, followed by reducing and reusing, acknowledging the help of Vietnamese traditional habits such as selling “ve chai” (recyclables) and using “cặp lồng” (inox food containers) for their 3R behaviors. Finally, the participants observed that penalties for plastic littering are low and too leniently enforced, especially for businesses. They also believed that stakeholders, including businesses, governments, and consumers are the main actors in tackling the single-use plastic waste problem. This study provides some recommendations based on these findings.

Environmental Protection Goes Digital: A Policy Perspective on Promoting Digitalization for Sustainable Development in China

In the current discourse surrounding economic and societal growth, much emphasis has been placed on the role and impact of digitalization. Despite this trend, research exploring the ecological implications of the digital economy remains scarce. To fill this research gap, our study aimed to investigate the correlation between the digital economy and carbon emissions, specifically examining the moderating impact of environmental regulations. For empirical analysis, we utilize the CRITIC methodology to establish a thorough set of indicators that can evaluate the performance of China’s digital economy. According to our empirical results, the digital economy seems to exert a moderating influence on the levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, and this negative impact is more pronounced in affluent and densely populated regions of China. The effectiveness of digitalization in reducing pollution can be enhanced by the enforcement of environmental regulations. This paper elucidates the potential mechanisms via which the digital economy affects carbon dioxide emissions, and constructs a framework for the mechanisms via which the digital economy affects the environment by influencing the carbon dioxide emissions, providing a new way for enterprises and governments to participate in environmental protection and expanding the content of research related to the digital economy.

Buying a Blind Eye: Campaign Donations, Regulatory Enforcement, and Deforestation

While existing work has demonstrated that campaign donations can buy access to benefits such as favorable legislation and preferential contracting, we highlight another use of campaign contributions: buying reductions in regulatory enforcement. Specifically, we argue that in return for campaign contributions, Colombian mayors who rely on donor-funding (compared with those who do not) choose not to enforce sanctions against illegal deforestation activities. Using a regression discontinuity design, we show that deforestation is significantly higher in municipalities that elect donor-funded as opposed to self-funded politicians. Further analysis shows that only part of this effect can be explained by differences in contracting practices by donor-funded mayors. Instead, evidence of heterogeneity in the effects according to the presence of alternative formal and informal enforcement institutions, and analysis of fire clearance, support the interpretation that campaign contributions buy reductions in the enforcement of environmental regulations.

Political connections, environmental violations and punishment: Evidence from heavily polluting firms

Using hand-collected data on violations of environmental regulations by heavily polluting firms in China, we examine the relationship between political connections and the probability of punishment for breach of such regulations. To this end, we exploit a regulatory reform, the enactment of Rule 18, a key component of China's anti-corruption campaign, which required politically connected independent directors to resign from their positions. Using difference-in-differences specifications, we find that firms from which politically connected directors resigned due to Rule 18 experience a significant increase in both the likelihood of ever being punished for environment-related violations and the frequency of punishment. The effect of Rule 18 is more pronounced among firms located in regions with less efficient judicial systems and higher levels of corruption, as well as firms that are not state-owned. Our evidence indicates that in the absence of effective regulation, political connections can be costly to the environment as they strongly affect the enforcement of environmental regulations.

Strategic interaction in environmental regulation and sulfur dioxide emissions: Evidence from China

Environmental regulation is the central government's main instrument for pollution control, but its actual implementation effect directly depends on the level of enforcement by local governments. Using panel data of 30 regions in Mainland China from 2004 to 2020 and a spatial Durbin model, we investigated the effects of strategic interaction among local governments in environmental regulation on sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions. We found a “race to the top” behavior in the enforcement of environmental regulation among China's local governments. The enhancement of environmental regulation in a region or in its adjacent regions can significantly reduce SO2 emissions in that region, indicating that joint environmental governance can achieve considerable pollution control effects. Furthermore, influence mechanism analysis shows that the emission reduction effect of environmental regulation is primarily achieved through green innovation and finance. In addition, we found that environmental regulation has a significant negative impact on SO2 emissions in low-energy-consuming regions, but not in high-energy-consuming regions. Our findings indicate that China should continue to implement and deepen the green performance appraisal system for local governments and improve the efficiency of environmental regulations in high-energy-consuming regions.

Curvature and turning point of the environmental Kuznets curve in a global economy: the role of governance.

This study explores the role of governance in shaping the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC), especially focusing on its curvature and turning point. The study highlights the role of various governance indicators in the formulation, implementation, and enforcement of environmental regulations. However, the study asserts that since in developing countries poverty, infrastructure, and human development are valued above a clean environment, good governance is less likely to contribute to mitigating pollution in developing countries. Using a panel of 160 countries, the study finds that better governance helps bring down the critical level of per capita income at which the relationship between income and pollution turns negative. Furthermore, the EKC can be shifted downward by improving governance in the respective countries. The study, however, reveals that the dividends of better governance are more pronounced at higher income levels. Since good governance works only when the desired regulations are in place, it is recommended that for poor countries aid packages for governance reforms need to emphasize the enactment of specific environmental regulations. Investment in institutions is expected to yield maximum dividends in such countries that have gained high-income status but are still lacking in institutional development.

A Study of the Strategic Interaction in Environmental Regulation Based on Spatial Effects

The incomplete enforcement of environmental regulations in China is a serious issue in environmental protection affairs, and this paper attempts to provide a new explanation for its prevalence from the perspective of strategic interaction. Under Chinese decentralization, environmental regulations are seen by local governments as a tool to compete for scarce resources, which leads to strategic interactions between regions. Therefore, under the theoretical framework of regional policy spillovers, this paper examines the strategic interaction behavior of local governments in environmental regulation with a spatial econometric approach research methodology based on panel data of 29 Chinese provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government) from 2015 to 2019, taking spatial interdependence and the strategic interaction relationship of local governments as the entry point. The study finds that the intensity of environmental regulation in a region is not only related to the characteristics of the region, but also related to the intensity of environmental regulation in competing provinces, and there is a significant strategic interaction of environmental regulation behavior between regions, which is manifested as complementary spatial strategies. If the neighboring provinces invest more in environmental regulation, the region will also strengthen its level of environmental regulation accordingly, showing the contagiousness of non-complete enforcement of environmental regulation. At the same time, the complementary strategic interaction behavior of environmental regulation between regions has weakened since 2017, which highlights the role of green environmental performance assessment. Based on this, this paper proposes to provide a policy reference to avoid the environmental regulation enforcement dilemma.

Central environmental protection inspection, environmental quality, and economic growth: evidence from China

ABSTRACT How to enhance local governments’ enforcement of environmental regulations in developing countries? Whether central inspection can properly motivate local governments to implement environmental regulations, and how would it affect economic growth? This paper examines the effectiveness of China’s Central Environmental Protection Inspection (CEPI) program, which aimed to promote local governments’ enforcement of environmental regulations through central inspection. Using a difference-in-differences approach, we find that the CEPI program caused a significant reduction in air pollution and economic growth, indicating that the CEPI program introduced a substantial trade-off between environmental quality and economic growth. Further analysis shows that the effect of this program on air quality and economic growth is temporary. Moreover, we find that the effect is more significant when the local officials with higher promotion potential. Further cost-benefit analysis suggests that the cost of the CEPI program far exceeds its benefit.

The environmental benefits of electricity industry restructuring in China: Ownership mixing vs. vertical unbundling

Ownership mixing and vertical unbundling are the two pending restructuring reforms in electricity industry in many developing countries, while few studies compared the two reforms, or explored the relative environmental effects of them. In this paper, we empirically examine the effects of ownership mixing and vertical unbundling on electricity generation firms' SO2 emission intensity. We exploit both the ownership mixing and vertical unbundling reforms in China and use a difference-in-differences (DD) strategy to deal with identification. We rely on a unique firm-level dataset that contains comprehensive information on firms' pollution records, production activities, and electricity generation. We find that ownership mixing, while achieving the main reform purpose of increased access to electricity and generation efficiency, also has unintended environmental benefits of significantly and substantially reducing firms' air pollution intensity. The underlying channels are firms' increased electricity generation and better enforcement of environmental regulations. Vertical unbundling, on the other hand, has no significant effects on firms' air pollution. Our findings document an effective and environmentally friendly pathway for electricity industry restructuring in developing countries.

Decentralization of Environmental Enforcement

This article examines the consequences of one organizational structure (regional decentralization) on the enforcement of environmental regulations. Using interviews conducted with the staff of and data drawn from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, the results of this study suggest that the reporting structure in the Pennsylvania air quality program sometimes produces conflicting directives to the various regional offices while also making efforts to arrive at a common approach to enforcement more difficult.