Measuring the Performance of Industrial Green Development Using a Non-Radial Directional Distance Function Approach: A Case Study of Jiangxi Province in China

Wei Wang, Hualin Xie, Fucai Lu and Xinmin Zhang
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Wei Wang: Institute of Ecological Civilization, Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, Nanchang 330013, China
Hualin Xie: Institute of Ecological Civilization, Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, Nanchang 330013, China
Fucai Lu: Institute of Ecological Civilization, Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, Nanchang 330013, China
Xinmin Zhang: Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba 305-8572, Japan

Sustainability, 2017, vol. 9, issue 10, 1-17

Abstract: The industrial sector is a major contributor to resource consumption and environmental pollution in China. The energy-intensive industrial development and energy structure are dominated by coal, which has produced an enormous amount of industrial pollutants in China, and put great pressure on the ecological environment. Hence, improving the performance of industrial green development (PIGD) has become an urgent task of utmost importance. This study applies a global non-radial directional distance function to estimate the PIGD for Jiangxi Province during 2003–2015, and provides targeted policy suggestions. The empirical results show a rising trend in the PIGD in Jiangxi Province. At the city level, Nanchang and Fuzhou performed considerably better than other cities in regards to their PIGD. However, the poor environmental performance caused by the excessive discharge of industrial pollutants has also hindered its PIGD. Most cities in Jiangxi Province failed to efficiently use resources, especially energy and labor, in industrial production. The results of the influencing factor analysis show that the performance of industrial green development in Jiangxi could be improved through increasing per capita GDP, decreasing the share of coal consumption in the total industrial energy consumption, and decreasing the share of industrial GDP in the total GDP. Furthermore, a more efficient use of environmental management investment funds and timely transfer of the surplus industrial labor are needed.

Keywords: energy consumption; performance of industrial green development (PIGD); environmental management; global non-radial directional distance function; sustainable development China (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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