Will Policy Uncertainty Deteriorate Haze Pollution? A Spatial Spillover Perspective

Xiulin Qi, Xin Wang, Xiao Jin, Zhenyu M. Wang, Beibei Zhang and Chuanhao Wen
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Xiulin Qi: Business School, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, China
Xin Wang: Department of Economics, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, Chengdu 610074, China
Xiao Jin: School of Public Policy & Management, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
Zhenyu M. Wang: School of Social Sciences, University of Macau, Macau 999078, China
Beibei Zhang: School of Management and Economics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
Chuanhao Wen: School of Economics, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, China

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 19, 1-16

Abstract: Haze has been a severe problem in China for some time, jeopardizing air quality, public health and sustainable growth. This paper examines the direct effect and spatial spillover effect of policy uncertainty on haze pollution with a spatial panel model, using prefecture-level data from 2004 to 2016. This study shows that: (1) policy uncertainty has increased the level of local haze pollution and has a significant spatial spillover effect on surrounding areas; (2) although local policy uncertainty has increased the haze pollution in geographically adjacent cities, it only affects the cities within the province with similar economic distances; and (3) the policy at the central level can effectively alleviate the impact of policy uncertainty at the local level on haze pollution, especially in relation to the spatial spillover effect, but still has limitations in eliminating the direct effect, which is due to the ineradicable nature of policy uncertainty.

Keywords: policy uncertainty; haze pollution; spatial spillover effect (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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