The Greenness of China: Household Carbon Dioxide Emissions and Urban Development

Siqi Zheng, Rui Wang, Edward Glaeser and Matthew Kahn

No 15621, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: China urbanization is associated with both increases in per-capita income and greenhouse gas emissions. This paper uses micro data to rank 74 major Chinese cities with respect to their household carbon footprint. We find that the "greenest" cities based on this criterion are Huaian and Suqian while the "dirtiest" cities are Daqing and Mudanjiang. Even in the dirtiest city (Daqing), a standardized household produces only one-fifth of that in America's greenest city (San Diego). We find that the average January temperature is strongly negatively correlated with a city's household carbon footprint, which suggests that current regional economic development policies that bolster the growth of China's northeastern cities are likely to increase emissions. We use our city specific income elasticity estimates to predict the growth of carbon emissions in China's cities.

JEL-codes: Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009-12
Note: EEE
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (14)

Published as Siqi Zheng & Rui Wang & Edward L. Glaeser & Matthew E. Kahn, 2011. "The greenness of China: household carbon dioxide emissions and urban development," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 11(5), pages 761-792, September.

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Journal Article: The greenness of China: household carbon dioxide emissions and urban development (2011)
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