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Does information disclosure mitigate air pollution? Evidence from China

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 November 2023

Sitian Yu ,
Yinhe Liang Open the ORCID record for Yinhe Liang [Opens in a new window]  and
Hongyu Wang
Sitian Yu
Affiliation:
School of Economics, Capital University of Economics and Business, Beijing, China
Yinhe Liang*
Affiliation:
School of Economics, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing, China PKU-WUHAN Institute for Artificial Intelligence, Wuhan, Hubei, China
Hongyu Wang
Affiliation:
School of Economics, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing, China
*
*Corresponding author: E-mail: liangyinhe@pku.edu.cn
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Abstract

From 2013 to 2015, China gradually established nationwide air quality monitoring stations and began to release real-time air pollution information to the public. We exploit step-by-step environmental regulations across cities to identify the effects of information disclosure on air pollution. We find that information disclosure significantly decreases the concentrations of PM2.5 and PM10. Through mechanism analysis, we find that information disclosure raises the level of government awareness, increases the amount of investments in air pollution prevention and control, stimulates green innovation, and forces heavily polluting enterprises to shut down. Additionally, we find evidence that the effectiveness of information disclosure varies across cities.

Keywords

air pollutiongovernment awarenessgreen innovationinformation disclosureinvestment in air pollution

JEL classification

O38: Government Policy D80: General Q53: Air Pollution • Water Pollution • Noise • Hazardous Waste • Solid Waste • Recycling
Type
Research Article
Information
Environment and Development Economics , Volume 29 , Issue 1 , February 2024 , pp. 63 - 81
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press

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