Environmental Legislation and Pollution Emissions: An Empirical Analysis Based on China

Passively waiting for the natural appearance of a turning point in the Environmental Kuznets Curve is no longer the appropriate attitude for coping with the increasing environmental pressures. The present study selected the provincial legislation regarding environmental protection as the current measurements of environmental policies. Then, tests were conducted in order to determine whether or not the current environmental policies were empirically conducive for reducing industrial pollution emission intensities using the provincial panel data for the period ranging from 2005 to 2014. The results indicated that the introduction and implementation of environmental policies could significantly reduce industrial pollution emission levels. However, such obvious inhibitions caused by the environmental policies regarding pollution emission reductions were found to be highly dependent on the marketization processes and environmental behaviors of the government. Furthermore, it was revealed in this research investigation that the effectiveness of the environmental policies for pollution reduction was related to regional environmental quality. The findings of this study bear important policy implications in China.