Study on the effect of public participation on air pollution control based on China's Provincial level data

Air pollution treatment has become the priority in environmental management for Chinese government. However, environmental problems are closely related to people's interests, it is far from enough to rely solely on the government. Public participation is a significant factor for environment protection; only under the common promotion of the whole society can we do a good job in environmental governance. Thus, this research analyses whether public participation can affect the emission behavior of enterprises by analyzing province panel data of China. The results show that direct and indirect public participation both have a significant positive impact on the control of industrial air pollution by strengthening the supervision of environmental law enforcement. Besides, we also find that indirect public participation can influence the formulation of environmental policies. The research helps to understand the current situation of public participation in developing countries. Results suggest the importance of public participation in environment governance, but the level of public participation in China is still in its infancy and needs to be further improved.

Automated summary

Public participation plays a crucial role in environmental governance in China, as it can promote the control of industrial air pollution through strengthening environmental law enforcement supervision and even influence the formulation of environmental policies. Despite its importance being proven, the level of public participation in China is still in its infancy and requires further enhancement.