The effects of public environmental concern on urban-rural environmental inequality: Evidence from Chinese industrial enterprises

Pollution emissions may differ between urban and rural areas owing to inefficient allocation of regulatory resources. Based on the Chinese Industrial Enterprise Pollution Emission Database, this study reveals the urban rural environmental inequality brought by China's rapid urbanization and industrialization at the enterprise level, and highlights the role of public environmental concern (PEC) in urban-rural environmental inequalities. Through a set of moderating and instrumental variable regressions, we find that (1) Industrial enterprises in rural areas are widely dispersed and tend to have higher air and water pollution intensity (PI) than that in urban areas. (2) Enterprises in good financial condition, stated-owned, and foreign-owned enterprises tend to have lower PI, and industrial agglomeration reduces each enterprise's PI. (3) PEC can alleviate urban rural pollution intensity disparities by affecting government regulation behavior, including drawing the government's attention to environmental issues, raising governmental investment in environmental management, and improving governmental regulation. This study provides a series of policy implications for reducing industrial enterprises' PI. More importantly, we shed light on the significant role of informal regulation in improving industrial sustainable performance in rural areas where formal regulations are absent or ineffective.

Automated summary

This study reveals the environmental inequality between urban and rural areas in China caused by rapid urbanization and industrialization at the enterprise level, and highlights the role of public environmental concern (PEC) in reducing these disparities. The findings indicate that industrial enterprises in rural areas tend to have higher pollution intensity (PI) than those in urban areas, and factors such as good financial condition, state ownership, and industrial agglomeration contribute to lower PI. PEC plays a crucial role in influencing government regulation behavior and addressing urban-rural pollution disparities.