Study on Driving Factors and Spatial Effects of Environmental Pollution in the Pearl River-Xijiang River Economic Belt, China

Abstract

As a typical basin area in China, the Pearl River-Xijiang River Economic Belt (PRXREB) faces multiple types of environmental problems caused by the different development conditions of basins. To identify the situations of environmental pollution in the PRXREB, this paper constructed the Environment Pollution Composite Index (EPCI) by using four environmental pollutant emission indicators based on the entropy weight method, and explored the spatial effects and driving factors of environmental pollution by using the Spatial Error Model (SEM). The results showed that: (1) EPCI of the PRXREB decreased significantly from 2012 to 2016, and the spatial patterns were relatively stable. Wherein, the midstream and downstream were always the critical areas of environmental pollution. (2) Spatial spillover effects were significant in the PRXREB, which revealed that the local environmental pollution degree was affected by adjacent areas. (3) Industrial structure, infrastructure construction, and regulatory measures were the main driving factors of environmental pollution in the PRXREB. (4) To balance economic development and environmental protection in basin areas, environmental regulations such as environmental access, pollution payment, and cross-border early warning should be jointly established.