Impact of industrial agglomeration on haze pollution: New evidence from Bohai Sea Economic Region in China

Abstract To comply with recent sustainable development trends and initiatives for effectively controlling air pollution problems, this paper applies spatial econometrics and extended STIRPAT model to explore the impact of the industrial agglomeration (IA) on haze pollution (HP) using panel data from critical cities of Bohai Sea economic region (BSER) in China between 2006 and 2018. Influence path characteristics, regional heterogeneity effects and development trends of three major IA on the HP are systematically investigated. The results show that: (1) IA significantly correlated to HP in the BSER. The Siphon Effect in Beijing-Tianjin-Shijiazhuang region plays an important role in the HP and IA, and it weakened with the upgrading of industrial structure and industrial transfer. (2) Both IA and HP have significant spatial autocorrelation properties, the agglomeration and diffusion properties of IA and HP in specific regions are consistent along the time series. (3) However, systematic analysis of various industries indicated that the IA of the primary industry and the secondary industry has a significant positive impact on HP. Interestingly, IA of the third industry has a significant nonlinear effect on HP. Based on the results of the empirical analysis, this study provides insights on the spatial relationship between regional HP and industrial development. This paper gives an effective reference on promoting the distribution of resources and diversified green economic development paths.