Can environmental regulation promote industrial innovation and productivity?Based on the strong and weak Porter hypothesis

This paper constructed extended CDM model to study the effects of environmental regulation on industrial innovation and productivity based on the perspective of strong and weak “Porter hypothesis”, by using 28 manufacturing industry panel data of 2003–2014. The findings reveal that: (1) the impact of environmental regulation on R&D intensity lags behind. In the long run, environmental regulation intensity has a significant role in promoting R&D investment in manufacturing industry. (2) The R&D has a significant role in promoting the substantial innovation of manufacturing industry, and has a strong lag and continuity. However, the R&D intensity has no obvious effect on strategic innovation of manufacturing industry. (3) The substantial innovation doesn’t significantly promote the economic performance of manufacturing industry, but it has a significant role in promoting the energy performance of manufacturing industry, and the substantial innovation plays a significant role in promoting environmental performance in the long term. The strategic innovation significantly promotes the economic performance of manufacturing industry, and it inhibits the energy performance and has no significant effect on environmental performance in the short term. It can promote the energy performance of manufacturing industry, but significantly inhibit environmental performance in the long term. (4) Environmental regulation has significantly suppressed the substantive innovation and strategic innovation of manufacturing industry, and the weak Porter hypothesis has not yet been supported. In the short term, environmental regulation inhibits manufacturing economic performance, but it can promote energy and environmental performance. In the long run, environmental regulation promotes the economic and energy performance of manufacturing industry, but it inhibits environmental performance. The establishment of strong Porter hypothesis has a certain scenario.     

Do water saving technologies save water? Empirical evidence from North China

This paper describes the extent of water saving technologies usage and evaluates their impacts on water use, water productivity, total irrigated sown area and crop mix in North China. A set of panel data collected at the househol.d and plot levels is used in empirical analysis. Water saving technologies are categorized into traditional technologies, household-based technologies and community-based technologies. By 2007, traditional technologies and household-based technologies are used in almost all sample villages. However, the shares of sown area on which water saving technologies are used are still fairly low. Econometric analysis using plot level fixed effects show that using water saving technologies can reduce crop water use and improve the productivity of water. The positive effects are generated mainly through the use of household-based or community-based technologies. The use of water saving technologies does not have statistically significant impacts on total irrigated sown area and crop mix.     

Environmental policies and productivity growth: Evidence across industries and firms

This paper investigates the impact of changes in environmental policy stringency on industry- and firm-level productivity growth in a panel of OECD countries. To test the strong version of the Porter Hypothesis (PH), we extend a neo-Schumpeterian productivity model to allow for effects of environmental policies. We use a new environmental policy stringency (EPS) index and let the effect of countries׳ environmental policies vary with the pollution intensity of the industry and with the countries’ and firms’ technological advancement. A tightening of environmental policy is associated with a short-term increase in industry-level productivity growth in the most technologically-advanced countries. This effect diminishes with the distance to the global productivity frontier, eventually becoming insignificant. For the average firm, no evidence of PH is found. However, the most productive firms see a temporary boost in productivity growth, while the less productive ones experience a productivity slowdown.     

Crop biodiversity,productivity and production risk: Panel data micro‐evidence from Ethiopia

This paper uses data from the Central Highlands of Ethiopia to assess the productivity and production risk impacts of crop diversification. Using count index as a measure of crop biodiversity, results show that increasing crop biodiversity contributes positively to farm level productivity. In addition, the findings suggest that the level of production risk significantly responds to the level of diversity, with the effect highly conditional on the skewness. The major contribution of the paper is that, unlike previous similar studies that tended to focus on intra‐crop diversity, it incorporates the mutual interdependencies across crops within a farm by focusing on inter‐crop diversity. Hence the study adds to the growing empirical literature, particularly in Africa, that tests empirical relationships between productivity, risk and crop diversity. An important policy implication for a diversity rich country such as Ethiopia is that agro‐biodiversity can be used to improve agricultural productivity while promoting in situ conservation.     

Carbon productivity convergence club and its initial conditions: China’s construction industry

A three-stage method is proposed to study the convergence clubs for the dynamic total factor carbon productivity (DCP) and the initial conditions. The first stage is to measure the DCP that reflects the initial difference. The second stage is to identify the convergence club of DCP. The last stage is to examine the initial factors that may affect the formation of the convergence club. Construction industry data from 30 provinces in mainland China from 2005 to 2016 were adopted to conduct an empirical study. The empirical results showed that (1) the arithmetic mean value of China’s provincial DCP showed an upward trend and the standard deviation showed an expanding trend. (2) There are five convergence clubs, but 13 provinces failed to converge to any club. (3) The higher the degree of construction industry marketization in 2005, the greater the probability that the provinces belong to a club with higher DCP. To improve the DCP, the effective diffusion of low-carbon construction technologies and the market-oriented reform of state-owned construction companies should be promoted. The three-stage method can also be applied to study different industries in different countries or regions.     

“十一五”中国经济的低碳转型

“十一五”期间,中国的低碳发展取得了显著进展.此前能源强度和碳排放强度上升趋势得到有效逆转并大幅下降.电力和制造业是拉动能效上升和碳强度下降的主要部门;建筑部门内单位建筑面积能耗和CO2排放有所上升,但增速较“十五”而言明显放缓;交通部门内,各种运输方式的单位周转量能耗均有所下降,但高能耗交通模式高,部门总能耗和碳排放量上升明显;农业部门的能源消耗总量略有下降,单位增加值能耗下降明显;大规模造林大幅度提高了林业的碳吸收能力,使林业部门成为中国低碳发展的重要支柱.多项节能和可再生能源政策的出台及有效实施,为中国长远的低碳发展奠定了初步但实在的技术基础、物质基础和制度基础.作为一个发展中国家,中国的低碳发展呈现出碳排放总量上升、强度下降的基本特征.强有力的行政措施,使中国的低碳发展在短时间内取得了明显进展.由于政策手段单一,“十一五”期间政策实施尽管有效但成本很高,这也是“十二五”低碳发展政策制定与实施中应着力解决的重点问题.     

科尔沁沙质草地群落物种多样性、生产力与土壤特性的关系

研究了科尔沁沙地6个典型生境类型的沙质草地群落物种多样性与生产力的变化,分析了植物群落格局、物种多样性、生产力与土壤特性的关系.结果表明,从湿草甸向干草甸、固定沙丘、半固定沙丘、半流动沙丘和流动沙丘退化过程中,群落生产力逐渐下降;群落物种多样性先增加后减小,表现出由湿生化和土壤贫瘠化生境向中生、中旱生生境逐渐增加的趋势;土壤极细沙和粉粒含量逐渐递减,土壤有机碳和全氮含量、电导率逐渐递减.典范对应分析(CCA)表明,土壤有机碳、全氮、有效氮、有效钾、土壤含水量、酸碱度和盐分含量的变化共同影响植物群落分布格局,其解释总方差为40％,其中土壤养分梯度是沙质草地群落分布格局的主要土壤限制因子. 沙质草地植物群落的生态优势度、物种多样性指数分别与土壤养分梯度和水盐及酸碱因子二元指标之间存在显著的二元线性关系.沙质草地群落物种多样性变化受土壤养分、水盐及酸碱度因子的共同影响.多元回归模型分析表明,土壤养分对生物量的贡献率为86.73%,明显大于水盐及酸碱度对群落生产力的影响.     

资源型城市转型升级:压力测算与方向选择

在绿色增长理念和“分类引导、特色发展”的指导原则下,如何科学地识别资源型城市经济可持续增长的压力,从而确定未来转型升级方向,是引导资源型城市摆脱传统发展模式的关键。本文在绿色增长的理论框架下构建了资源型城市转型升级的能源节约、附加值提升和环境友好三维空间,从方向向量内生化、引入相对距离和外生权重三个方面对方向距离函数加以改进,提出资源型城市转型升级压力的测算方法,讨论了经济可持续发展的方向选择问题,进而以2008—2016年中国283个城市(包括115个资源型城市和168个非资源型城市)为样本进行了实证检验。结果发现:①资源型城市的绿色全要素生产率水平在0.4~0.5区间内,明显低于非资源型城市;②根据修正后的转型升级压力测算结果,考虑能源和环境因素后资源型城市转型升级压力巨大,80%以上处于中效区和低效区,49个城市选择单向转型,53个城市选择多向转型;③来自不同地理区位和成长阶段的测算结果表明,东部资源型城市的绿色生产率水平最高,东北地区要致力于附加值提升和节约能源,衰退型资源型城市应选择多向转型,不同主导资源型产业的城市则需因地制宜,选择差异化的转型升级策略。     

Occupational back pain among schoolteachers in Jordan: estimated prevalence and factors associated with self-reported pain and work limitations

Purpose. To investigate the point prevalence of upper back pain and lower back pain in Jordanian schoolteachers and to estimate the work-related reported disability. Method. A cross-sectional survey was used to assess back pain in a convenience sample of teachers in Jordan. Crude and weighted prevalence estimates of self-reported spinal pain and limited productivity were described. Demographic and occupational factors associated with self-reported pain and limited productivity were identified by multinomial/logistic regression. Results. Crude rates differed by gender, geographic location, school funding and grade levels of teaching. Weighted estimates for self-reported pain were 46% for females and 36% for males. Pain with limitation was 55% for males and 49% for females. Pain without limitation was associated with female gender (odds ratio [OR]?=?5.26). Pain with limitations was associated with female gender (OR?=?2.92), teaching in public school (OR?=?2.06) and body mass index (OR?=?1.1). Among subjects with pain, limitations were associated with male gender (OR?=?2.34), teaching in public school (OR?=?3.18) and pain in both upper and lower back (OR?=?4.64). Conclusions. Pain and occupational limitations are highly prevalent in schoolteachers in Jordan.     

四川省农业生产环境因素-化肥施用状况宏观分析

本文首次提出“区域化肥施用负荷”、“化肥施用相对生产力”、“化肥施用相对适宜度”等概念及研究方法,用于四川省化肥施用状况宏观分析。四川全省化肥施用量F=228．86kg／hm^2,全省21个市州中自贡、攀枝花、德阳、绵阳、遂宁、眉山、雅安和巴中等8个市F〉250kg／hm^2,其中攀枝花市达到457kg／hm^2;全省5个农业区中,成都平原区F值最高,达285．63kg／hm^2。四川省化肥施用负荷H=4704kg／km^2,自贡、德阳、遂宁、内江等4市H值是全省H值4倍以上,自贡、遂宁2市甚至达5倍以上;成都平原区、盆地丘陵区H值分别是17491kg／km^2和16309kg／km^2,远远高于其他地区。全省化肥施用相对生产力R=20．26kg,攀枝花市R=12．11kg,是全省最低的;盆地丘陵区R=20．16kg,其余地区R值均高于全省的。全省近10年平均化肥施用相对适宜度T=3．19作为评价基准,攀枝花市T=5．22,是全省最高的,属化肥施用高度过量;各农业区中,盆地丘陵区T=3．47,盆周山地区T=3．28,属化肥施用轻度过量,其余地区基本适宜。