Research on the relationship of water pollution,environmental regulation and high-quality economic development in the Yangtze River Economic Belt
Based on panel data from 11 provinces(cities)in the Yangtze River Economic Belt from 2009 to 2021,this study explores the relationship between water pollution,environmental regulation,and high-quality economic development.Firstly,a rating index system for high-quality economic development is constructed,and the level of high-quality economic development is measured using the entropy method.Secondly,baseline regression is conducted based on the Environmental Kuznets Curve theory.Thirdly,with water pollution as the threshold variable,the impact of environmental regulation on high-quality economic development is examined.Finally,the spatial heterogeneity of water pollution and environmental regulation in the upper,middle,and lower reaches of the Yangtze River Economic Belt is investigated.The results show that as the degree of water pollution intensifies,environmental regulation increasingly inhibits high-quality economic development,with this inhibitory effect first increasing and then decreasing.There is an inverted"U"shaped relationship between water pollution and high-quality economic development,confirming the"Environmental Kuznets Curve."The study finds spatial heterogeneity in the impact of water pollution and environmental regulation on high-quality economic development across the Yangtze River Economic Belt.
water pollutionenvironmental regulationhigh-quality economic developmentthreshold modelEnvironmental Kuznets curve theoryYangtze River Economic Belt