Abstract
Park city construction (PCC), as an innovative urban construction concept, has been given a high hope of improving air quality. Chengdu, as the first pilot city to build a park city in China, has made a series of achievements in PCC. This study aims to assess the impact of Chengdu's PCC on its air quality and the underlying mechanisms, using the Synthetic Control Method (SCM). The findings demonstrate a substantial enhancement in air quality in Chengdu due to the PCC. In the four-year period following the implementation of the PCC, it is estimated that the Air Quality Index (AQI) experienced reductions of 7.826, 6.579, 7.817, and 0.861 units, respectively. Nevertheless, the available evidence indicates that the role of Chengdu's PCC in PM2.5 reduction is not significant. Path analysis reveals that the enhanced air quality in Chengdu can be attributed to the expansion of green spaces, acceleration of industrial green transformation, and increased energy efficiency facilitated by the PCC. These findings offer evidence to enhance the PCC in Chengdu, particularly with regard to the mitigation of PM2.5 levels. Additionally, this study presents empirical evidence supporting the advancement of PCC in a greater number of urban areas.
NETL
NSTL
Elsevier