Green Development Of China’s Non-ferrous Metals Industry

The concept of green development requires a good grasp of the relationship between green and development,in which development is the goal,and green is the way and mode to achieve development.Considering the climate and environmental challenges that China is currently facing,the green development model is an important choice to promote economic,environmental,and social sustainability.Based on this background,this paper mainly discusses and analyzes the green development of China’s non-ferrous metals industry(NFMI).How to promote and realize the green development of the NFMI is the key issue considered in this paper.The main research contents of this paper include:(1).Based on the DEAMalmquist analysis framework,this paper constructs green indicators from the perspectives of total-factor energy performance,total-factor carbon performance,and energy-carbon performance,which can comprehensively explore the status quo,trend,and change of green development performance of NFMI.Through the way of factor decomposition,we can further understand the main factors that promote green development and regional heterogeneity.(2).Environmental regulation measures are regarded as an important means to correct negative externalities to improve environmental quality.Based on the theory of the Porter hypothesis,this paper systematically expounds on the relationship and mechanism of environmental regulation,technological innovation,and energy-carbon performance of NFMI.It also empirically analyzes and verifies the applicability of the Porter effect in NFMI.This paper discusses the impact of environmental investment and environmental expenditure on the green development of the NFMI and provides the relevant theoretical basis for realizing the green development of the NFMI through environmental governance.(3).The carbon emissions trading scheme is a market-incentive environmental governance tool with the main purpose of emissions abatement.Based on the pilot carbon emissions trading scheme in the NFMI,this paper uses synthetic control method and counterfactual ideas,combined with green performance indicators to study the impact of this policy tool on the green development of the NFMI.Finally,based on the empirical results of five chapters,this paper puts forward policy recommendations that are beneficial to the future green development of the NFMI.The results show that:(1).Through the empirical analysis of the green performance of the NFMI,we find that the green development indicators of total-factor energy performance,total-factor carbon performance,and energy-carbon performance are improved from the static and dynamic indicators,regional and national levels.However,there are obvious differences in the performance level between regions.The eastern region has always been at the technological and economic frontier,while there is a significant gap between other regions and the eastern region,and the technology gap rate is expanding year by year.In the process of performance change,technological progress plays the most significant role.The improvement of technical efficiency is also an important factor for the green development of NFMI.(2).Based on the Porter hypothesis,through the empirical study on the relationship between environmental regulation and energy-carbon performance,it is found that the Porter hypothesis is supported under a reasonable level of regulation.That is,environmental regulation can improve the energy-carbon performance,which is conducive to the green development of NFMI.However,the two types of regulation have different effects on the change of energy-carbon performance.There are significant "U" and inverted "U" nonlinear relationships between environmental expenditure/environmental investment and energy-carbon performance,respectively.The results support that environmental investment promotes technological innovation to improve the energy-carbon performance of China’s NFMI,verifying the "weak" Porter hypothesis.The empirical results of regional samples found that the relationship between the two types of regulation and energy-carbon performance shows obvious regional heterogeneity.(3).The empirical evidence shows that the carbon emission trading scheme can help improve carbon performance and energy-carbon performance,which is of great significance for the green development of NFMI.The placebo test also verified that the results of this study are robust and significant.Since the carbon emissions trading scheme is an environmental regulation tool based on market incentives,the empirical evidence here again verifies the applicability of the Porter hypothesis and is regarded as an important policy tool to promote the green development of NFMI.Based on the conclusions,this paper thinks that we should recognize and pay attention to the regional differences in the green performance of NFMI.We need to develop reference-value emission reduction and environmental protection mechanisms for different regions to improve green performance.The eastern region is positioned at the technological frontier and technical leadership,and it is necessary to continue to play a leading role in regional green development.It is necessary to strengthen the support for the innovation of NFMI enterprises.And actively promote the technological progress in the relatively backward areas,to realize the regional green and coordinated development of the NFMI.Environmental governance policies should take into account regional differentiation and combine green technological innovation to promote green development.At the same time,the development of the NFMI also requires a diversified and comprehensive green regulatory system.Moreover,it is urgent and necessary for China to establish a nationwide carbon emission trading market.The establishment of the carbon market will also promote the innovation of the production process and technology for NFMI companies.The monitoring of carbon emissions compliance will also improve the management efficiency of enterprises.It is necessary to summarize and learn from the experience of the pilot carbon market,establish a national NFMI emissions trading system as soon as possible,strengthen capacity management,avoid carbon leakage,and improve the competitiveness of the industry,to achieve a green and sustainable environment.