Assessing the Relationship among Land Transfer, Fertilizer Usage, and PM(2.5) Pollution: Evidence from Rural China

Concern for environmental issues is a crucial component in achieving the goal of sustainable development of humankind. Different countries face various challenges and difficulties in this process, which require unique solutions. This study investigated the relationship between land transfer, fertilizer usage, and PM(2.5) pollution in rural China from 2000 to 2019, considering their essential roles in agricultural development and overall national welfare. A cross section dependence test, unit root test, and cointegration test, among other methods, were used to test the panel data. A Granger causality test was used to determine the causal relationship between variables, and an empirical analysis of the impulse response and variance decomposition was carried out. The results show that the use of chemical fertilizers had a significant positive impact on PM(2.5) pollution, but the impact of land transfer on PM(2.5) pollution was negative. In addition, land transfer can reduce the use of chemical fertilizers through economies of scale, thus reducing air pollution. More specifically, for every 1% increase in fertilizer usage, PM(2.5) increased by 0.17%, and for every 1% increase in land transfer rate, PM(2.5) decreased by about 0.07%. The study on the causal relationship between land transfer, fertilizer usage, and PM(2.5) pollution in this paper is helpful for exploring environmental change—they are supplements and innovations which are based on previous studies and provide policy-makers with a basis and inspiration for decision-making.