Study on the Impact of Collaborative Agglomeration of Manufacturing and Producer Services on PM(2.5) Pollution: Evidence from Urban Agglomerations in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River in China

In this paper, using panel data of 28 cities in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River from 2003 to 2020 as the research sample, we built a dynamic spatial Durbin model based on the STIRPAT (stochastic impacts by regression on population, affluence, and technology) model and conducted an empirical study on the impact of the coordinated agglomeration of manufacturing and producer services on particulate matter (PM) 2.5 pollution. The results show a significant positive spatial spillover effect of PM(2.5) pollution in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. The coordinated agglomeration of manufacturing and producer services in the urban agglomerations there is conducive to reducing PM(2.5) pollution. Similar to the inverted-U curve of the classic environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis, there is a significant inverted-U curve relationship between PM(2.5) pollution and economic growth in urban agglomerations in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. The proportion of coal consumption, the proportion of secondary industry, and the urbanization level are significantly and positively correlated with PM(2.5) pollution in urban agglomerations in this area. Technological innovation, environmental regulation, and annual average humidity play an important role in addressing the PM(2.5) pollution and spatial spillover effect. Industrial structure and technological innovation are the main ways for the coordinated agglomeration of manufacturing and producer services to affect PM(2.5). The research conclusion can be of great practical significance to optimize the regional industrial layout, control PM(2.5) pollution, and establish a sustainable development policy system in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River in China.