An Empirical Study of the Environmental Kuznets Curve for Environment Quality and Economic Growth --Evidence from China's Panel Data

This paper attempts to examine the determinants of environmental degradation within the framework of Environment Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis using China's city-level panel data from 2003 to 2012. The population agglomeration as well as three types of cities such as municipalities, sub-provincial city and prefecture-level city are considered in our paper. Our empirical results with the whole sample data verified the theory of the EKC hypothesis, which shows a reverse "U" shape between economic growth and environmental pollution. In addition, the effect of population on environmental pollution is quite different among the various types of cities. The results of this study can serve as a useful reference for policy makers in terms of achieving economic and environmental sustainability.