Does the Carbon Trading Pilot Policy Have an Inhibitory Effect on the Growth of Carbon Emissions in the Pilot Area?

-- Empirical Research based on DID Model

Abstract

With the increase of carbon dioxide emissions year by year, how to achieve carbon emission reduction has become an increasing concern of all countries. As the world 's largest carbon emitter, China has put forward the emission reduction targets of "carbon peak" and "carbon neutrality", and formally implemented the pilot policy of carbon emission trading in 2013. By studying the panel data of 30 provinces from 2006 to 2019, this paper uses the DID model to test the actual emission reduction effect of the carbon emission trading policy on the pilot areas. The results show that: (1) The pilot policy of carbon emission trading has a significant inhibitory effect on the growth of carbon emissions in the pilot area, and it gradually decreases with time;(2) There is a significant regional heterogeneity in the policy effect, and the policy effect in the eastern region is the most significant;(3) The placebo test further verifies that the carbon emission reduction effect of carbon emission trading policy is robust. The conclusion of this paper enriches the literature related to carbon emission reduction, and will provide some help to promote the construction of a stable national carbon emission trading market.