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THE ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE OF POLLUTING PLANTS: A SPATIAL ANALYSIS *
Author(s) -
Gray Wayne B.,
Shadbegian Ronald J.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of regional science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.171
H-Index - 79
eISSN - 1467-9787
pISSN - 0022-4146
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-9787.2007.00500.x
Subject(s) - economies of agglomeration , pollutant , compliance (psychology) , spatial dependence , environmental science , econometrics , environmental regulation , air pollutants , environmental resource management , natural resource economics , air pollution , economics , ecology , environmental planning , statistics , mathematics , biology , microeconomics , psychology , social psychology
This paper uses plant‐level EPA and Census data to examine spatial factors affecting environmental performance, as measured by air pollutant emissions and regulatory compliance. We find significant effects for compliance, but not for emissions. Compliance is positively spatially correlated, partly explained by spatial correlations in observed plant characteristics, suggesting influences of industry agglomeration. The use of spatial econometric methods shows only small effects of spatially lagged compliance status, and does not greatly change the estimated contributions of other spatially explicit factors. Regulatory activity has the expected effect of increasing environmental performance, both at the inspected plant and at neighboring plants, but only for plants in the same state, demonstrating the importance of jurisdictional boundaries.