Green governance in action: Energy conservation and carbon reduction effects of ecological civilization pilot zones

Abstract

Summary This study examines the energy-saving and carbon-reduction effects of China’s Ecological Civilization Pilot Demonstration Zones using panel data for 229 prefecture-level cities from 2004 to 2023 and a spatial difference-in-differences framework. The results show that the policy significantly reduces urban carbon intensity and energy intensity by 25.2% and 8.0%, respectively. Spatial effect decomposition further reveals strong positive spillovers, with indirect carbon-reduction effects exceeding direct effects. Mechanism analysis indicates that the policy operates by strengthening government environmental governance, promoting green technological innovation, upgrading industrial structure, and enhancing public environmental attention. Heterogeneity analysis shows stronger policy effects in large cities and resource-based cities. These findings provide empirical evidence for optimizing ecological civilization policies, promoting low-carbon urban transition, and strengthening regional collaborative governance.