How Does Environmental Information Disclosure Affect Public Health? Evidence from the New Ambient Air Quality Standards

Abstract

Using a quasi-natural experiment of the implementation of the new Ambient Air Quality Standards in China, this paper assessed the impact of environmental information disclosure on public health. Our empirical results showed that environmental information disclosure (EID) largely improved both physical health and mental health. Moreover, we further investigated the air pollution channel, and the empirical results showed that EID could reduce the concentration of PM2.5, which could cause an increase in public health as the concentration of PM2.5 decreases. In addition, in terms of individual characteristics, the impact of EID was larger for men, people living in the countryside and people older than 60. In terms of the heterogeneity of cities, the impact of EID was larger in cities with higher public environmental concerns, and the impact of EID was more pronounced in core cities. For regional heterogeneity, the impact of EID on physical health was more pronounced in more developed regions, whereas the impact EID on mental health was higher in less developed regions.