The Impact and Mechanism behind the Effect of a Digital Economy on Industrial Carbon Emission Reduction

Abstract

Digital technologies hold significant potential for addressing environmental issues, such as air pollution and rising global temperatures. China is focusing on accelerating the dual transformation of industrial greening and digitization to accomplish the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and sustainable economic growth. By combining a two-way fixed effect model, a mediated effect model, and a panel threshold model, this research endeavors to explore the effect that the expansion of the digital economy has on the level of carbon emission intensity that is produced by industry. The research yielded the following primary conclusions. (1) The digital economy effectively reduces the industrial carbon intensity via three distinct mechanisms: enhancements to the technological and innovative capacities of China, improvements in energy efficiency, and enhancements to the country’s overall industrial structure. (2) Regions where industrialization and digitization are highly integrated and developing, as well as the early pilot regions of the Comprehensive Big Data Pilot Zones, are particularly susceptible to this inhibitory effect. This research offers a theoretical backing for advancements in the digital economy; the achievement of energy-saving and carbon-reducing sustainable development objectives; and the establishment of green, ecologically friendly, and recycling development strategies.