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• EKC, Porter Hypothesis, and Jevons' Paradox are tested in China IS industry. • Cointegration, VECM, IRF and granger causality techniques are used for analyses. • Environmental regulation exerts a critical role in emissions reduction. • The three hypotheses are confirmed under certain conditions. • Policy recommendations for IS industrial low-carbon development are posited. By comprehensively evaluating the potential effectiveness of environmental regulations and technical innovation in facilitating emission reductions, this study highlights the complexity of the relationships — short- and long-term as well as dynamic responses — between carbon dioxide (CO 2) emissions, energy efficiency, economic performance, environmental regulation and technological innovation using the vector error correction model (VECM) by incorporating exogenous policy factors based on China IS industrial data during the period 1995–2017. Empirical analysis indicates: (a) the existence of the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) Hypothesis is established given an inverted U-shaped curve of CO 2 emissions along with the increase of industrial output value; (b) weak Porter Hypothesis (pH) stands in the short term as innovation can be spurred by environmental regulation, whereas strong pH is supported in both the short and long term when energy efficiency and emission reduction can be achieved under strict regulations;(c) Jevons' Paradox is confirmed since the emissions increment brought by the massive increase in demand is greater than the emission reduction volume brought by energy efficiency improvement and; (d) Environmental regulation exerts a critical role in emission reduction, especially for the policies with market-based and common-and-control functions implemented since 2006. Corresponding policy implications to facilitate low-carbon transition of the ISI are proposed. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous studies have examined the correlation between economic growth and air pollution, but few focuses on the nexus between environmental regulation and <2.5 μm (PM 2.5) fine particle matter. Using Spatial Durbin Model (SDM) and Spatial Two-stage Least Squares (2SLS) methods to analyze 277 Chinese cities over the period 2002–2010, this paper finds inverted U-shaped relationships between PM 2.5 concentration and formal/informal environmental regulations for the whole and eastern and western regions. By removing the depression year of 2008, regulation effect on pollution strengthened, indicating that the main task for local governments in crisis is to avoid GDP decline rather than official promotion. Further, green technological innovation and industrial structure optimization induced by environmental regulation is shown to be beneficial for haze pollution mitigation. Some policy recommendations are proposed in conclusion. • The Spatial Models are used to examine the effect of regulation on the PM 2.5 of 277 Chinese cities during 2002–2010. • An inverted U-shaped relationship is found for the nexus. • Eastern and western China generally has an inverted U-shaped relationship. • Technical innovation and industrial structure are confirmed to be important mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]