Blue skies over Beijing : economic growth and the environment in China / Siqi Zheng, Matthew E. Kahn.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kahn, Matthew E., author.

Zheng, Siqi, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Environmental policy--Economic aspects--China.

Environmental policy.

Sustainable development--China.

Sustainable development.

Pollution--China.

Pollution.

Economic development--Environmental aspects--China.

Economic development.

China--Environmental conditions.

China.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (285 p.)

Place of Publication:

Princeton, NJ : Princeton University Press, [2016]

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Over the last thirty years, even as China's economy has grown by leaps and bounds, the environmental quality of its urban centers has precipitously declined due to heavy industrial output and coal consumption. The country is currently the world's largest greenhouse-gas emitter and several of the most polluted cities in the world are in China. Yet, millions of people continue moving to its cities seeking opportunities. Blue Skies over Beijing investigates the ways that China's urban development impacts local and global environmental challenges. Focusing on day-to-day choices made by the nation's citizens, families, and government, Matthew Kahn and Siqi Zheng examine how Chinese urbanites are increasingly demanding cleaner living conditions and consider where China might be headed in terms of sustainable urban growth.Kahn and Zheng delve into life in China's cities from the personal perspectives of the rich, middle class, and poor, and how they cope with the stresses of pollution. Urban parents in China have a strong desire to protect their children from environmental risk, and calls for a better quality of life from the rising middle class places pressure on government officials to support greener policies. Using the historical evolution of American cities as a comparison, the authors predict that as China's economy moves away from heavy manufacturing toward cleaner sectors, many of China's cities should experience environmental progress in upcoming decades.Looking at pressing economic and environmental issues in urban China, Blue Skies over Beijing shows that a cleaner China will mean more social stability for the nation and the world.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Acknowledgments

Chapter One: Introduction

Part I. A Geographic Overview of Urban Pollution Production in China

Chapter Two: Made in China

Chapter Three: The Migration to Cities

Chapter Four: The Causes and Consequences of Chinese Suburbanization

Chapter Five: Private Vehicle Demand in Urban China

Part II. The Rising Demand for Green Cities

Chapter Six: The Rising Demand for Blue Skies and Urban Risk Reduction

Chapter Seven: Recent Empirical Evidence on the Demand for Lower Pollution Levels

Part III. Promoting Environmental Accountability in a One- Party State

Chapter Eight: The Central Government's Increased Desire to Promote Environmental Sustainability

Chapter Nine: Will Local Governments Create Green Cities?

Chapter Ten: Conclusion

Appendix 1

Appendix 2

Notes

Index

Notes:

Includes index.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 23. Mai 2019)

ISBN:

9781400882816

1400882818

OCLC:

946359594