Impact Mechanism of Carbon Price Policy on Carbon Emissions: A Re-examination of the Channel of Technological Innovation
Yan Zheming, Du Kerui and Yang Zhiming
摘要：碳价格政策被公认为是解决全球气候变化问题的最重要政策工具之一。尽管已有研究指出了碳价格可通过经济结构和能源结构的优化以实现碳减排，但是技术创新的渠道作用却并未获得一致认可。本文利用全球跨经济体面板数据，实证探讨碳价格政策对碳强度的影响机理。实证结果显示，碳价格政策存在显著的碳强度抑制效应，这种效应通过鼓励低碳技术创新、能源使用结构清洁化和经济结构转换为传导渠道，并且碳价格政策通过低碳技术创新所发挥的间接影响程度相对最高。为了实现碳减排愿景，我国不仅应该注重能源结构和经济结构的调整，更有必要大力鼓励低碳技术创新。
关键词 ： 碳价格政策, 低碳技术创新, 碳强度, 影响机理
Abstract: Carbon price policy is one of the most well-known policies for global climate change mitigation. While most existing studies have shown that carbon price can cause carbon reduction by various mechanisms like industrial structure change or optimization of energy structure, there is no consensus in the channel role played by technological innovation. This paper empirically investigates the impact mechanism of carbon price policy on carbon intensity by using a cross-regional data panel. The empirical results showed a significant and negative impact of carbon price policy on carbon intensity. Moreover, the results also showed the impact mechanism; that is, carbon price policy can encourage low-carbon innovation, cause the ratio of clean energy increase and optimize the economic structure. Among all these three channels, the indirect impact of carbon price policy through the channel of technological innovation is the largest. For realizing the promise of carbon reduction, China should not only take measures in changes of energy structure and industrial structure, but also pay more attention to encourage low-carbon innovation.
Keywords:Carbon Price Policy; Low-carbon Technological Innovation; Carbon Intensity; Impact Mechanism
DOI:10.19511/j.cnki.jee.2017.03.002