Does Export Liberalization Cause the Agglomeration of Pollution? Evidence from China

This paper investigates the geographic concentration of water pollution. Chinese firm-level data shows that water pollution emissions are unevenly distributed across regions. Using China’s accession to the World Trade Organization as the exogenous shock, we identify a negative causal effect of export liberalization on the agglomeration of water pollution across regions in China. It suggests that more water pollution was discharged in those previously low-pollution regions after the export liberalization.