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Research on the Comprehensive Evaluation of China’s Environmental Health, 2003–2010

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Abstract

The environmental health of 31 provincial administrative regions in China from 2003 to 2010 was evaluated using time series principal component analysis based on the comprehensive indicator system for environmental health. The environmental health index increased continuously at a fluctuating rate from 2003 to 2009 but decreased slightly in 2010. However, such an increase resulted in the rapid and continuous development of industrial air pollution, natural protection, industrial solid waste and economic condition, as well as the slow development of health condition and the continuous deterioration of forest resource rather than the harmonious development of various environmental aspects. The environmental health indices of eastern and western China showed variation trends similar to that of the whole country: increasing continuously from 2003 to 2009 but decreasing slightly in 2010. The environmental health indices of northeast and central China increased continuously from 2003 to 2010. During these 8 years, central and western China achieved more rapid environmental health development than eastern China, thereby significantly narrowing the gap among central, western, and eastern China.

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Notes

  1. In the initial economic development, it will deteriorate environmental quality. However, the environmental quality will be improved when the economic development level reached a certain turning point. In other words, there’s an inverted U-curve relationship between economic development and environmental pollution (Grossman and Klueger 1991; Xu and Deng 2011).

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Correspondence to Peigang Wang.

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Wang, P., Xu, C. Research on the Comprehensive Evaluation of China’s Environmental Health, 2003–2010. Soc Indic Res 122, 709–721 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-014-0715-6

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