The impact of economic development on the environment and the applicability of the environmental Kuznets curve in Jilin province

The environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis posits that pollution follows an inverted-U curve with respect to economic growth. Using the pressure, state, and response (PSR) model, this paper enlists 26 environmental indicators to examine the relationship between economic growth and the environment and the applicability of the EKC in Jilin province during the 1998 to 2009 period. The results show that economic growth has increased the discharge of pollutants. This is mainly because the adjustment of industrial structure has not yet produced significant environmental benefits. However, with more response measures of environmental protection in Jilin province, atmospheric, water, and noise pollution has improved in recent years. The results also show that the EKC of Jilin Province is complex and does not have the typical characteristics. Some pollutants experience an Nshaped curve, while others do not have significant correlations with per capita GDP. The applicability of the EKC hypothesis is therefore quite restricted. These results will give us a good understanding of the influence of the economic development on the environment and the EKC hypothesis in Jilin province in China.