Spatial disparities and sources analysis of co-benefits between air pollution and carbon reduction in China

Spatial misallocation of resource elements impedes the coordination in regional co-benefit in carbon emission and pollution reduction. Guided by scope economy principles, this study aims to quantifies co-benefits and explores spatial variation patterns to facilitate mutual synergy. The findings offer valuable insights for identifying optimal focus points and shaping targeted collaborative policies. Based on the multi-source provincial panel data spanning 2000 to 2021, this paper quantitatively assesses the co-benefit through the lens of marginal abatement cost. Then, the Dagum Gini coefficient was employed to investigate the disparities at the spatial level. Additionally, geographical detector is introduced to analyze the source of disparities at the factor level. Results indicate: (1) Under joint reduction, the marginal abatement cost reduces by 57.86% and 79.97% respectively, with an overall 68.77% increase in co-benefit fluctuation. (2) Provinces with low co-benefit significantly decreased after 2007, while provinces with high co-benefit concentrated in the northwest, southwest, and east. (3) Overall disparities decreased, east-central regions hold the lowest spatial disparities in co-benefit and east-west hold the most; intragroup differences and supervariable density primarily contributes to the disparity. (4) FDI significantly influence the co-benefit over the past two decades, with spatial disparities influenced by both endogenous and exogenous factors across development stages. •Joint reduction significantly lowers the marginal abatement cost and enhanced co-benefit.•East-central regions holds the lowest spatial disparity in co-benefit and east-west holds the most.•Intragroup disparities and supervariable density primarily contributed to spatial disparity.•The interplay between internal and external factors increasingly influences spatial disparities.