Interregional Environmental Policy Coordination, Natural Resource Endowment, and Green Economic Development: A Quantitative Analysis of China’s Policy Tests

Revealing the linkage between interregional coordination and a green economy is crucial to economic resilience and high-quality development capabilities. Although local governments in China are increasingly emphasizing environmental policy coordination, academics have not fully investigated whether it can advance green economic development. This research aims to quantify interregional environmental policy coordination from the perspectives of policy actor coordination and policy tool coordination and further investigates its green development effects, particularly when considering the mediating role of natural resource endowment. The analysis is based on environmental policies and related data issued by 284 cities in China from 2003 to 2022. The results indicate that (1) interregional environmental policy coordination contributes to green economic development, in which policy actor coordination and policy tool coordination are complementary and indispensable. (2) It exhibits heterogeneity characteristics that have a stronger promoting effect in resource-rich areas, as well as spillover characteristics that gradually weaken with increasing distance. (3) Interregional environmental policy coordination promotes green economic development by reducing natural resource abundance and natural resource dependence; however, both policy actor coordination and policy tool coordination mainly play a role in lowering natural resource abundance. This study offers useful insights for policymakers seeking to maximize economic benefits while utilizing limited resources and protecting the environment.