Agricultural production and air pollution: An investigation on crop straw fires

by Kai Zhao, Xiaohui Tian, Wangyang Lai, Shuai Xu

In numerous developing nations, the pervasive practice of crop residue incineration is a principal contributor to atmospheric contamination in agricultural operations. This study examines the repercussions of such biomass combustion on air quality during the autumnal harvest season, utilizing data acquired from satellite-based remote sensing of fire events and air pollution measurements. Employing wind direction information alongside difference-in-difference and fixed-effects methodologies, this investigation rectifies estimation inaccuracies stemming from the non-random distribution of combustion occurrences. The empirical findings reveal that agricultural residue burning precipitates an elevation in average PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations by approximately 27 and 22 μg/m³ during the autumnal incineration period, respectively. Furthermore, air pollution attributed to residue burning in prominent grain-producing regions exceeds the national average by approximately 40%. By integrating economic paradigms into agri-environmental inquiries, this study offers novel insights and substantiation of the environmental expenditures engendered by crop residue burning, juxtaposed with extant meteorological and ecological research findings.