The effect of digital technology development on the improvement of environmental governance capacity: A case study of China

The enhancement of ecological and environmental quality relies on the ability of environmental governance, which can be significantly improved through the utilization of digital technology. This study develops two separate index systems for digital technology and environmental governance. It utilizes a modified coupling coordination degree model to assess the level of synergy between digital technology and ecological and environmental governance. The study also investigates the temporal development patterns and spatial distribution characteristics of this synergy. Finally, it employs a spatial Durbin model to examine the impact of digital technology on the improvement of environmental governance. The findings indicate a significant improvement in the coupling coordination degree (EDD) of DT, EG, and their combination in China from 2007 to 2021. Moreover, the coupling coordination status in the eastern region surpasses that in the central and western regions. Throughout the study period, the EDD exhibits clear spatial clustering properties. The local autocorrelation analysis of EDD reveals that the eastern region is predominantly characterized by "high-high" clustering, whilst the middle and western regions display "low-low" clustering. The local autocorrelation analysis of EDD indicates that the eastern region exhibits predominantly "high-high" aggregation, whilst the middle and western regions display "low-low" aggregation. The presence of digital infrastructure and user activity has a beneficial impact on environmental governance, leading to positive promotion and spatial spillover effects. However, the digital economy has a negative influence on regional environmental governance. Additionally, the incongruity between the construction of governmental websites and the capacity of environmental governance is reflected in digital governance.