The Impact of Fishery Industry Agglomeration on the Green Development Efficiency of Aquaculture: Evidence from Provincial Panel Data in China

Promoting fishery industry agglomeration (AGG) is an important initiative to realize the green development efficiency of aquaculture (GEE) in the new era. This paper uses panel data from 30 provinces in China from 2008 to 2022. It employs the double fixed effect model and the mediating effect model to examine the impact of AGG on GEE. The results show that AGG has a positive effect on GEE. The green empowerment effect of homogeneous agglomeration is greater than that of heterogeneous agglomeration. In terms of specific agglomeration types, the positive effects of all types except the single tertiary industry agglomeration and the co-agglomeration of the primary and tertiary industries are statistically significant. There are obvious regional differences in the agglomeration effect, and the green dividend of agglomeration in the Yangtze River Basin and inland areas is more prominent. The agglomeration has the characteristics of diminishing marginal returns, and only the regions with a good green foundation can fully release the agglomeration advantages. Human capital and technological innovation play a partial intermediary role, and industrial structure upgrading has a masking effect. At this stage, the ecological orientation of industrial upgrading is insufficient to offset some of the positive effects of agglomeration. Based on this, it provides empirical support for differentiated cultivation of fishery green industrial clusters and smooth transmission channels of green elements.