What is the relationship between political institutions and air pollution generated by the power sector? Here we focus on the association between democracy and power generated from coal, the most polluting of all fossil fuels. Using a new dataset on coal-fired power plants commissioned between 1980 and 2016 in 71 countries, we find that the relationship between democracy and coal varies according to the environmental Kuznets curve logic. Democratic political institutions at lower levels of economic development are correlated with increased commissioning of coal power plants, as governments seek to appeal to an electorate prioritizing economic growth and affordable energy access. As a country becomes richer, democracy comes to have a negative association with coal power, as clean air becomes a more salient issue for the public.

中文翻译：

---

政治制度与污染：来自燃煤发电的证据

政治制度与电力部门产生的空气污染有什么关系？在这里，我们关注民主与煤炭发电之间的关联，煤炭是所有化石燃料中污染最严重的。使用 1980 年至 2016 年间在 71 个国家投产的燃煤电厂的新数据集，我们发现民主与煤炭之间的关系根据环境库兹涅茨曲线逻辑而变化。经济发展水平较低的民主政治机构与燃煤电厂的投产增加相关，因为政府试图吸引优先考虑经济增长和负担得起的能源获取的选民。随着一个国家变得更加富裕，民主开始与煤电产生负面关联，因为清洁空气对公众来说变得更加突出。