Objectives

The main objective is to provide policy recommendations on the enhancement of ecological environmental protection.

Methods

Combined with spatial correlation analysis and spatial dynamic panel models, this paper estimates the spatial effect of the local government’s environmental protection expenditure on the improvement of the ecological environment based on China’s 30 provinces as samples from 2007 to 2017.

Results

We find a significant impact of the environmental protection expenditure of the local government on the ecological environment improvement of neighbouring regions rather than the local region. It reveals a “free-riding” phenomenon in environmental governance. In addition, increasing the levels of economic development, urbanization, environmental regulations and industrial structure in the local region can effectively mitigate environmental pollution in the local region on one hand and contribute to the deterioration of the ecological environment in neighbouring regions on the other.

Conclusions

The present study suggests that environmental regulations can significantly improve the local environment. The local governments at all levels must reinforce the supervision of the ecological protection areas to ensure the implementation of environmental regulations.