Estimating The Environmental Cost Of Mixed Rare Earth Production In Northern China

Northern Chinese mixed rare earths are important key metal minerals,but their exploitation,smelting and separation leads to the emission of environmental pollutants.China has taken a series of measures to control and govern the environmental pollution caused by mixed rare earth development in northern China,but currently,environmental pollution still exists and has an impact on the lives of local residents.This impact can be measured by the willingness to pay(WTP)of the environmental improvement caused by rare earth development.By investigating residents’ WTP for environmental improvement with respect to mixed rare earth development in northern China,we can better promote environmental governance and provide a decision-making basis for the government to propose quantitative and feasible environmental governance policies.Based on the perspective of residents’ WTP,this study investigates their WTP for the environmental pollution caused by the development of rare earths in the northern mixed rare earths mining area.And more,the study brings the nonuse value of resources development into the environmental cost accounting system,so as to comprehensively estimate the environmental cost of the development of mixed rare earth in northern China,and provide decision support for the environmental policy of rare earth development in China.Northern Chinese mixed rare earths are located mainly in Baotou in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.In this study,the environmental cost accounting is taken as the evaluation object for the mixed rare earth development in northern China,and the residents are taken as the investigation objects who around the rare earth mine area in Baotou.We conducted a questionnaire survey for their basic personal situation,environmental cognition of rare earth development and WTP for environmental pollution control.Based on our findings,we used a double-bounded dichotomous choice(DC)model to calculate the average amount that residents are willing to pay for the treatment of environmental pollution,and we obtained the estimated mean value of their WTP,and extended it to the overall study,and then we got the environmental cost value of mixed rare earth development in northern China.We obtained 568 valid questionnaires in the Hondlon District and Bayan Obo Mining District of Baotou.The analysis results show that the average value of the respondents’ WTP under the double-bounded DC model is 153.63 CNY per year and that the total environmental cost of the development of mixed rare earth in northern China is 442 million CNY per year.76.23% of the respondents are willing to pay for improving the environment.But another 23.77% of them are not willing to pay,in their opinion,the government and enterprises should bear the cost of environmental governance.Regarding the direct influencing factors of WTP,gender,the degree of cognition of environmental pollution,the degree of perception of bodily influence and the degree of expectations regarding environmental remediation have a significant positive correlation with WTP;moreover,the perception of bodily influence is the most important factor.Regarding the factors indirectly influencing WTP,age and place of residence affect the respondents’ environmental cognition,which,in turn,affect the respondents’ WTP.Based on these influencing factors,the government can implement distinct environmental governance policies in a perspective acceptable view of the residents for different groups to effectively support the implementation of environmental policies.