Spotlight on Spatial Spillovers: An Econometric Analysis of Wastewater Treatment in Mexican Municipalities

摘要

Environmental pollution levels are still high in most developing and emerging countries. However, substantial variations exist across and within countries. We investigate the impact of spatial spillovers, a factor that has received very little attention in explaining why variations occur. Spatial spillovers imply that the likelihood of implementing an environmental measure in a specific region is positively influenced by the successful implementation of this measure in neighbouring regions. We analyse whether spatial spillovers exist on the example of municipal wastewater treatment in Mexican municipalities. We apply a spatial econometrics approach for our empirical analysis and control for socioeconomic, demographic and institutional impacts. Our findings suggest that the successful implementation of municipal wastewater treatment spills over among neighbouring Mexican municipalities.