Collaborative governance on SO₂ pollution from thermal power energy consumption: Evidence from Yangtze River Delta urban agglomeration in China

In order to explore an effective method for the effect of collaborative governance on SO₂ pollution from thermal power energy consumption in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) urban agglomeration, the spatiotemporal evolution of SO₂ pollution from thermal power energy consumption was empirically studied by Moran's I first; then the revised Difference-in-Difference-in-Differences model was constructed to examine the effect of collaborative governance on SO₂ emission intensity from thermal power energy consumption, and the time effect of collaborative governance was also examined; finally, the Grey System Prediction Model was used to forecast the SO₂ emission intensity from thermal power energy consumption in YRD urban agglomeration from 2021 to 2025. The results show that SO₂ emissions from thermal power energy consumption in YRD urban agglomeration have positive spatial autocorrelations, and high-high spatial clusters have the tendency of moving to inland cities from coastal cities. Moreover, SO₂ pollution from thermal power energy consumption in YRD urban agglomeration has improved year-by-year after the implementation of collaborative governance and the predicted SO₂ emission intensity from thermal power energy consumption in YRD urban agglomeration generally shows a downward trend.