China's Marine Ranching Program Boosts Inclusive Green Growth in

A study published in Frontiers in Environmental Science finds that China’s National Marine Ranching Demonstration Zone program can boost “inclusive green growth” in coastal cities. Using municipal panel data from 2011 to 2024 across 37 coastal cities and treating the staggered creation of demonstration zones as a quasi-natural experiment, researchers estimate an increase of about 0.174 standard deviations. The benefits stem from a dual production effect: the program raises mariculture output per unit area, supporting coastal urban economies, but it coincides with a contraction in marine capture production that offsets part of the gain. Effects appear consistent across regions and implementation phases, but are stronger in larger cities and in places with higher green technological innovation or more advanced industrial structures.