Abstract:

China is actively advancing its “dual carbon” goals, with the carbon emission efficiency of the comprehensive tourism industry attracting significant attention. This study employs the super-slacks-based-measure model to accurately measure the carbon-emission efficiency of the tourism industry across five northwestern provinces (autonomous regions) from 2011 to 2020. The Tobit regression model is employed to conduct an in-depth analysis of its influencing factors. The research findings indicate that (1) The overall carbon emission efficiency of the tourism industry demonstrates a “rising-declining-stabilizing” trend, with notable regional disparities. Inter-provincial gaps have gradually narrowed; however, a spatial pattern of “higher efficiency in the southeast and lower in the northwest” persists. (2) Regarding internal dynamics, the polarization phenomenon has weakened, with the technological progress index showing a stronger correlation with tourism carbon emission efficiency. (3) In terms of influencing factors, economic development level, industrial structure optimization, and technological innovation capacity exhibit significant positive effects. In contrast, the tourism reception scale demonstrates a significant negative impact. Technological innovation capacity proves most effective in reducing tourism carbon emissions. The promoting effect of openness to the global economy requires further enhancement, while transportation infrastructure construction currently shows no significant impact. Based on these findings, this study proposes optimization strategies to reduce tourism-related carbon emissions across the five northwestern provinces (autonomous regions), thereby facilitating the industry’s green transformation and achieving coordinated economic, social, and environmental development.

Key words: tourism, carbon emission efficiency, SBM model, Tobit regression model, five provinces (autonomous regions) of northwest China