The impact of green technology innovation on the comprehensive utilization rate of non-hazardous industrial solid waste

The comprehensive utilization of non-hazardous industrial solid waste (NHISW) is a key focus of the circular economy. This paper argues that green technology innovation is a crucial factor in improving the comprehensive utilization rate of NHISW. Through theoretical analysis, an empirical study is conducted using a sample of 297 cities in China from 2003 to 2019. The study revealed that green technology innovation can significantly enhance the comprehensive utilization rate of the NHISW. This conclusion remains robust after conducting robustness tests and addressing endogeneity issues via two-stage least squares (2SLS) and the difference generalized method of moments (GMM) estimation. The heterogeneity analysis reveals that green technology innovation significantly boosts the comprehensive utilization of NHISW in the first stage of the environmental Kuznets curve, but its marginal effect decreases as the economy grows. Additionally, a higher proportion of the secondary sector negatively moderates this relationship. This study suggests that the government can strengthen policy support for green technology innovation and encourage the application of green technology to improve the comprehensive utilization rate of NHISW.