Decoupling analysis of environmental pressure and economic development: A case of the industrial system in Panzhihua

Based on Tapio decoupling elasticity factor, this paper studies the relationships among growth rates of the industrial added value, materials consumption and waste discharge in Panzhihua, the purpose is to assess the dematerialization situation of industrial system. Results illustrate that both industrial material consumption and waste discharge were in the status of Strong and Weak Decoupling except 2009. And the implementation of energy saving and emissions reduction of industrial system in Panzhihua has gained achievement preliminary. By further predicting the material consumption and waste discharge of industrial system in 2020, we estimate the corresponding driving factors of "eco-efficiency" and "Factor X", and conclude that the critical point of industrial development in Panzhihua is to enhance energy conservation.