The cleanup of US manufacturing through pollution offshoring

Abstract

We study the role of offshoring in understanding long-run environmental impacts of trade liberalization and the cleanup of US manufacturing. Leveraging establishment-level pollution emissions and business activity data and a change in US trade policy toward China in the early 2000s, we show that US establishments decrease toxic emissions in response to a reduction in trade policy uncertainty. Emission abatement is mainly driven by a decline in pollution emission intensity. We provide comprehensive evidence that highlights the role of offshoring: US manufacturers, especially those that emit pollutants intensely, source from abroad and establish more subsidiaries in China following the event.