Influence of water ecological civilization city pilot construction policy on new quality productive forces of high water-consuming enterprises

In order to facilitate the rational utilization of water resources, safeguard the water ecological environment, and drive the sustainable development of the economy and society, this paper selects samples from A-share listed companies in China’s high water-consuming industry located in Shanghai and Shenzhen from 2011 to 2022 and develops a double-difference model to empirically assess the effect of the pilot construction policy on the new quality productive forces of high water-consuming enterprises. The findings indicate that constructing a water ecological civilization city can enhance the new quality productive forces of high water-consuming enterprises, with green technology innovation as a crucial factor influencing this productivity improvement. The heterogeneity analysis indicates that the impact of the pilot construction of a water ecological civilization city on the new quality productive forces of highwater-consuming enterprises is more significant in the central and western regions, low economic development areas, and state-owned enterprises.