Carbon footprint and carbon carrying capacity of vegetation in ecologically fragile areas: A case study of Yunnan

Abstract

The environment carrying capacity and reduction of carbon emissions are the challenges faced in the ecologically fragile areas. Therefore, the evaluation of carbon security is imperative. This paper, using Yunnan as an example, built up models of carbon footprint and vegetation carbon carrying capacity to assess the level of carbon security. The IPCC method, which is internationally recognized and universal applied, was adopted to calculate carbon footprint. Forest, grassland and crop plant were selected to calculate carbon carrying capacity. The study relied on data from 2008 to 2017 for analysis and arrived at the conclusion that Yunnan's carbon footprint rose from 272.48 million tonnes in 2008 to 317.71 million tonnes in 2017. The result shows that the carbon carrying capacity of vegetation assumed an increasing trend from 339.52 million tonnes in 2008 to 416.30 million tonnes in 2017. The carbon pressure index was 0.80 in 2008 and 0.76 in 2017, showing a trend of first rising and then falling. This implies that Yunnan is carbon surplus and the level of carbon security is within the region of relatively safe. It is appropriate to improve upon the carbon carrying capacity and reduce the carbon footprint to maintain carbon security in the future.