Abstract
Carbon emissions, being embedded in sectorial production chains, need to be reduced through targeted carbon emission reduction strategies. For such a reason, it is urgent to assess the contributions of different influencing factors among different sectors for different supply chains. Focused on China, being the world’s largest carbon emitter, this paper uses the latest 2018 China’s input-output table to assess different factors, at sectoral scale, related to embodied carbon emissions. The analysis proved that the total final use factor prompted the largest emission growth, while the input-output structure factor inhibited the emission increase significantly. The gross fixed capital formation category was the largest contributor to aggregate embodied carbon emission growth, followed by urban consumption and export categories. The construction was identified as a key sector for its embodied carbon emission, the most relevant intermediate inputs to construction sector are the manufacture of non-metallic mineral products, the smelting and rolling of metals, and the production and supply of electric power and heat power sectors. Results indicate that, in the case of China, low-carbon building materials should be favored in the future. Meanwhile, energy-saving should be promoted among urban residents to increase the effectiveness of carbon emissions reduction strategies.
Highlights
The serious environmental problems caused by increasing carbon emissions attract the attention of citizens all over the world
By analyzing the changes of the sectoral supply chains driven by the final use and four influencing factors, this paper studied the aggregate embodied carbon emission changes in China from 2007 to 2018
The results indicated that China’s aggregate embodied carbon emissions increased from 2007 to 2012, and slowed down from 2012 to 2018
Summary
The serious environmental problems caused by increasing carbon emissions attract the attention of citizens all over the world. As the largest carbon-emitting country, China faces pressures in carbon control and reduction works (Yang et al, 2020a). With this respect, the Chinese government has made many arrangements and efforts for carbon emission reduction. On the general debate of the 75th United Nations General Assembly, held in September 2020, China made a clear commitment to Abbreviations: AECE, Aggregate embodied carbon emission; RC, Rural consumption; UC, Urban consumption; GC, Government consumption; GF, Gross fixed capital formation; IR, Inventory increase; EX, Exports; CI, Carbon intensity; LF, Input-output structure; FS, Final use structure; TF, Total final use. Energy consumption and carbon emission control guidelines are still emphasized in the 14th Five-Year Plan and Social Development and Vision 2035, which reflects China’s determination to reduce carbon emissions
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