Empirical Analysis of Carbon Emission Accounting and Influencing Factors of Energy Consumption in China.

Zhaosu Meng,Huan Wang,Baona Wang

doi:10.3390/ijerph15112467

Abstract

China is confronting great pressure to reduce carbon emissions. This study focuses on the driving factors of carbon emissions in China using the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) method. Seven economic factors, including gross domestic product (GDP), investment intensity, research and development (R&D) intensity, energy intensity, research and development (R&D) efficiency, energy structure and province structure are selected and the decomposition model of influencing factors of carbon emissions in China is constructed from a sectoral perspective. The influence of various economic factors on carbon emissions is analyzed quantitatively. Results show that the R&D intensity and energy intensity are the main factors inhibiting the growth of carbon emissions. GDP and investment intensity are the major factors promoting the growth of carbon emissions. The contribution of R&D efficiency to carbon emissions is decreasing. The impacts of energy structure and province structure on carbon emissions are ambiguous through time. Finally, some policy suggestions for strengthening the management of carbon emissions and carbon emission reduction are proposed.

Highlights

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) states that the evidence for global warming is unequivocal
From the year-to-year analysis, we find that gross domestic product (GDP) and energy intensity have a huge and consistent impact on carbon emission through time, while GDP has a large and profound positive effect, and energy intensity has a negative effect
In terms of the accumulated the seven factors, the growth of GDP is the biggest driver of the carbon emission increment, which effects of the seven factors, the growth of GDP is the biggest driver of the carbon emission increment, accounts for 192.54%, which indicates that China’s economic development mainly depends on energy which accounts for 192.54%, which indicates that China’s economic development mainly depends on consumption

Summary

Introduction

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) states that the evidence for global warming is unequivocal. The climate system including the atmosphere and oceans has warmed for more than one and a half century, leading to rising sea levels. These robust changes are caused by human activity, especially anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs). This has caused global warming to become very serious in recent decades. It is well-known that the major GHG is carbon dioxide (CO2 ), which has contributed most of global warming since the Industrial Revolution [1]. The international community has been making great efforts to reduce carbon emissions to mitigate global warming [2,3]

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Conclusion