Regional Differences between the Rate of Change of CO2 Emission Intensity of Chinese Provinces and Implications for Sustainable Development

Abstract

AbstractThis paper constructs an efficiency model of carbon emission reduction (ECER), and uses provincial panel data from 1995 to 2014 to examine the factors influencing ECER at province level in China. Results show that TA (technical advancement) and SE (scale effect) dominate ECER, but their effects vary across regions. TE (technical efficiency) has the potential to enhance ECER, given the increased TA in the three studied regions. The negative effect of IS (industry structure) on ECER in the West (the western region) is heavier than that in the central region and the East, while the East (the eastern region) has a lower negative effect of ES (energy structure) on ECER than the central region and the West. To increase the efficiency of emission reduction policies, the central and local governments should consider these regionally heterogeneous factors. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment