The Driving Forces of Carbon Dioxide Equivalent Emissions Have Spatial Spillover Effects in Inner Mongolia.

Yannan Zhou,Jixia Huang,Yicheng Lin,Mingxiang Huang

doi:10.3390/ijerph16101735

Abstract

To spatially analyze the effects of the major drivers on carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2eq) emissions in Inner Mongolia, a typical area with high CO2eq emissions in China, this paper quantitatively investigates the factors that affect county-level CO2eq emissions and the corresponding spatial mechanisms. Based on a spatial panel econometric model with related energy and economic data from 101 counties in Inner Mongolia between 2007 and 2012, four main results are obtained: (a) The CO2eq emissions in Inner Mongolia rapidly increased at an average annual growth rate of 7.27% from 2007 to 2012, increasing from 287.69 million tons to 510.47 million tons. (b) The county-level CO2eq emissions in Inner Mongolia increased, but the growth rate decreased annually. Additionally, CO2eq emissions are highly heterogeneous in the region. (c) Geographic factors were the main cause of the spatial spillover effects related to county-level CO2eq emissions. Specifically, the levels of urbanization and technological progress were conducive to CO2eq emission reductions, and the economic growth and industrial structure had the opposite effect in Inner Mongolian counties. (d) Technological progress had a significant spatial spillover effect in Inner Mongolian counties, and the effects of other factors were not significant. Implementing relevant strategies that focus on the inter-county interactions among the driving forces of CO2eq emissions could promote energy savings and emission reductions in Inner Mongolia.

Highlights

Global carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2eq ) emissions from fossil energy combustion and industrial processes rapidly increased at an average annual rate of 1.8% from 2005 to 2017 and were projected to reach an all-time high in 2018 [1]
In 2012, from the minimum value of 0.0025 million tons in AGXIHB, Xilin Gol League
Autonomous Region located in North China, in the central part of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous

Summary

Introduction

Global carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2eq ) emissions from fossil energy combustion and industrial processes rapidly increased at an average annual rate of 1.8% from 2005 to 2017 and were projected to reach an all-time high in 2018 [1]. With such a high-speed carbon emissions growth model, energy savings and emission reductions have become increasingly imperative [2,3,4,5]. CO2eq emissions in China account for 27% of global emissions from fossil combustion and industrial processes [1]. Low-carbon development must be urgently promoted in China [10]

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion