Carbon sources/sinks analysis of land use changes in China based on data envelopment analysis

Geng

et al. 2020

IJERPH

Self Cite

The measurement of eco-efficiency is an important tool to evaluate the level of urban sustainable development. Therefore; improving urban eco-efficiency in the lower reaches of the Yellow River ensures the implementation of ecological protection and high-quality development strategies in the Yellow River Basin. In this study; the dynamic changes of urban eco-efficiency and spatiotemporal differences in the lower reaches of the Yellow River were investigated using the Super-SBM (Super-Slack measure model) model with undesirable outputs and standard deviation ellipse. The STIRPAT (Stochastic Impacts by Regression Population; Affluence and Technology) model was introduced to analyze the factors affecting the change in urban eco-efficiency. The results showed that the overall urban eco-efficiency in the lower reaches of the Yellow River has not reached the optimal level. The overall eco-efficiency in the lower reaches of the Yellow River in Shandong Province was higher than that in Henan Province but the gap is narrowing. The spatial differentiation of urban eco-efficiency in the lower reaches of the Yellow River showed the following trends: “blooming in the middle and reverse development at both ends” in the high-value area and gradual decrease in the low-value area. From 2007 to 2018; a direction was notable with respect to the development of urban eco-efficiency in the lower reaches of the Yellow River; with the centripetal force weakening. Although the mean center of urban eco-efficiency located in Shandong Province; it notably shifted to the west during the study period. In terms of driving factors; affluence and technological progress play positive roles in driving eco-efficiency; while investment intensity; industrial structure; and foreign investment intensity hindered the optimization and improvement of urban eco-efficiency in the lower reaches of the Yellow River. The results of this study show that urban eco-efficiency in the lower reaches of the Yellow River is improving; but the regional coordination is poor. The main methods promoting the sustainable development in the study area include changing the mode of extensive investments and the introduction of foreign capital; which improve the energy efficiency and promote faster and better economic development

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dynamic Changes, Spatiotemporal Differences and Factors Influencing the Urban Eco-Efficiency in the Lower Reaches of the Yellow River

Geng

et al. 2020

IJERPH

Self Cite

“…As the largest land-based carbon pools [6], forest ecosystems reduce greenhouse gas emissions through carbon sequestration [7,8], which plays an important role in mitigating the effects of climate change [9,10]. The Kyoto Protocol states that afforestation and reforestation may be alternatives for reducing carbon emissions (IPCC, 2014) and the contribution of carbon sinks from woodland to total carbon sinks was over 90% in China from 1999-2014 [11]. Therefore, increasing forest area is undoubtedly an important measure to enhance terrestrial carbon sequestration [12] and reduce the concentration of greenhouse gas [13].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Did Government Expenditure on the Grain for Green Project Help the Forest Carbon Sequestration Increase in Yunnan, China?

Yao

Ding

et al. 2020

Land

Reasonably assessing the effectiveness of government expenditure on the Grain for Green project (GFG) in providing forest carbon sequestration would contribute to the development of China’s forest carbon sequestration. Using the government expenditure data from the GFG in Yunnan Province from 2001 to 2015 and the MODIS Land Cover Type (MCD12Q1) time-series datasets, we calculated the forest carbon sequestration of various counties (cities or districts). The impacts of GFG government expenditure on forest carbon sequestration were empirically evaluated by the least squares dummy variables method (LSDV). The research results indicate that a 1% increase in government expenditure on the GFG yielded a 0.0364% increase in forest carbon sequestration. However, the effects of GFG government expenditure on forest carbon sequestration differed greatly in different areas because of the diversity of the natural environments, forest resource endowment, and government policies. If the initial forest endowment was not considered, the effectiveness of government expenditure on the GFG in providing forest carbon sequestration would have been overestimated. This study argues that, to improve the efficiency of GFG government expenditure in Yunnan Province, more investment should be made in regions with positive regression coefficients that have passed the significance t-test, such as Diqing Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in the northwest, Baoshan City in the west, Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture in the south, and Wenshan Zhuang and Miao Autonomous Prefecture in the east.

“…They are also the main carriers of human influence on resources and environment in the regional system of "man-land relationship" [1,2]. While industrial development has made China's economy grow rapidly, the high pollution level and high energy consumption intensity and its low efficiency have aggravated the restrictive effect on sustainable development and on ecological civilization of city construction [3][4][5]. The haze caused by air pollution, especially by industrial SO 2 emission, is particularly prominent on the quality of the environments in urban areas.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characteristics of the Spatio-Temporal Trends and Driving Factors of Industrial Development and Industrial SO2 Emissions Based on Niche Theory: Taking Henan Province as an Example

Lee

et al. 2020

Sustainability

Self Cite

Industrial development is critical in improving a nation’s economy and in how it consumes energy resources. However, such development often causes environmental problems. Among others, the haze caused by industrial SO2 emissions is particularly prominent. Based on Niche theory and combined with Exploratory Spatial Data Analysis (ESDA, a decoupling index model, and a Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) factor decomposition model, this paper reports a study on the spatio-temporal distribution and the driving factors of industrial development and industrial SO2 emissions of cities in Henan, China between 2005 and 2014. The results showed that over the studied period in Henan: (1) SO2 emissions reduced by 4.56 × 105 tons and showed a slowly decreasing trend, which gradually transitioned to a “green health” industrial structure in Henan cities; (2) studied cities with high and low industrial niche values (0.038–0.139) showed an absolute decoupling relationship between industrial development and industrial SO2 emissions; (3) except for Zhengzhou city and Hebi city, other studied cities showed a trend of gradually increasing industrial output; (4) along with increases in the values of industrial output, studied cities showed increased levels of SO2 emissions but with energy intensity and energy structure showing a fluctuating trend of increases and decreases in their contributions to SO2 emissions; and (5) the energy consumption intensity and environmental technology were critical factors that were conducive to industrial SO2 emissions and the evolving industrial structure. These findings are important for the control of industrial SO2 emissions, though the levels of their influences are different in different cities. The scale of industrial production and the composition of energy structure in a region could lead to further deterioration of industrial SO2 emissions in the future.