Global Supply Chain Drivers of Agricultural Antibiotic Emissions in China

Abstract

Antibiotic pollution causes serious environmental and social issues. China is the largest antibiotic producer and user in the world, with a large share of antibiotics used in agriculture. This study quantified agricultural antibiotic emissions of mainland China in 2014 as well as critical drivers in global supply chains. Results show that China’s agriculture discharged 4131 tons of antibiotics. Critical domestic supply chain drivers are mainly located in Central China, North China, and East China. Foreign final demand contributes 9% of agricultural antibiotic emissions in mainland China and leads to 5–40% of emissions in each province. Foreign primary inputs (e.g., labor and capital) contribute 5% of agricultural antibiotic emissions in mainland China and lead to 2–63% of emissions in each province. Critical international drivers include the final demand of the United States and Japan for foods and textile products, as well as the primary inputs of the oil seeds sector in Brazil. The results indicate the uniqueness of supply chain drivers for antibiotic emissions compared with other emissions. Our findings reveal supply chain hotspots for multiple-perspective policy decisions to control China’s agricultural antibiotic emissions as well as for international cooperation.

Antibiotics in global rivers

“…As a global challenge across different regions, antibiotic prevelance in aquatic environments is closely related to human activities and regional socioeconomic development [35,36], suggesting the necessity of integrated study on developmental trends, drivers, and controlling strategies of antibiotic contamination. However, the comprehensive understanding on antibiotics associated with natural, social, and economic variables in various river basins relies on mining plentiful surveillance data from numerous sources and integrating the vast dataset for accurate identification of the priority antibiotics [11,[37][38][39].…”

Vacancy-Rich CoSx@LDH@Co-NC Catalytic Membrane for Antibiotic Degradation with Mechanistic Insights

“…As shown in Figure S8c and Table S3, the contributions of nonradicals and free radicals K •OH = 18.97%, K SOd 4 • − = 26.7%, K Od 2 1 = 51.1% and K Od 2 • − = 3.23% were calculated by eqs (S5, S6). 29 Around 18.5% OFX was degraded after 10 min in the p-BQ/FFA coexistence system (200 mM, 1:1), which verified that O 2 • − was partly converted into 1 O 2 with higher redox potential. In Figure S8d, approximately 60% of OFX was successfully eliminated in 10 min when the concentration of p-BQ/TBA was selected to be 200 mM (1:1), which verified that O 2 • − made a greater contribution to OFX degradation.…”

“…Antibiotics are the most widely used prescribed drugs for both human beings and animals . However, only part of the antibiotics was absorbed and metabolized, whereas the residues were discharged to the environment directly or indirectly.…”

Consumption in Non-Pastoral Regions Drove Three-Quarters of Forage–Livestock Conflicts in China

“…The consumption viewpoint, which attributes the environmental impacts to final consumers, can support demand-side measures (e.g., the optimization of consumption behaviors) which can complement production-side measures . There are growing studies investigating the environmental impacts from the consumption perspective, such as carbon emissions, , pollutant emissions, , deforestation, − and soil erosion . The booming population and economies boost the demand for livestock products (e.g., beef, milk, and wool) in China, particularly in urban regions .…”