Provincial CO2 Emission Measurement and Analysis of the Construction Industry under China’s Carbon Neutrality Target

Abstract

The construction industry plays a crucial role in China’s fulfillment of the goal of achieving “carbon neutrality” in 2060. Based on the data of energy and building materials consumption of the construction industry in China and 30 provinces from 2008 to 2018, this paper constructs a model for measuring provincial CO2 emissions of China’s construction industry and establishes a Kuznets curve and elastic decoupling model of the industry’s CO2 emissions. The analysis based on the models shows that: (1) the CO2 emissions of China’s construction industry show a trend of increasing first and then decreasing; (2) in terms of the decoupling effects, most provinces are in a weak decoupling status of CO2 emissions; and (3) the Kuznets curve of the provincial construction industry shows an inverted “U” shape in recent years, and it is predicted that the CO2 emissions of the construction industry will reach the peak in 2034. It is possible for the construction industry to achieve “carbon neutrality”, but long-term efforts must be made for strategic planning, policies and regulations, industry standards, etc.

A Hypothetical Extraction Method Decomposition of Intersectoral and Interprovincial CO2 Emission Linkages of China’s Construction Industry

“…The results from the study indicate the nature of construction activities in these provinces tends towards producing for consumption in other regions. The trend is consistent with [45]. The four provincial construction sectors are net producers and exporters of CO 2 emissions, affecting the final demands of other areas in direct trade with these provinces.…”

“…However, these studies failed to decompose the construction sector's CO 2 emissions linkages at the various regional levels and in inter-regional trade. The characteristics of the construction sectors in all of China's provinces varies with different industrial developmental stages [44,45]. With different industrial structures, demands, and consumption patterns, it is appropriate to treat each province different to fully understand the underlying CO 2 emissions interactions with other sectors within and outside the province [45,46].…”

“…The characteristics of the construction sectors in all of China's provinces varies with different industrial developmental stages [44,45]. With different industrial structures, demands, and consumption patterns, it is appropriate to treat each province different to fully understand the underlying CO 2 emissions interactions with other sectors within and outside the province [45,46]. Therefore, this study investigates the Chinese construction sector's CO 2 emissions linkages beyond the national level.…”

Economic Growth Targets and Carbon Emissions: Evidence from China

“…Through a review of the literature, the relevant research mainly focuses on the measurement of carbon emissions and the impact factors of carbon emissions. For the measurement of China's carbon emissions, the mainstream method is based on the carbon emission factors provided by IPCC, for example, Chi et al [17] and Chen et al [18] estimate carbon emissions at the provincial level in China, and Duren and Miller [19] measure carbon emissions in the world's megacities and assess future trends. For the study of factors influencing carbon emissions, existing studies can be divided into two main aspects, namely market economy factors and governmental factors.…”

Joint Optimization of Quota Policy Design and Electric Market Behavior Based on Renewable Portfolio Standard in China

“…Under the goal of carbon neutrality, China's economic transformation and structural adjustment have entered a critical period [1]. Promoting the diversification, cleanness and low-carbon energy supply, and the high efficiency, reduction and electrification of energy consumption [2] are important ways for the power industry to achieve the goal of "carbon peak" [3] and "carbon neutral" [4]. A consensus has been reached that wind and solar energy and other renewable energy sources should continue to develop on a large scale and with high quality [5].…”