Decoupling and Decomposition of Emissions and Economic Growth Based on Interprovincial Embodied Carbon Flow in China

Bibliographic Data

ID3775642
AuthorsShaojian Wang (0000-0001-9082-8562, Sun Yat-sen University, corresponding author), Jiabei Zhou (Sun Yat-sen University), K Feng (0000-0001-5139-444X, University of Maryland, College Park), Klaus Hubacek (0000-0003-2561-6090, University of Groningen)
Year2025
Volume115
Issue6
Pages1326-1346
Publication date2025-07-03
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAnnals of the American Association of Geographers (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2469-4452 • E-ISSN: 2469-4460
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/24694452.2025.2479819
OpenAlexW4409501666
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited43

Breaking the strong connection between economic growth and carbon emissions is crucial for China to achieve high-quality, sustainable development. Neglecting the carbon emissions embedded in interregional trade risks inflating the perceived progress in decoupling, however, as emissions are often shifted between regions through trade. This research evaluates the decoupling of carbon emissions from economic growth, considering the embodied carbon flow, and decomposes its factors across thirty Chinese provinces from 2002 to 2017. We found that China’s carbon emissions surged from 3,641.47 Mt to 7,828.88 Mt during the study period, growing at an annual average rate of 5.76 percent. There was a noticeable shift in embodied carbon flow from less affluent or resource-intensive provinces to more developed areas. Sectoral analysis indicated that these developed provinces outsourced their carbon emissions, associated with low-value-added raw materials and intermediate goods, to less developed provinces to achieve emissions reductions. Decoupling analysis indicated that the majority of provinces consistently showed weak decoupling, but some transitioned to strong decoupling. By 2017, twelve provinces achieved production-based decoupling, thirteen reached consumption-based decoupling, and seven regions, including Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangdong, realized “double decoupling.” Conversely, areas like Zhejiang and Sichuan attained production-based decoupling, but their consumption-based emissions continued to rise. Structural decomposition analysis indicated that optimizing the production structure and curbing energy-intensive consumption emerge as primary factors in enhancing the decoupling status across various regions. Although international trade is not considered, these results still highlight the importance of accounting for embodied carbon flows in interregional trade when assessing decoupling targets. This provides a theoretical basis for the development of differentiated decoupling policies

Carbon fibers · China · Decomposition · Economics · Embodied cognition · Greenhouse gas · Natural resource economics · Political science · Air Quality and Health Impacts · Chemistry · Computer Science · Engineering · Environmental Impact and Sustainability · Environmental Science · Mathematics · Urban Transport and Accessibility · Ecology

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