Study on the Dual Targets of CO2 Emissions Reductions in China: Decoupling Analysis and Driving Forces

Reducing CO2 emissions is critical to sustainable economic development in China. In this article, we try to assess the implementation of dual controls policy on CO2 emissions within a unified analysis framework by matching the dual controls of CO2 emissions (total volume control and intensity control) at the practical level to the decoupling model (strong decoupling and weak decoupling) at the theoretical level. Then, the ST-LMDI method is used to explore the changes of the CO2 intensity and its driving factors within 4 five-year plan. The results indicate that: the dual controls mechanism on China's CO2 emissions is gradually working up, with the decoupling index between CO2 emissions and the economic growth presenting an inverted U-shaped tendency. Besides, most provinces are narrowing the gap from the CO2 intensity control targets in 2020, with the energy intensity declining and the energy structure fluctuating.

Automated summary

This article assesses the implementation of dual controls policy on CO2 emissions in China and finds that the mechanism is gradually working up. The results show that most provinces are narrowing the gap from the CO2 intensity control targets in 2020, with energy intensity declining and energy structure fluctuating during the four five-year plans.