Chinese Provinces' CO2 Emissions Embodied in Imports and Exports

Abstract

Abstract In this study, we use input‐output analysis to measure CO2 emissions (CEs) embodied in Chinese provinces' exports and imports and explore the interprovincial spillover of CEs induced by exports through the domestic supply chains. The findings of this paper are as follows: Eastern provinces were the main production locations of CO2 emissions embodied in exports (EEE) and the major demand locations of CO2 emissions embodied in imports (EEI) in China. The sum of the Eastern provinces' EEE accounted for approximately 60% of the national EEE, and the sum of the Eastern provinces' EEI accounted for approximately 80% of the national EEI in 2012. However, the central and western provinces were the primary source locations of China's balance of CO2 emissions embodied in international trade (BEET). In 2012, the proportion of the central and western provinces' BEET in the national BEET was more than 90%. The exports of eastern provinces have an important spillover effect on CEs in the central and western provinces. The proportion of CEs of central provinces caused by eastern provinces' exports in central provinces' EEE was 70.21%, and the corresponding proportion in western provinces was 69.65% in 2012. The reason for this is that the central and western provinces were the primary providers of highly energy‐intensive intermediate products for eastern provinces' exports, and the central and western provinces' large amounts of CEs were caused by the eastern provinces' exports through the domestic supply chains. According to the empirical results of the study, some policy recommendations are given.

Keywords

• CO2 emissions embodied in exports (EEE)
• CO2 emissions embodied in imports (EEI)
• multiregional input‐output (MRIO)