Pathway, Technology, and Strategy for Synergizing the Reduction of Pollution and Carbon Emissions in China's Watersheds

Abstract

China's eco-environmental protection enters a new stage of synergizing the reduction of pollution and carbon emissions during the 14th Five-Year Plan period. Watershed bears heavy loads from economic and social development and emits a large amount of greenhouse gases and pollutants. Therefore, synergizing the reduction of pollution and carbon emissions on a watershed scale becomes an issue of concern. This study expounds on the synergistic mechanism for the reduction of greenhouse gases and pollutants, categorizes the ecosystem of a watershed into artificial and natural ecosystems, and proposes the main pathways and key technologies for these ecosystems. Using the Yellow River basin and the Yangtze River basin as examples, specific applications of the key technologies are summarized. Negative emissions technology, agricultural non-point source pollution control technology, and water eutrophication remediation technology should be further developed. Furthermore, three countermeasures are proposed: (1) refining the water ecological environment protection standards and establishing a risk prevention and control system; (2) establishing a comprehensive treatment system for pollution and greenhouse gas emission sources to improve the watershed management and control mechanism; and (3) increasing investment in science and technology and participating in international cooperation on climate change.

Keywords

• reduction of pollution and carbon emissions
• synergization
• watershed
• greenhouse gas
• pollutant
• negative emissions technology