Peak Carbon Emissions in China: Status, Key Factors and Countermeasures—A Literature Review

Feng Dong, Yifei Hua and Bolin Yu
Additional contact information
Feng Dong: School of Management, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, China
Yifei Hua: School of Management, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, China
Bolin Yu: School of Management, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, China

Sustainability, 2018, vol. 10, issue 8, 1-34

Abstract: China is continually increasing its efforts to reduce carbon emissions due to dual pressure domestically and internationally. Specifically, China has committed to achieving peak carbon emissions no later than 2030. As an international goal, carbon emission peak in China has generated considerable research interest. However, most scholars only focus on a partial aspect of peak carbon emissions. Through a review of literature from numerous sources, this paper provides a more systematic analysis than previously available of how China can reach its peak carbon emissions as early as possible. This study first elaborates the status of peak carbon emissions in China from regional and sectoral perspectives and summarizes the various predictions. Then, five main driving factors of carbon emission peak in China are investigated, i.e., economic development, urbanization, energy-related issues, foreign direct investment and technology, and transportation. Corresponding to these five factors, some specific and practical recommendations are proposed. Furthermore, regional differences and spatial “spillovers” must be taken into account, thereby achieving a “win-win” solution with respect to the integration of emission mitigation and economic development, as well as reaching the desired target of peak carbon emissions.

Keywords: peak carbon emissions; China; systematic review; mitigation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (23)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/8/2895/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/8/2895/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:8:p:2895-:d:163873

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().