Spatial-temporal characteristics and driving factors of carbon emissions from energy consumption in the Yangtze River Economic Belt

LI Yanmin; ZHANG Xiaohua; ZHANG Tianqi; LAN Peng; HU Chengxiang

Abstract：The Yangtze River Economic Belt is an important area of economic development in China,with frequent human activities and developed industrial,and the rapid increase of carbon emissions from energy consumption significantly affects the low-carbon and sustainable development.Based on the IPCC carbon emission inventory estimation method,combined with spatial analysis and log mean Deeley index decomposition(LMDI)method,the spatial-temporal pattern,evolution characteristics and main driving factors of carbon emissions from energy consumption in the Yangtze River Economic Belt from 2000 to 2021 were comprehensively analyzed.The results showed that:① the carbon emissions from energy consumption and carbon emissions per unit of energy in the Yangtze River Economic Belt continued to increase,with the increasing by 4 and 2.9 times respectively,while carbon emissions per unit of GDP showed a decreasing trend,with an average decline of 3.3 times.② From the perspective of spatial distribution,The hot spots of energy consumption carbon emission and carbon emission per unit population are mainly concentrated in the eastern coastal areas,especially Jiangsu,Shanghai,while the hot spots of carbon emission per unit GDP are mainly in the western region.③ Economic development and population growth are the main driving factors affecting carbon emissions of energy consumption in the Yangtze River Economic Belt,especially in the downstream area.Above all,there are differences in carbon emissions of energy consumption in the Yangtze River Economic Belt,and emission reduction policies need to be formulated according to local conditions to ultimately achieve low-carbon sustainable development.