Study on the decomposition of factors affecting energy-related carbon emissions in Guangdong province, China

Abstract

Guangdong is China's largest province in terms of energy consumption. The energy-related carbon emissions in Guangdong province are calculated, and two extended and improved decomposition models for energy-related carbon emissions are established with the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index method based on the basic principle of Kaya identity. Main results are as follows: (1) the energy-related carbon emissions from the three strata of industry, except the primary industry, and household energy consumption in Guangdong province show increasing trend from 1995 to 2009; (2) the main driving and inhibiting factors which influence energy-related carbon emissions are economic output and energy intensity, respectively, while the contributions of energy mix, industrial structures, population size and living standards are not significant during the period of interest. It is concluded that optimizing the energy mix by exploiting new energy sources and cutting down energy intensity by developing low-carbon technologies are the two most effective approaches to reduce carbon emissions for Guangdong province in the future. The results and proposals in this paper provided reference for relevant administrative departments in the Government of Guangdong province to develop policies for energy conservation and emission reduction as well as to promote development of low-carbon economy. © 2011 by the authors.