The Increasing Role of Synergistic Effects in Carbon Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement, and Its Associated Health Benefits in China

A synergistic pathway is regarded as a critical measure for tackling the intertwined challenges of climate change and air pollution in China. However, there is as yet no indicator that can comprehensively reflect such synergistic effects;hence, existing studies lack a consistent framework for comparison. Here, we introduce a new synergistic indicator defined as the pollutant generation per gross domestic product (GDP) and adopt an integrated analysis framework by linking the logarithmic mean Divisia index (LMDI) method, response surface model (RSM), and global exposure mortality model (GEMM) to evaluate the synergistic effects of carbon mitigation on both air pollutant reduction and public health in China. The results show that synergistic effects played an increasingly important role in the emissions mitigation of SO_(2), NOx, and primary particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter no greater than 2.5 μm (PM2.5), and the synergistic mitigation of pollutants respectively increase from 3.1, 1.4, and 0.3 Mt during the 11th Five-Year Plan (FYP) (2006–2010) to 5.6, 3.7, and 1.9 Mt during the 12th FYP (2011–2015). Against the non-control scenario, synergistic effects alone contributed to a 15% reduction in annual mean PM2.5 concentration, resulting in the prevention of 0.29 million (95% confidential interval: 0.28–0.30) PM2.5-attributable excess deaths in 2015. Synergistic benefits to air quality improvement and public health were remarkable in the developed and population-dense eastern provinces and municipalities. With the processes of urbanization and carbon neutrality in the future, synergistic effects are expected to continue to increase. Realizing climate targets in advance in developed regions would concurrently bring strong synergistic effects to air quality and public health.

Estimating cropland carbon mitigation potentials in China affected by three improved cropland practices

Agriculture is a large source of carbon emissions. The cropland practices of fertilizer substitution, crop straw and conservation tillage are beneficial and help to rebuild local soil carbon stocks and reduce soil carbon emissions, in addition to reducing the consumption of fertilizers and fossil fuels. These improved cropland practices can directly and indirectly mitigatecarbon emissions, benefiting the sustainability of croplands. For these three improved practices, we estimated carbon mitigation potentials in rice, wheat and maize croplands in China. The combined contribution of these practices to carbon mitigation was 38.8 Tg C yr-1, with fertilizer substitution, crop straw return, and conservation tillage contributing 26.6, 3.6 and 8.6 Tg C yr-1, respectively. Rice, wheat and maize croplands had potentials to mitigate 13.4, 11.9 and 15.5 Tg C yr-1, respectively, with the combined direct and indirectpotential of 33.8 and 5.0 Tg C yr-1. Because of differences in local climate and specific diets, the regional cropland carbon mitigation potentials differed greatly among provinces in China. In China, 18 provinces had a "target surplus" for which the carbon mitigation from these three practices was larger than the mitigation target set for 2020. At the national level, a net "target surplus"of 4.84 Tg C yr-1 would be attained for Chinese croplands with full implementation of the three improved practices. Regional cooperation must be developed to achieve carbon mitigation targets using such measures as carbon trading, establishing regional associations, and strengthening research programs to improve practices.

Technological innovations on direct carbon mitigation by ordered energy conversion and full resource utilization

Coal consumption leads to over 15 billion tons of global CO_(2) emissions annually,which will continue at a considerable intensity in the foreseeable future.To remove the huge amount of CO_(2),a practically feasible way of direct carbon mitigation,instead of capturing that from dilute tail gases,should be developed;as intended,we developed two innovative supporting technologies,of which the status,strengths,applications,and perspective are discussed in this paper.One is supercritical water gasification-based coal/biomass utilization technology,which orderly converts chemical energy of coal and low-grade heat into hydrogen energy,and can achieve poly-generation of steam,heat,hydrogen,power,pure CO_(2),and minerals.The other one is the renewables-powered CO_(2) reduction techniques,which uses CO_(2) as the resource for carbon-based fuel production.When combining the above two technical loops,one can achieve a full resource utilization and zero CO_(2) emission,making it a practically feasible way for China and global countries to achieve carbon neutrality while creating substantial domestic benefits of economic growth,competitiveness,well-beings,and new industries.

Using cemented paste backfill to tackle the phosphogypsum stockpile in China:A down-to-earth technology with new vitalities in pollutant retention and CO_(2) abatement

Phosphogypsum(PG),a hard-to-dissipate by-product of the phosphorus fertilizer production industry,places strain on the biogeochemical cycles and ecosystem functions of storage sites.This pervasive problem is already widespread worldwide and requires careful stewardship.In this study,we review the presence of potentially toxic elements(PTEs)in PG and describe their associations with soil properties,anthropogenic activities,and surrounding organisms.Then,we review different ex-/in-situ solutions for promoting the sustainable management of PG,with an emphasis on in-situ cemented paste backfill,which offers a cost-effective and highly scalable opportunity to advance the value-added recovery of PG.However,concerns related to the PTEs'retention capacity and long-term effectiveness limit the implementation of this strategy.Furthermore,given that the large-scale demand for ordinary Portland cement from this conventional option has resulted in significant CO_(2) emissions,the technology has recently undergone additional scrutiny to meet the climate mitigation ambition of the Paris Agreement and China's Carbon Neutrality Economy.Therefore,we discuss the ways by which we can integrate innovative strategies,including supplementary cementitious materials,alternative binder solutions,CO_(2) mineralization,CO_(2) curing,and optimization of the supply chain for the profitability and sustainability of PG remediation.However,to maximize the co-benefits in environmental,social,and economic,future research must bridge the gap between the feasibility of expanding these advanced pathways and the multidisciplinary needs.

Unearthing the impact of urban sprawl on transport carbon dioxide emissions:Fresh evidence from 274 Chinese cities

Urban sprawl has been a prevailing phenomenon in developing countries like China,potentially resulting in significant carbon dioxide(CO_(2))emissions from the transport sector.However,the impact of urban sprawl on transport CO_(2) emissions(TCEs)is still not fully understood and remains somewhat rudimentary.To systematically investigate how urban sprawl influences TCEs,we employ panel regression and panel threshold regression for 274 Chinese cities(2005-2020),and obtain some new findings.Our results affirm that the degree of urban sprawl is positively associated with TCEs,and this holds true in different groups of city size and geographical region,while significant heterogeneity is observed in terms of such impact.Interestingly,we find urban sprawl nonlinearly impacts TCEs—with an equal increase in urban sprawl degree,TCEs are even lower in cities with larger population size and better economic condition,particularly in East China.Furthermore,the low-carbon city pilot policy shows potential in mitigating sprawl's impact on TCEs.Drawing on our findings,we argue that to achieve the target of TCEs reduction in China by curbing urban sprawl,more priority should be placed on relatively small,less developed,and geographically inferior cities for cost-efficiency reasons when formulating future urban development strategies.

A scenario analysis of oil and gas consumption in China to 2030 considering the peak CO_2 emission constraint

China is now beginning its 13th five-year guideline. As the top CO2 emitter, China has recently submitted the intended nationally determined contributions and made the commitment to start reducing its total carbon emissions in or before 2030. In this study, a bottom-up energy system model is built and applied to analyze the energy （mainly coal, oil, and gas） consumption and carbon emissions in China up to 2030. The results show that, the total energy consumption will reach a peak of 58.1 billion tonnes of standard coal and the CO2 emissions will get to 105.8 billion tonnes. Moreover, in the mitigation scenario, proportion of natural gas consumption will increase by 7 % in 2020 and 10 % in 2030, respectively. In the trans- portation sector, gasoline and diesel consumption will gradually decrease, while the consumption of natural gas in 2030 will increase by 2.7 times compared to the reference scenario. Moreover, with the promotion of electric cars, the transport electricity consumption will increase 3.1 times in 2030 compared to the reference scenario. In order to fulfill the emission peaking target, efforts should be made from both the final demand sectors and oil and gas production industries, to help adjust the energy structure and ensure the oil and gas supply in future.

AGRICULTURAL GREEN DEVELOPMENT TO ACHIEVE FOOD SECURITY AND CARBON REDUCTION IN THE CONTEXT OF CHINA'S DUAL CARBON GOALS

The agricultural sector,a major source of greenhouse gas emissions,and emissions from agriculture must be reduced substantially to achieve carbon(C)neutrality.Based on a literature analysis and other research results,this study investigated the effects and prospects of C reduction in agricultural systems under different scenarios(i.e.,methods and approaches)in the context of China's dual C goals,as those working in the agricultural sector have yet to reach a consensus on how to move forward.Different views,standards,and countermeasures were analyzed to provide a reference for agricultural action supporting China's C neutrality goal.

Cropping system innovation for coping with climatic warming in China

China is becoming the largest grain producing and carbon-emitting country in the world,with a steady increase in population and economic development.A review of Chinese experiences in ensuring food self-sufficiency and reducing carbon emission in the agricultural sector can provide a valuable reference for similar countries and regions.According to a comprehensive review of previous publications and recent field observations,China has experienced on average a larger and faster climatic warming trend than the global trend,and there are large uncertainties in precipitation change,which shows a non-significantly increasing trend.Existing evidence shows that the effects of climatic warming on major staple crop production in China could be markedly negative or positive,depending on the specific cropping region,season,and crop.However,historical data analysis and field warming experiments have shown that moderate warming,of less than2.0 °C,could benefit crop production in China overall.During the most recent warming decades,China has made successful adaptations in cropping systems,such as new cultivar breeding,cropping region adjustment,and cropping practice optimization,to exploit the positive rather than to avoid the negative effects of climatic warming on crop growth.All of these successful adaptations have greatly increased crop yield,leading to higher resource use efficiency as well as greatly increased soil organic carbon content with reduced greenhouse gas emissions.Under the warming climate,China has not only achieved great successes in crop production but also realized a large advance in greenhouse gas emission mitigation.Chinese experiences in cropping system innovation for coping with climatic warming demonstrate that food security and climatic warming mitigation can be synergized through policy,knowledge,and technological innovation.With the increasingly critical status of food security and climatic warming,further efforts should be invested in new agricultural policy,knowledge and technology creation,and popularization of climate-smart agriculture,and more financial investments should be made in field infrastructure development to increase cropping system resilience in China.

An analysis of China's CO_2 emission peaking target and pathways

China has set the goal for its CO2 emissions to peak around 2030, which is not only a strategic decision coordinating domestic sustainable development and global climate change mitigation but also an overarching target and a key point of action for China＇s resource conservation, environmental protection, shift in economic development patterns, and CO2 emission reduction to avoid climate change. The development stage where China maps out the CO2 emission peak target is earlier than that of the developed countries. It is a necessity that the non-fossil energy supplies be able to meet all the increased energy demand for achieving CO2 emission peaking. Given that China＇s potential GDP annual increasing rate will be more than 4%, and China＇s total energy demand will continue to increase by approximately 1.0%--1.5% annually around 2030, new and renewable energies will need to increase by 6%-8% annually to meet the desired CO2 emission peak. The share of new and renewable energies in China＇s total primary energy supply will be approximately 20% by 2030. At that time, the energy consumption elasticity will decrease to around 0.3, and the annual decrease in the rate of CO2 intensity will also be higher than 4% to ensure the sustained growth of GDE To achieve the CO2 emission peaking target and substantially promote the low-carbon deve!opment transformation, China needs to actively promote an energy production and consumption revolution, the innovation of advanced energy technologies, the reform of the energy regulatory system and pricing mechanism, and especially the construction of a national carbon emission cap and trade system.