School of Economics and Management, Chang'an University, Xi'an, 710064, Shaanxi, China.
Center for Green Engineering and Sustainable Development, Xi'an, 710064, Shaanxi, China.
Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2020 Feb;27(6):6300-6311. doi: 10.1007/s11356-019-07291-4. Epub 2019 Dec 21.
Transportation has significantly contributed to carbon emissions, and concerns regarding emissions mitigation have become central research issues. To avoid a reversal of the reduction convergence in the environmental field, mitigation strategies should aim to reduce the environmental risks posed by carbon inequality. This article uses the Gini index and Theil index to examine carbon inequality in the transport sector in China and decomposes the per capita carbon inequality using Kaya factors. Then, the variations within and between regions are analyzed by decomposing the Theil index of the carbon intensity by region. Our major findings are as follows. First, carbon inequality is relatively insignificant in the regional transport sector in China. Second, the main drivers of the per capita carbon inequality include the carbon intensity and per capita added value in the transport sector. Third, intra-regional components are major contributors to the heterogeneous spatial distribution of the carbon intensity, and the degree of carbon inequality in the eastern region is much greater than that in other regions. Moreover, the four economic regional components of the Theil index of the carbon intensity have had an obvious convergence effect since 2009. In addition, this study provides some suggestions for developing differentiated mitigation policies in different regions.
交通已经对碳排放做出了重大贡献，而对于减排的关注已经成为核心研究问题。为了避免环境领域减排趋同的逆转，减排策略应该旨在减少碳不平等所带来的环境风险。本文使用基尼系数和泰尔系数来衡量中国交通部门的碳不平等，并通过卡亚因素分解人均碳不平等。然后，通过按地区分解碳强度的泰尔指数来分析区域内和区域间的变化。我们的主要发现如下：首先，中国区域交通部门的碳不平等相对较小。其次，人均碳不平等的主要驱动因素包括交通部门的碳强度和人均增加值。第三，区域内成分是造成碳强度异质空间分布的主要原因，东部地区的碳不平等程度远大于其他地区。此外，自 2009 年以来，碳强度泰尔指数的四个经济区域成分具有明显的趋同效应。此外，本研究为不同地区制定差异化减排政策提供了一些建议。
