China's non-CO₂ greenhouse gas emissions: Inventory and input-output analysis

In contrast to the ever-increasing focus on China's CO₂ emissions, little attention has been given to its non-CO₂ greenhouse gases (GHGs). Based on the latest released official GHG emission data, this paper presents an inventory and embodiment analysis of the non-CO₂ GHG emissions covering CH₄, N₂O, HFCs, PFCs and SF₆ by the Chinese economy in 2005. The total direct non-CO₂ GHG emissions from economic sectors amount to 1368.5Mt CO₂-eq, of which CH₄ contributes 848.4Mt, N₂O 356.8Mt and F-GHGs 163.3Mt. Responsible for 93.2% of the total emissions are the three sectors of Agriculture, Coal Mining and Dressing and Chemicals. Exports, urban consumption and capital formation derive the major fractions of embodied emissions for final demand. Rural and urban consumption are both non-CO₂ GHG emission intensive, having the largest embodied emission intensities among all final demand categories. The impact of international trade on China's non-CO₂ GHG emissions is significant. The total emissions embodied in exports are 487.0Mt CO₂-eq, equivalent to 35.6% of the total domestic emissions. Prominently, the re-exported emissions amount to 135.3Mt CO₂-eq due to the processing trade. Textile and Garments and Other Fiber Products, Leather, Furs, Down and Related Products are the top two net embodied emission export sectors. While China's non-CO₂ GHG emissions are expected to increase steadily in the future, both the direct emissions from on site production and the embodied emissions induced by final consumption and international trade need to be addressed and targeted to inform effective mitigation policies.