Carbon Mitigation in the Operation of Chinese Residential Buildings: An Empirical Analysis at the Provincial Scale

The rapidly growing carbon emissions of residential building operations have become an obstacle to China’s commitment to achieving its carbon-neutral goals by 2060, but they also demonstrate great carbon mitigation potential. To help buildings reach carbon neutrality targets, this study decomposes t...

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Main Authors: Minxia Chen, Jifeng Lei, Xiwang Xiang, Minda Ma
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-07-01
Series:Buildings
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/8/1128
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author Minxia Chen
Jifeng Lei
Xiwang Xiang
Minda Ma
author_facet Minxia Chen
Jifeng Lei
Xiwang Xiang
Minda Ma
author_sort Minxia Chen
collection DOAJ
description The rapidly growing carbon emissions of residential building operations have become an obstacle to China’s commitment to achieving its carbon-neutral goals by 2060, but they also demonstrate great carbon mitigation potential. To help buildings reach carbon neutrality targets, this study decomposes the drivers of carbon emissions and evaluates the changes in carbon mitigation of residential buildings across 30 Chinese provinces from 2000 to 2018. The results indicate that (1) the operational carbon intensity increased in most provinces and the average annual growth rate across the 30 provinces was 4.2%; (2) from 2001 to 2018, North China and Northeast China had the highest average annual carbon mitigation intensity, at 602.7 and 376.9 kg of carbon dioxide per household, respectively. However, Northwest China had the highest carbon mitigation efficiency, with a carbon mitigation rate of 23.5%; and (3) in most cases, the total carbon mitigations of the operational residential buildings assessed at the provincial scale higher than those assessed nationwide, with a difference of 14.4 million tons of carbon dioxide on average. In addition, this study reviewed the energy efficiency codes for residential buildings and summarized effective energy efficiency measures. Overall, this study fills a gap in our understanding of carbon mitigation tools and provides a reference for the evaluation of historical carbon mitigation effects in the operation of residential buildings.
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spelling doaj.art-9c62d73de76e43ccae2bff213089bdc12023-11-30T23:19:42ZengMDPI AGBuildings2075-53092022-07-01128112810.3390/buildings12081128Carbon Mitigation in the Operation of Chinese Residential Buildings: An Empirical Analysis at the Provincial ScaleMinxia Chen0Jifeng Lei1Xiwang Xiang2Minda Ma3School of Management Science and Real Estate, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400045, ChinaSchool of Management Science and Real Estate, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400045, ChinaSchool of Management Science and Real Estate, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400045, ChinaDepartment of Building Technology, School of Architecture and Urban Planning, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400045, ChinaThe rapidly growing carbon emissions of residential building operations have become an obstacle to China’s commitment to achieving its carbon-neutral goals by 2060, but they also demonstrate great carbon mitigation potential. To help buildings reach carbon neutrality targets, this study decomposes the drivers of carbon emissions and evaluates the changes in carbon mitigation of residential buildings across 30 Chinese provinces from 2000 to 2018. The results indicate that (1) the operational carbon intensity increased in most provinces and the average annual growth rate across the 30 provinces was 4.2%; (2) from 2001 to 2018, North China and Northeast China had the highest average annual carbon mitigation intensity, at 602.7 and 376.9 kg of carbon dioxide per household, respectively. However, Northwest China had the highest carbon mitigation efficiency, with a carbon mitigation rate of 23.5%; and (3) in most cases, the total carbon mitigations of the operational residential buildings assessed at the provincial scale higher than those assessed nationwide, with a difference of 14.4 million tons of carbon dioxide on average. In addition, this study reviewed the energy efficiency codes for residential buildings and summarized effective energy efficiency measures. Overall, this study fills a gap in our understanding of carbon mitigation tools and provides a reference for the evaluation of historical carbon mitigation effects in the operation of residential buildings.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/8/1128carbon mitigationcarbon intensityresidential building operationdecomposition analysiscarbon mitigation strategy
spellingShingle Minxia Chen
Jifeng Lei
Xiwang Xiang
Minda Ma
Carbon Mitigation in the Operation of Chinese Residential Buildings: An Empirical Analysis at the Provincial Scale
Buildings
carbon mitigation
carbon intensity
residential building operation
decomposition analysis
carbon mitigation strategy
title Carbon Mitigation in the Operation of Chinese Residential Buildings: An Empirical Analysis at the Provincial Scale
title_full Carbon Mitigation in the Operation of Chinese Residential Buildings: An Empirical Analysis at the Provincial Scale
title_fullStr Carbon Mitigation in the Operation of Chinese Residential Buildings: An Empirical Analysis at the Provincial Scale
title_full_unstemmed Carbon Mitigation in the Operation of Chinese Residential Buildings: An Empirical Analysis at the Provincial Scale
title_short Carbon Mitigation in the Operation of Chinese Residential Buildings: An Empirical Analysis at the Provincial Scale
title_sort carbon mitigation in the operation of chinese residential buildings an empirical analysis at the provincial scale
topic carbon mitigation
carbon intensity
residential building operation
decomposition analysis
carbon mitigation strategy
url https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/12/8/1128
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AT xiwangxiang carbonmitigationintheoperationofchineseresidentialbuildingsanempiricalanalysisattheprovincialscale
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