Co-benefits of CO2 emission reduction from China’s clean air actions between 2013-2020

Abstract Climate change mitigation measures can yield substantial air quality improvements while emerging clean air measures in developing countries can also lead to CO 2 emission mitigation co-benefits by affecting the local energy system. Here, we evaluate the effect of China’s stringent clean air actions on its energy use and CO 2 emissions from 2013-2020. We find that widespread phase-out and upgrades of outdated, polluting, and inefficient combustion facilities during clean air actions have promoted the transformation of the country’s energy system. The co-benefits of China’s clean air measures far outweigh the additional CO 2 emissions of end-of-pipe devices, realizing a net accumulative reduction of…

• EF
  Energy Foundation
• NN
  National Natural Science Foundation of China

  Awards: 41625020, 41625020 and 41921005, 91744310, 41921005