Tracing two decades of carbon emissions using a network approach.
Carbon trade network
Consumption-based accounting
Sustainable trade
Trade-embedded carbon emissions
Journal
Scientific reports
ISSN: 2045-2322
Titre abrégé: Sci Rep
Pays: England
ID NLM: 101563288
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
27 Mar 2024
27 Mar 2024
Historique:
received:
14
09
2023
accepted:
18
03
2024
medline:
28
3
2024
pubmed:
28
3
2024
entrez:
28
3
2024
Statut:
epublish
Résumé
According to the guidelines of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, carbon emissions are attributed to the producers of goods and services. This approach has been challenged by recent literature, advocating an attribution criterion based on consumers, i.e. accounting for the carbon embedded into the goods imported by each country. Quantifying the effectiveness of such a consumption-based accounting requires understanding the complex structure of the graph induced by the flows of emissions between world countries. To this aim, we have considered a balanced panel of a hundred of countries and constructed the corresponding Carbon Trade Network for each of the past twenty years. Our analysis highlights the tendency of each country to behave either as a 'net producer'-or 'net exporter'-of emissions or as a 'net consumer'-or 'net importer'-of emissions; besides, it reveals the presence of an unexpected, positive feedback: despite individual exchanges having become less carbon-intensive, the increasing trade activity has ultimately risen the amount of emissions directed from 'net exporters' towards 'net importers'. Adopting a consumption-aware accounting would re-distribute responsibility between these two groups, possibly reducing disparities.
Identifiants
pubmed: 38538699
doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-57351-0
pii: 10.1038/s41598-024-57351-0
doi:
Types de publication
Journal Article
Langues
eng
Sous-ensembles de citation
IM
Pagination
7251Subventions
Organisme : European Union - Horizon 2020
ID : 871042
Organisme : Ministero dell'Istruzione, dell'Università e della Ricerca
ID : D67G22000130001
Organisme : Scuola IMT Alti Studi Lucca
ID : Programma di Attivit`a Integrata' (PAI) project
Informations de copyright
© 2024. The Author(s).
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