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The Relationship between Tourism, Carbon Dioxide Emissions, and Economic Growth in the Yangtze River Delta, China

Author

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  • Lingling Chen

    (Department of Tourism Management, Jinling Institute of Technology, Nanjing 210038, China)

  • Brijesh Thapa

    (Department of Tourism, Recreation & Sport Management, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208, USA)

  • Wei Yan

    (Department of Tourism Management, Jinling Institute of Technology, Nanjing 210038, China)

Abstract

Quantifying the dynamics of regional tourism in a low-carbon economy context is a pivotal issue to develop energy policies, and to decompose the national carbon abatement. Based on a case study approach for the Yangtze River Delta (YRD), China, the relationship between tourism, carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions, and economic growth were examined. The bottom-up approach, decoupling analysis, and Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) decomposition were integrated and applied. The results from 2001 to 2015 indicated that tourism-induced energy consumption and CO 2 emissions in YRD increased from 896.90 × 10 8 MJ to 3207.40 × 10 8 MJ, and 673.55 × 10 4 t to 2152.27 × 10 4 t, respectively. Tourism-related transport from Shanghai was the major contributor towards emissions. The decoupling relation between CO 2 emissions and economic growth, in general, were desirable in YRD’s tourism, except in 2004. However, the situation in Shanghai was complicated. Additionally, industry size and expenditure size effect were principal factors to promote carbon emissions growth, whereas energy intensity, spatial structure, and sectorial structure had negative effects. Key issues for policymakers have been highlighted and discussed.

Suggested Citation

  • Lingling Chen & Brijesh Thapa & Wei Yan, 2018. "The Relationship between Tourism, Carbon Dioxide Emissions, and Economic Growth in the Yangtze River Delta, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-20, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:7:p:2118-:d:153645
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    7. Sofi, Arfat Ahmad & Bhat, Mohammad Younus & Ahmad, Laraib & Aara, Ruhi Refath & Aswani, RS, 2022. "Renewable energy and transitioning towards sustainable tourism: Inferences from kernel density and nonparametric approach," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 193(C), pages 963-975.
    8. Jiekuan Zhang & Yan Zhang, 2021. "Tourism, economic growth, energy consumption, and CO2 emissions in China," Tourism Economics, , vol. 27(5), pages 1060-1080, August.
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    10. Yiyang Sun & Guolin Hou & Zhenfang Huang & Yi Zhong, 2020. "Spatial-Temporal Differences and Influencing Factors of Tourism Eco-Efficiency in China’s Three Major Urban Agglomerations Based on the Super-EBM Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-21, May.
    11. Vyddiyaratnam Pathmanandakumar & Sheeba Nettukandy Chenoli & Hong Ching Goh, 2021. "Linkages between Climate Change and Coastal Tourism: A Bibliometric Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-21, September.
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    13. Erdoğan, Seyfettin & Gedikli, Ayfer & Cevik, Emrah Ismail & Erdoğan, Fatma, 2022. "Eco-friendly technologies, international tourism and carbon emissions: Evidence from the most visited countries," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 180(C).
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