Navigating the dual currents: Advanced insights into carbon emissions and economic growth in China's coastal marine fisheries

Abstract

Decoupling carbon emissions from economic growth in marine fisheries is a crucial strategy for protecting marine ecosystems and promoting the sustainable development of fisheries. This research builds a comprehensive carbon emissions inventory for marine fisheries, accounting for both carbon sources and sinks, and examines the relationship between carbon emissions and economic growth in the marine fisheries sector across 11 coastal provinces of China. The study found that carbon emissions from marine fisheries in these provinces increased initially and then decreased between 2007 and 2022. Emissions displayed a low level of spatial clustering, exhibiting a relatively scattered distribution pattern. The decoupling of carbon emissions from economic growth in China's coastal marine fisheries is primarily characterized by weak decoupling (WD) and strong decoupling (SD). This decoupling is largely driven by factors such as energy intensity and industry size. Energy intensity and the size of the employed labor force exert a negative cumulative driving effect, while industrial scale has a positive cumulative driving effect. The government and relevant fishery departments should prioritize key fishery production areas, promote energy-saving upgrades for fishery facilities and fishing boat equipment, and vigorously develop low-carbon aquaculture to fulfill China’s “dual carbon” targets. The scientific research value of this paper enhances the analysis of the traditional decoupling index, constructing a relatively new analytical framework for exploring the relationship between the development of the marine fishery economy and the decoupling of carbon emissions.