Temporal changes in sectoral carbon productivity and corresponding driving factors: implications for carbon governance in Zhejiang province

Abstract Effective regulations of carbon productivity (CP) at the sectoral level offer a practical path to implement cost-effective CO2 reduction measures. To date, few studies on the temporal changes in sectoral CP have identified driving factors that can be regulated through policy interventions. We took Zhejiang Province (P.R. China) as a case study to assess the changes in CP of 41 economic sectors covering primary, secondary and tertiary industries during 2010–2017 and analyze the underlying driving factors of these changes. During the period, 31 sectors increased their CP, 12 of which decreased in energy-related CO2 emissions and increased in economic values and were potentially usable in ‘carbon peaking and carbon neutrality’ pilots. Meanwhile, 10 sectors reduced their CP, which had priority in the promotion of low-carbon technologies and implementation of transformative policies. We identified that the major contributors to the changes of sectoral CP are the factors involving electricity consumption, projects completed and put into use, water use efficiency, foreign investment and floor space of buildings. Our findings recommended improvement in the infrastructures and institutions of electricity consumption, the efficiency of the procedures for project approval, the utilization of water resources and the low-carbon investment in fixed assets on sectoral level.