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Cropland displacement contributed 60% of the increase in carbon emissions of grain transport in China over 1990–2015

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Title Cropland displacement contributed 60% of the increase in carbon emissions of grain transport in China over 1990–2015
 
Creator Zuo, Chengchao
Wen, Cheng
Clarke, Grahm
Turner, Andy
Xinli Ke
You, Liangzhi
Tang, Lanping
 
Subject urbanization
population growth
transportation
grain
cropland
energy consumption
emissions
grain production
infrastructure
environmental impact
food supply chains
food science
 
Description Rapid urbanization and population growth have increased the need for grain transportation in China, as more grain is being consumed and croplands have been moved away from cities. Increased grain transportation has, in turn, led to higher energy consumption and carbon emissions. Here we undertook a model-based approach to estimate the carbon emissions associated with grain transportation in the country between 1990 and 2015. We found that emissions more than tripled, from 5.68 million tons of CO2 emission equivalent in 1990 to 17.69 million tons in 2015. Grain production displacement contributed more than 60% of the increase in carbon emissions associated with grain transport over the study period, whereas changes in grain consumption and population growth contributed 31.7% and 16.6%, respectively. Infrastructure development, such as newly built highways and railways in western China, helped offset 0.54 million tons of CO2 emission equivalent from grain transport. These findings shed light on the life cycle environmental impact within food supply chains.
 
Date 2023-02-23
2023-03-23T19:27:20Z
2023-03-23T19:27:20Z
 
Type Journal Article
 
Identifier Zuo, Chengchao; Wen, Cheng; Clarke, Grahm; Turner, Andy; Ke, Xinli; You, Liangzhi; and Tang, Lanping. 2023. Cropland displacement contributed 60% of the increase in carbon emissions of grain transport in China over 1990–2015. Nature Food 4: 222-235. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43016-023-00708-x
2662-1355
https://hdl.handle.net/10568/129753
https://www.nature.com/articles/s43016-023-00708-x
https://doi.org/10.1038/s43016-023-00708-x
 
Language en
 
Rights Other
Open Access
 
Publisher Springer
 
Source Nature Food