Greenhouse gas emissions in China's eco-industrial parks: a case study of the Beijing Economic Technological Development Area

• It is vital to study the GHG of Chinese EIPs for further low-carbon development.
• A comprehensive GHG inventory was established for industrial parks.
• Energy-related GHG emissions accounted for 97% of the total in BDA.
• The share of non-industrial GHG emissions increased from 12% in 2005 to 33% in 2010.
• GHG emissions would fall if high energy and material efficiencies were achieved.

To pursue the sustainable development of industry, China has been developing eco-industrial parks for more than a decade. However, the low-carbon performance of eco-industrial parks is unverified. In this study, a comprehensive greenhouse gas emissions inventory for industrial parks was established, including three sectors: energy consumption, industrial processes and product use, and waste. The Beijing Economic Technological Development Area (BDA), a typical national eco-industrial park of China, was chosen for a case study. The results show that the total greenhouse gas emissions of the eco-industrial park were 3.16 Mt CO2e in 2010, and energy-related greenhouse gas emissions accounted for 97% of the total. The greenhouse gas emissions increased by 94% from 2005 to 2010. However, the greenhouse gas emissions intensity decreased by 20%, mainly due to optimization of the energy structure and improvements in energy efficiency. The share of non-industrial sectors in the total greenhouse gas emissions increased from 12% to 33%, and the construction industry became the second biggest emissions source, after manufacturing. Scenario analysis indicates that greenhouse gas emissions in the eco-industrial park could be lower than the 2010 levels as eco-industrial development proceeds, but more efforts are needed to improve energy and material efficiency. The case study has great implications for low-carbon development in other industrial parks. It is vital to build the low-carbon economy by implementing policies that will expand eco-industrial park practice and promote low-carbon development in more than 1500 industrial parks in China.

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