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• A long series of highly accurate soil moisture data was combined. • SWDI was improved and extended to the monthly scaled drought index. • Temporal features of SWDI were characterized in four geographical regions. • The relationship among drought indexes (SPI, SWDI and VCI) was explored. Drought monitoring and assessment are of great importance due to the costly damage caused by drought. Datasets, drought indexes and drought relationships are three critical areas of drought research. Satellite-retrieved soil moisture (SM) products derived from the European Space Agency Climate Change Initiative (ESA CCI) show application potential in drought monitoring. However, the products are missing certain data in some areas. The model-assimilated SM product derived from the Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLDAS) was used to supplement these missing data. The main goals of this paper are to characterize agricultural drought after the utility and applicability of the combined SM product and the monthly scaled soil water deficit index (SWDI) have been evaluated and to investigate the relationships among meteorological, agricultural and vegetation droughts. First, we provided a long series of highly accurate SM products through simple calculations. The drought index, SWDI, was extended to a monthly scale for long-term drought analysis by using the combined SM product. The probability of detection (POD) between the SWDI and in situ drought records performed fairly well. Half of the 566 stations had PODs higher than 0.9, and one-third of these stations had POD values equal to 1. Through correlation analysis and grey incidence analysis (GIA) between the standardized precipitation index (SPI) and SWDI, we found that the propagation time from meteorological drought to agricultural drought was shorter under drier conditions than wetter conditions, and at the regional scale, the response time ranged from 1 month to 2.5 months. Correlation analysis between the SWDI and vegetation condition index (VCI) indicated that there was no delay effect from agricultural to vegetation drought on a monthly scale in most parts of China except in several provinces distributed in the South; additionally, there was a significant time lag in forests, while grassland and agriculture were more inclined to have no time lag or the response time was less than 1 month. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The conventional typical meteorological year (TMY) based on continuous-year original meteorological records without considering abrupt climate changes (ACC) may not be able to represent a real "typical" climate properly. Consequently, building performance analyses and simulations based on TMY may be not accurate. Current research rarely tackles this issue in TMY development. This paper presents an innovative TMY development with the consideration of ACC in the original meteorological records. It is based on the Chinese standard weather database method (CSWD) with the meteorological records of six Chinese cities in different climate zones. It applies the Moving t-test method to identify and exclude ACC points and to refine the timescales for TMY development. It also depicts the development of individual typical meteorological months again with the ACC impact to improve the accuracy of TMY. The method has been verified in several building energy consumption and thermal comfort analyses. The results demonstrate that the analysis based on the new TMY climate datasets when considering ACC will end up with less energy consumption and better thermal performance compared to the analyses based on the conversion dataset without considering ACC. This experimental research will refine TMY development, and further improve building energy performance analysis and design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evapotranspiration is an important component and key link of river basin water cycles and plant hydrological processes, and is a core issue in global climate change research. It is not only an important way to understand the energy and water consumption of permafrost regions, but also is an important channel to master the water cycle and energy balance in cold regions. In this paper, multiple linear regression analysis method and weighted comprehensive analysis of major factors method were used to investigate the variation characteristics and impact factors of evapotranspiration in the Genhe River Basin. The results showed the following: (1) The monthly average evapotranspiration in the Genhe River Basin during the freezing-thawing periods in 1980–2017 was 28.29 mm. Compared with the freezing-thawing periods, the total evapotranspiration in the growing seasons was much higher than that in the freezing-thawing periods, with monthly average evapotranspiration of 67.71 mm; (2) The main factors affecting evapotranspiration in the Genhe River Basin were precipitation and temperature. During the freezing-thawing periods, the variation in evapotranspiration in May was mainly determined by temperature. In the growing season, precipitation was the main factors affecting evapotranspiration in June. This will lay a foundation for clarifying the relationship between permafrost–climate change–hydrologic cycle in the permafrost active layer during the land surface process, so as to provide some basic data and important scientific basis for the comprehensive study of the hydrologic process and its impact on climate, ecology, water resources and environment in the permafrost area. • Evapotranspiration variability in permafrost zone have been analyzed in growing season and freezing and thawing period. • The influencing factors of evapotranspiration in a long term have been explored. • This study enriches the data of eco-hydrology research in data-deficient areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Holocene vegetation history was reconstructed in a mountain area of north China by pollen data. • Mountain forests responded more sensitively to temperature before 6.0 cal. kyr BP. • Mountain forests responded more sensitively to summer monsoon after 6.0 cal. kyr BP. • Human impact was not serious for vegetation until several centuries ago. Understanding Holocene vegetation response regimes will improve predictions of future vegetation dynamics in mountain areas of semi-arid north China. In this paper, we statistically analyzed the relationship between a pollen record in a mountain area of semi-arid north China and influencing variables independent of pollen data, in the hope that potential vegetation forcing and response regimes can be explored. Our result suggests that the cool deciduous forest (CDF) at high elevation and the temperate deciduous forest (TDF) at middle and lower elevation were sensitive in responding to temperature before 6000 cal. yr BP, but were not sensitive to the summer monsoon (SM). Since 6000 cal. yr BP, the CDF and TDF were sensitive in responding to the SM instead of temperature. Hence, a shift of response regimes can be placed at ∼6000 cal. yr BP, which happened to be consistent with the time that forest expansion changed to deforestation. The insensitive response to the SM during the early Holocene might be attributed to the vegetation elevational movement, the topographic barrier for forest migration from refugia, and/or the topographically related high resistance and resilience of mountain forests. The sensitive response of CDF and TDF to the weakening SM since 6000 cal. yr BP was mainly caused by the cumulative moisture deficit caused by the continual weakening of the SM. Human activity had little impact on mountain forests until several centuries ago. Mountain forest expansion in response to climate warming during the early to middle Holocene can provide analogues for the prediction of forest dynamics of future warming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper estimates the causal effect of urban road expansion on Vehicle-Kilometers Traveled (VKT) in 103 Chinese cities. We develop a novel matching IV strategy to address endogeneity concerns that complements traditional historical infrastructure instruments to provide time-varying identification in a panel data setting. We find that the estimated elasticity of VKT with respect to road length is approximately 1, indicating that newly built urban roads lead to a proportional increase in total traffic. Given significant ongoing infrastructure investment and more recently enacted traffic alleviation policies in many Chinese cities, this result provides important new information on the impacts of infrastructure investment on traffic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the extent to which air pollution influences the process of attaining sustainable development goals (SDGs) may help to estimate the benefit of reducing air pollution for improving sustainable development and to evaluate the necessity and urgency of reducing air pollutants and improving air quality. In this paper, we use the latest calculation of the SDGs in China to construct provincial panel data and investigate the relationship between air pollution and Chinese SDGs. We find that reducing air pollution will not only improve the SDGs directly associated with the environment, such as SDG3 (good health and well-being) and SDG15 (life on land), but also has a close relationship with the SDGs of other dimensions, such as SDG4 (quality education), SDG9 (industrial, innovation and infrastructure), SDG12(responsible consumption and production), SDG16 (peace, justice and strong institutions), SDG17(global partnerships). Based on the actual reduction in industrial SO2 emissions and evolution of the SDGs in China, we estimate that the former contributes approximately 3.5%–12.3% of the actual change in these SDGs from 2005 to 2015. Our findings support that reducing air pollution benefits the progress of sustainable development in various ways, and the efforts of curbing air pollution and improving air quality are especially valuable for sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unanticipated environmental shocks impact the livelihoods of many resource users around the world. These shocks are likely to be more unpredictable as the effects of climate change continue to mount. Yet how households adapt to these changing climatic conditions especially in the context of rapidly changing market conditions in most areas of the world, is poorly understood. These interactions have wide implications for both smallholder livelihoods and sustainable use of natural resources. In this paper, we examine the relationship between environmental shocks and stocking rates in livestock herds in the Inner Mongolian grasslands of northern China. We uniquely examine three types of shocks and how households adapt livestock production strategies in response to each. Separately and in aggregate, we look at three common shocks in Inner Mongolia: droughts, snowstorms, and locust outbreaks. We use a difference-in-differences approach to estimate changes in stocking rates among households that experience shocks versus those that do not with a panel dataset from 2009 to 2014 of 597 households. While we find no clear impact from locusts, our results suggest droughts and snowstorms have opposite effects: droughts are associated with increases in herd sizes, but snowstorms result in decreased herds. We suggest these differences are due to interactions between shocks, emerging options to borrow on credit, and livestock markets. Household adaptation to climate change will be strategic and take advantage of both available resources as well as market conditions. • Climate change is causing stronger and more unpredictable environmental shocks. • We use a difference-in-differences model to estimate the impact of shocks on stocking rate. • Drought relates to bigger herds; snowstorms relate to smaller herds. • Households adapt to shocks taking advantage of both available resources and market conditions. • Shaping well-functioning market may reduce opportunistic resource exploitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Halocarbon emissions in the building sector is increasing. • Non-Annex parties become bigger emitter instead of Annex parties. • Building sector accounts for more than half of global HFCs emissions. • Data sufficiency is key barrier for policy making. • Building cooling demand increase will push further halocarbon emissions. Estimates of the non-CO 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions contributed by the buildings sector are necessary to evaluate this sector's potential for climate change mitigation. As data is lacking on fluorinated gases (F-gases) and hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) emissions from the buildings sector, this study aimed to estimate these emissions. First, the share of total global GHG emissions represented by buildings-sector emissions was estimated. Then, the HFC emissions of the buildings sectors in several countries (USA, EU, Japan, and China) are compiled. Next, based on necessary assumptions, global buildings-sector HFC emissions were estimated. Finally, this paper discusses implications for policy-makers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Faced with severe and growing social inequality among elderly individuals, a more complete understanding of the interconnection between the seasonal migration of the elderly and climate change is clearly needed. This paper tries to clarify the relation between the seasonal migration of the elderly and climate change from a multidimensional perspective. Our study adds to the research on population aging against the background of climate change. This study shows that climate change has a significant impact on regional population aging and that there are significant internal differences between the distribution and scale of the migratory elderly stemming from unequal environmental conditions. Advanced economic conditions and relatively comfortable environments have put some pressure on social endowment services in the three provinces of Northeast China, especially Liaoning Province. With their complex migration mechanism, the fate of the elderly in mainland China is closely intertwined with climatic factors, individual and socioeconomic conditions, traditional cultural backgrounds, etc. A comparatively advanced economy, well-developed endowment resources, and a comfortable environment will help in the development of regional aging resources. Regional inequality and the pursuit of a meaningful life have created different categories of migratory elderly. • Climate change makes the seasonal migration characteristics of the middle-class elderly more distinct. • The migratory elderly in mainland China is closely intertwined with climatic, individual and socioeconomic conditions. • Regional inequality and the pursuit towards value and spirit in life have formed different kinds of migratory elderly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global warming and climate change have become a common concern to all countries in recent years. As an industrial sector with high energy consumption, the construction sector is facing enormous pressure to reduce carbon emissions. Given the continuous integration of the world economy, the construction sector in each country has extensive linkages with other sectors and countries. By using a multi-regional input–output (MRIO) model and hypothetical extraction method (HEM), this paper aims to further decompose the CO 2 emission linkages of the global construction sector from consumption-based and production-based perspectives in order to identify the key sectors and regions related to global trade. Based on data from the World Input–Output Database from 1995 to 2009, the results indicate that the average internationalization ratios of the net backward linkage and the net forward linkage of the global construction sector increased from 37% to 46% and from 16% to 20%, respectively. The global construction sector mainly imported CO 2 emissions from secondary industry and the transportation industry. The construction sector exported small amounts of CO 2 emissions to other sectors both domestically and internationally. The CO 2 emission flows embodied in the international trade of the construction sector mainly occurred between the USA, China, Russia, Germany, and the Rest of the World (ROW). The construction sectors of the ROW imported the largest amount of CO 2 emissions from China (32.72 Mt). The largest exported CO 2 emission flow was between the construction sectors of the USA and the ROW, with a value of 0.091 Mt. Based on these findings, some corresponding countermeasures are suggested, such as optimizing international trade structures, establishing a mechanism for both consumers and producers to share responsibility for carbon emission reduction, applying new environmental materials, and upgrading industrial structures by reducing dependence on high-pollution sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the acceleration of industrialization and urbanization, brownfield is an important resource for land regeneration and restoration targeting to recover its ecosystem function. Landfills, as a type of brownfield distributed in the highly populated areas, occupy massive land resources. The ecological restoration of landfills becomes an engineering approach to achieve multiple effects of society, environment, and economy. This paper aims to monitor and assess the restoration microclimatic effects of landfills restoration in China with remote sensing data and techniques. We selected representative landfill restoration projects, including Nanhaizi Park in Beijing, Nanhu Park in Tangshan, and Tianziling Park in Hangzhou, as the study cases. Using the Landsat imagery, the scenes of the pre-restoration, mid-restoration, and post-restoration were retrieved, and the surface energy balance equation was applied to calculate normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), land surface temperature (T s), and evapotranspiration (ET), representing vegetation conditions and hydro-heat microclimate conditions. The study areas are divided into four subzones and extracted the calculated values for statistics and comparison. We defined an indicator of restoration intensity (RI) using the different subzones to the outer contour distance radius and restoration phases to evaluate the spatial-temporal restoration degrees. The spatial pattern dynamics was displayed in the urbanization context in the cases of Beijing and Tangshan. We examined and quantified the relations between RI and the key indicators, NDVI, T s , and ET. The overall results revealed that with higher restoration intensity, NDVI and ET became higher, and T s became lower. It suggested that the ecological restoration on the landfills brought better vegetation, cooling, and humidification effects for the microclimatic environment. Our research has the implications for monitoring and assessing the climatic effects of ecological restoration in the brownfield regeneration in a macroscopic and ecosystem perspective. Unlabelled Image • With satellite dataset, we developed a way to monitor vegetation and microclimatic changes in the restored landfills. • The indicator to quantify the ecological restoration intensity was invented with spatial distance and restoration phase. • Overall, with higher restoration intensity, vegetation and evapotranspiration improved, and surface temperature declined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little is known about the climate and environmental changes that have occurred in the extremely arid regions of China since MIS (Marine Isotope Stage) 3 (59–29 cal kyr BP), when most regions in northwestern China and the Tibetan Plateau featured warm and humid conditions. In this paper, we present a record of the climate changes in the Qaidam Basin in arid northwestern China over the past 40 kyr based on the mineralogy of a 35-m-long sediment core recovered from Qarhan Salt Lake. Our results show that the lake was a saline or hyper-saline lake saturated with respect to gypsum between 40 and 33 cal kyr BP. Beginning at 33 cal kyr BP, evaporite formation was dominated by halite precipitation, indicating that the lake salinity had increased extensively and that the climate became drier during 33–24.5 cal kyr BP. The lake salinity then increased continuously, resulting in the appearance of bischofite between 24.5 and 14.6 cal kyr BP. The disappearance of bischofite and the increase in gypsum indicate that the salinity of the water decreased slightly between 14.6 and 8.3cal kyr BP. However, during the last 8300 years, the lake has dried up and is now a playa. Generally, the climate was wet in late MIS 3, arid in MIS 2 (29–11.7 cal kyr BP), and hyperarid in the Holocene. The relatively humid conditions may have resulted from weak evaporation caused by the relatively low insolation and intense ice-albedo feedback in late MIS 3. The decreased insolation and dramatically increased Eurasian ice volume in MIS 2 may have led to limited precipitation, which resulted in persistent dry climate conditions in the Qaidam Basin. In the Holocene, the reduction in ice volume reduced the albedo, and this change, in conjunction with increased insolation, may have led to evaporation exceeding local precipitation, resulting in hyperarid climate conditions in the Qaidam Basin. • Climate change since late MIS 3 was studied in an extremely arid region of China. • The climate was wet in late MIS 3 but hyper-arid in the Holocene. • Northern Hemisphere insolation and Eurasian ice volume were the forcing mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The crop yield deviations are more susceptible to change in temperature. • The level of climate change induced risk amounts to 1.3-5.3% of the average yields. • The risk leads to a considerable change in cropland use in Chinese farms. • Changing cropland use structure is an effective strategy of mitigating the risk. This paper estimates the climate change induced risk for 14 crops measured by the yield deviation using the panel data from seven counties in Jiangsu province in China from 1998 to 2017, and then investigates the risk effect on cropland use in a representative farm using the survey data and the MOTAD model. The results show that the crop yield deviation are more susceptible to change in temperature than that in sunlight and precipitation. The crop-specific risk level amounts to 1.3–5.3% of the average yields. The risk leads to reducing the cultivated areas by 6% and also causes a significant change in cropland use. As an effective adaptation strategy of mitigating the climate change induced risk, the farms should reduce the total cultivated area by about 15% in comparison with the observed situation while the cropland use structure should be adjusted accordingly. More cropland should be allocated to wheat, peanut and cotton but the other crop areas should be reduced or maintained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper is to investigate the projected regional responses of univariate and bivariate behaviors of extreme precipitation to climate change over the upper-middle Huaihe River Basin. Based on twelve GCM outputs under historical, RCP4.5 and the observations at 32 rainfall stations, the equidistant cumulative distribution function matching method (EDCDFm) was utilized to bias correct daily precipitation during the historical (1961–2005) and future (2021–2080) periods. Four precipitation indices combinations were introduced based on eight precipitation indices to characterize the regional-scale changes of precipitation events, which designate the duration, intensity and amount of heavy and weak precipitation in a year. Their dependence structures were captured by Copulas. Kendall return period (KRP) were applied to discuss hazard scenarios and we quantified the spatial variability of KRPs under different marginal values. The results indicated that projected precipitation characteristics including the average intensity, the amount of annual precipitation, the intensity and amount of extreme precipitation together with annual extremes displayed increasing trends, while the changes of consecutive wet and dry days did not present pronounced trends. Decreased KRPs in the vast majority of the territory manifested that the frequency of simultaneous floods and droughts in a year as well as that of extreme heavy precipitation events would augment. Obvious spatial heterogeneity of the changes of KRP was partly attributed to the topography difference, especially the coastal areas along the main stream of the Huaihe River. Consequently, there will be a higher risk of water resources-related issues in this region for upcoming decades. • Significant decreases will occur in the intensity and amount of heavy precipitation for upcoming decades. • Change rates of precipitation indices combinations illustrate obvious spatial heterogeneity. • The frequency of simultaneous floods and droughts in a year and that of extreme heavy precipitation events will augment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the historical relationship between weather fluctuations and mortality evolution in China. Using panel data on the annual provincial mortality rate and daily weather variables for the 1964–2008 period, we applied a dynamic model structure with sufficient controls to estimate the short-term effects of temperature shocks on China's mortality rate. Our main results show that an additional 1 °C rise in average temperature in a given year increases the annual mortality rate by an average of 3.2%. In addition, days with daily average temperatures exceeding 27 °C (30 °C) are associated with an increase in the annual mortality rate of nearly 0.1% (0.2%) or approximately 9,520 (19,040) additional deaths. In contrast, extremely cold days do not have these effects. By applying a hybrid model structure (the long difference approach) to examine the medium-term effects of temperature changes, we find that there is little evidence of overall adaptation to high temperatures when moving from the short term to the medium term. In addition, by introducing interactions between temperatures and potential modifiers such as access to doctors, hospital beds, air conditioning and refrigerators, we determined that only residential air conditioning played an important role in mitigating the temperature-mortality relationship. However, the penetration of air conditioning in China is still relatively low. These findings indicate that climate change could partially explain the historical phenomenon of China's rising mortality rate during the unprecedented economic boom experienced since the 1980s. • Increases in the number of extreme hot days increase annual mortality rate. • Little evidence of adaptation when moving from short run to medium run. • Residential air conditioning has played an important role in mitigating the temperature-mortality relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper is to highlight the threatening of climate change on the water shortage problem in North China, a semi-arid and arid area. Observations show that the runoff of the major rivers is decreasing dramatically especially in the lower reaches where water ishighly demanded. Most noticeable are the dry-outs of the Yellow River, the so-called ‘mother river of China’.Water scarcity would be the most front challenge for the society and economy in China, especially the urban area with extremely high population density. The government already paid attention to the deepening of the underground water level at Beijing. Sustainable water resource management should the top priority for the local community to adapt to climate change. Studies show that human activities heavily impact on the local climate and environment in China and a dramatics amount of clean water is wasted or polluted. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• The Guaizihu sag has undergone five stages of evolution corresponding to five rift-related sedimentary units. • The north and south sub-sags were connected with each other to form a unified one during late rift climax substage. • The lack of deep-water sedimentary facies during the greatest tectono-subsidence phase was due an arid environment. • There are three typical filling patterns in the tectono-sedimentary evolution of the Guaizihu sag. Distinguished from most existing rift basin evolutionary models, the succession of deep-water deposits in the Guaizihu sag were mainly developed during rift initiation instead of the greatest tectonic subsidence phase. This paper focuses on the detailed analysis of rift-related sequence stratigraphy and sedimentary evolution in this continental rift sag, and discusses tectonic and climatic controls on filling patterns. The deposits of the Guaizihu sag can be ascribed to four major depositional systems: alluvial fan and fan delta, braided delta, sublacustrine fan and shallow to deep lacustrine deposits. They are in part contemporaneous and some succeeding each other, forming five sequence units and corresponding substages of basin evolution: (i) rift initiation, (ii) early rift climax, (iii) middle rift climax, (iv) late rift climax, and (v) late syn-rift substages. With the onset of fault movement and hot-humid climate conditions, the first substage is characterized by a number of poorly linked depocenters, which consist of alluvial fan, fan delta and deep lacustrine deposits with organic-rich mudstones. The second substage is associated with an enhanced activity of border faults and block rotation. This unit is dominated by lacustrine deposits, but fan or braided delta and sublacustrine fans also can be observed. The third substage is marked by the maximum subsidence rate and shallow lakes fringed by fan and braided deltas. The arid environment is likely to be the main factor controlling the lithofacies and filling characteristics of this unit. During the fourth substage two early sub-sags gradually converged to form a uniform one. The relative tectonic quiescence and climate fluctuations (sub-humid to sub-arid) favored carbonate deposition. The late syn-rift unit, which is dominated by fine-grained deposits, is a consequence of degradation of source area (mostly tectonic). This study shows that the effects of tectonics and climate on lacustrine sedimentation are intimately interwoven. Tectonism determines the sag structure, stratigraphic architecture, and spatial distribution pattern of depositional systems. Climatic conditions superimposed on tectonics tends to be the major control on sediment supply, lithofacies types and sedimentary features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate warming and subsequent climate extremes have a wide impact on ecosystems and economic society. Scientifically quantitative assessment on climate change risks is an urgent issue attracted the attention of academics and decision-makers. In this paper, the theory of climate change risks was sorted out based on the three component elements of hazard, vulnerability, and exposure. Moreover, the idiomatic assessment methods and their applicability were systematically summarized. Comprehensive analysis found that the impacts of climate change generally showed a negative trend that was more harm than benefit, and further warming would aggravate the risk over China which was manifested to be more prominent in some sensitive sectors and key regions to climate change. Accessible management of the climate change risk should be engaged in effectively improving the methods of comprehensive identification, strengthening the mechanism and quantitative assessment, recognizing the temporal and spatial variation of components related to climate change risk, and reducing the uncertainty of climate change projection. • Theoretical framework of climate change risk was formed based on hazard, vulnerability, and exposure. • Assessment methods of climate change risk and their applicability were systematically summarized. • Climate change risk levels were analyzed in sensitive sectors and key regions over China. • In China, impacts of climate change were more harm than benefit while more warming was very likely to aggravate the risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A new formulation to measure the resilience performance of airports under severe weather events was developed. • A big data based on actual air performance was adopted for the empirical analysis. • Modal substitution to HSR service is found to be an important tactic of airport resilience. The increased severe weather events in recent years as a result of global climate change has created a substantial challenge for aviation system operation. Although transportation engineers and planners have attempted to improve system resilience through the adaptation of new technologies and the implementation of various strategies to achieve effective risk management, it remains unclear how resilience performance (measured by the speed of recovery) of airports varies in different severe weather events and what factors may explain such variations. This paper addresses these fundamental questions using the aviation system in China as an example. A resilience metric, which reflects the speed of recovery (bounce back) from a shock, was developed to measure the performance of airport resilience under various severe weather conditions. In addition, an empirical econometric analysis was conducted based on a dataset that includes both detailed aviation performance and weather conditions for the period of October 2016 – September 2017. The research findings show that airport resilience to severe weather events does vary substantially based on factors, such as weather conditions, airport capacity, and the level of modal substitution. In particular, the recovery time of air services in central and south China tends to be relatively longer in thunderstorms than other weather conditions. The study also confirms that modal substitution is a very effective resilience tactic of the transportation system as the recovery speed of air service was found to be faster by 22.9% if an alternative mode, such as high-speed rail (HSR) service was also available in the city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rational implementation of environmental regulation and efforts to improve carbon productivity are the practical choices for China to address climate change. This paper mainly explores the correlations between environmental regulation and carbon productivity in China. The study first measures and analyzes carbon productivity and its changes. The results indicate that China's carbon productivity experienced several fluctuations during the study period. Overall, the carbon productivity is currently in a stable rising phase. According to the empirical research on the basis of the spatial spillover effect, a positive spatial correlation exists between carbon productivity in the different regions of China, and there is a threshold for the impact of environmental regulation on carbon productivity. As the intensity of environmental regulation changes from weak to strong, its effect on carbon productivity in local regions will be affected and change from negative to positive. Similar effects will be seen in neighboring regions. At present, the average intensity of China's environmental regulation has not yet reached this threshold. The eastern region's average intensity of environmental regulation is closest to its threshold, while the average intensities of the central and western regions are far from their respective thresholds. There is great potential to improve China's carbon productivity through the implementation of appropriate environmental regulations. • China's overall carbon productivity is currently in a stable rising phase. • China's carbon productivity has a significant positive spatial correlation. • The improvement of carbon productivity in local regions will also improve carbon productivity in neighboring regions. • There is a threshold for the impact of environmental regulation on carbon productivity in China. • The integral intensity of environmental regulation in China has not yet reached the threshold. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Reviews on tectonics and paleoenvironment of the Junggar Basin are present. • An updated chronostratigraphic framework is provided for Permian Junggar Basin. • Dry climate and evaporative environment prevailed during deposition of source rocks. • Stable salinity stratification and limited dilution promoted organic matter burial. • Organic carbon burial in lakes may act as a significant carbon sink in Permian. The Junggar Basin in northwestern China is a typical "walled" sedimentary basin that has a prolonged basin evolution history from the Paleozoic to Cenozoic and is rich in petroleum resources. Permian strata reach thousands of meters in thickness and have been intensively studied for their record of regional tectonics and paleoenvironments. They have also been exploited for oil and gas for the past several decades. In this paper, we summarize perspectives on tectonic evolution, stratigraphic framework, sedimentary environments, and the paleoclimate of the Permian Junggar Basin and the adjacent Turpan Basin. Further, we discuss the mechanism and consequences of massive organic carbon burial. Based on a compilation of published radiometric dating datasets, an updated chronostratigraphic framework was proposed for the Junggar Basin. This framework constrains the ages of two main petroleum source intervals, the Fengcheng Formation and the Lucaogou and equivalent formations, as Early Permian and Middle Permian, respectively. Although a global warming and drying trend was present throughout the Permian Period, the regional climate over the Junggar Basin was drier in Early Permian and more humid in the Middle-Late Permian with short-term climatic fluctuations. During the deposition of the two petroleum source intervals, dry and temperate climate prevailed and evaporative lacustrine environment dominated. Organic matter enrichment was promoted by stable salinity stratification and limited dilution by inorganic sediments, leading to one of the richest lacustrine source rock deposits in the world. The average organic carbon burial rates were 11.2 gC/m2/yr for the Lucaogou Formation and 3.5 gC/m2/yr for the Fengcheng Formation, lower than the average organic carbon burial rate in modern lakes. However, considering the large areas of global tectonic lakes in the Permian Period, organic carbon burial in lacustrine environments could act as a significant carbon sink and impact the global carbon cycle and climate evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Milankovitch cycles were recorded in Rb/Sr series from Member 1 (K 2 n1) and Member 2 (K 2 n2) of the Nenjiang Formation. • K 2 n1 experienced a longer humid period and more pronounced climatic fluctuation than K 2 n2. • The mean sedimentation rates of 6.577 and 8.369 cm/ka for K 2 n1 and K 2 n2 were provided by ASM method. • The collectively regulation of obliquity and precession amplified the paleomonsoon effect during humid periods in K 2 n1 and K 2 n2. Cretaceous terrestrial sedimentary records are crucial for our understanding of geological systems' responses to past climate change under greenhouse condition. Numerous publications have documented that Milankovitch cycles were a dominant climate driver over multi-millennial timescales. However, most of these orbital signals were derived from marine records obtained during the Cenozoic geological period, whereas knowledge of Milankovitch cycles preserved in lacustrine sediments prior to the Cenozoic is limited due to the lack of a precise chronological framework, poor preservation rate of terrestrial sediments, limited records, and fewer experts in this research area. This paper reports high-resolution X-ray fluorescence (XRF) elemental records of K, Ti, Rb, Sr, Zr, Zr/Rb, Rb/Sr, and K/Ti from Member 1 (k 2 n1) and Member 2 (k 2 n2) of the Nenjiang Formation, which were obtained from a near-continuous SK-2 East (SK-2e) borehole drilled in the Songliao Basin (SB) of northeastern (NE) China. Variations of the elemental records reveal a humid-arid-humid-semiarid climatic evolution throughout the deposition of k 2 n1 and a humid-arid-humid-arid climatic variation throughout the deposition of k 2 n2. In this context, K 2 n1 experienced a relatively longer humid period and more pronounced climatic fluctuation than K 2 n2. A method of average spectral misfit (ASM) was adopted to successfully identify two optimal sedimentation rates of 6.577 and 8.369 cm/ka for K 2 n1 and K 2 n2, respectively. Based on these two sedimentation rates, nearly all significant Milankovitch cycles preserved in the Rb/Sr record were recognized. It is suggested that westerly wind was the main climatic driving factor of climate evolution in the SB under the forcing of Milankovitch cycles. The collectively regulation of obliquity and precession increased the seasonal contrasts during humid periods in the Nenjiang Formation and thereby amplified the paleomonsoon effect, thus bringing more moisture towards the SB and lead to enhanced rainfall. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Paris Agreement on climate change has calls for urgent, radical, and transformative actions in mitigation and adaptation, particularly in terms of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emission. There are many terms used to describe the process of reducing GHGs, including decarbonization, low carbon development (LCD) or low carbon transition (LCT). The conceptualization of these terms remains puzzling and there has not been any consensus to explain the meaning and their interrelationship. Clearer definition and conceptual boundaries are necessary to improve the coherence of overarching practices to cut CO 2 emission. The paper aims to review key concepts related to climate change mitigation related to the reduction of CO 2 and efforts toward net-zero emission in the academic literature, by (1) examining progress of the literature over time, (2) identifying geographical locus and sectoral focus of the literature, (3) determining the interrelationships between the key concepts. We use a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) method for data collection by selecting peer-reviewed literature from Scopus and analyzing the data with content analysis and bibliometric analysis. The findings are, firstly, the publications of the literature are influenced by global and national climate change policies and the interest of scholars affiliated to institutions from major emitter countries. Therefore, the literature is mostly originating from countries that emit the most CO 2 while also implement mitigations to reduce CO 2 emission. Secondly, China is the country where studies are mostly focused and also where the authors are affiliated/located. However, publications from the United Kingdom are cited the most. Thirdly, there are three clusters of literature found, namely that LCD and LCT are the terms used to identify visions for climate mitigation, while decarbonization is the actions and processes to achieve either LCD or LCT (as the visions). • The dynamic of climate change policies influence the literature trend. • The literature is mostly originating from major CO 2 emitter. • Low carbon development and low carbon transition are visional terms. • Decarbonization indicates the processes of decoupling CO 2 to achieve the visions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China has committed to ambitious targets to reduce its carbon emissions in the next decades, in order to combat climate change and improve the environment. The realization of the targets depends on the fair and effective mitigation plans of all provinces. However, with varying ecological and environmental conditions and social-economic development, it is a critical issue to quantify the provinces' efforts equally. This paper proposed a comprehensive fE index in coordinating ecology, equity and economy, by accounting for carbon emissions and sinks to characterize provincial carbon emission status in China, from 2000 to 2017, which shows a spatial pattern of "boundary high, central low". The provinces with higher fE value (>1.5) in boundary areas can be seen as "relative equality" provinces with good ecology circulation, equity and economic efficiency. The provinces with lower fE value (<0.7) in central areas around Bohai Bay are regarded as "severe inequality" provinces, and are identified as the hot-spot provinces, which have emitted more CO2 than their equity share by occupying the carbon emission space of other provinces in recent decades. These results could provide a reference for a provincial guide for carbon reduction and sustainable development of the low-carbon economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• CO 2 emissions and PM 2.5 concentrations are analyzed using 10 km × 10 km grid data. • Spatial features are explored at national, urban agglomeration, and city levels. • Four-quadrant distribution and spatial autocorrelation analysis methods are used. • Only a few areas achieved decreases in both CO 2 emissions and PM 2.5 concentrations. • PM 2.5 concentrations are more strongly spatial correlated than CO 2 emissions. Owing to global climate change and increased environmental pollution, China faces the dual responsibility of reducing CO 2 emissions and controlling PM 2.5 pollution. This study compares the spatial characteristics of PM 2.5 concentrations and CO 2 emissions using 10 km × 10 km grid data. The increase and decrease of CO 2 emissions and PM 2.5 concentrations are divided into four quadrants, which indicates four different conditions. Then, spatial autocorrelation method is conducted to analysis the spatial relationships. The empirical results show that (1) In the four quadrants, the increase of CO 2 emissions and the decrease of PM 2.5 concentrations accounted for the highest proportion (25.9%). (2) The spatial differences in CO 2 emissions are large, but the PM 2.5 concentrations show strong spatial aggregation. (3) China's three major urban agglomerations contain more than half of the areas in which both CO 2 emissions and PM 2.5 concentrations increased, and the Pearl River Delta urban agglomeration exhibits the best synergistic reduction effect. By contrast, the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration has the worst synergistic reduction of CO 2 emissions and PM 2.5 concentrations. (4) At the urban level, as a typical city in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration, Tianjin's overreliance on heavy chemical industries has led to co-increases in its CO 2 emissions and PM 2.5 concentrations. Shaoxing and Jiangmen, in the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta urban agglomeration, are among the few cities where CO 2 emissions and PM 2.5 concentrations have both been reduced. Finally, this paper suggests some policy implications of these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Combining emergy with factor analysis can reduce the singleness and subjectivity of evaluation. • From the ecological, economic, engineering and social aspects to evaluate regional resilience. • Provide a good practical case for studying the regional resilience of developing countries. • Provide a good basis for government decision making. With the aggravation of global climate change, the frequency of global natural disasters is increasing year by year. How to actively respond to natural disasters has become the key to ensure the sustainable development of the region. Since urbanization in developing countries is much lower than that in developed countries, most scholars in the past focused on the regional resilience of developed countries rather than developing countries. China is the largest developing country in the world, choosing China as the research area has practical guiding significance. To assess the current state of China's regional resilience capacity, this paper establishes an evaluation system of resilience capacity index of 28 indicators based on China's actual situation. The comprehensive emergy and factor analysis method are used to evaluate the resilience capacity index of 26 regions (provinces) in China from four aspects: ecology, economy, engineering, and society. The results show that economy and ecology are the critical factors affecting regional resilience capacity index. China's regional resilience index has apparent characteristics of agglomeration, distribution, and imbalance in space. China's coastal resilience index is generally higher than China's inland region, showing gradient differentiation in spatial change. These characteristics are influenced by China's policy, which is consistent with the expected early effect of China's reform and opening-up policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To tackle climate change, Chinese government has applied an array of mitigating measures to reduce CO2 emissions. During the 11th Five-year Plan, Chinese government set the emission reduction target policy to reduce energy consumption per unit of gross domestic product (GDP) by 20%. This paper attempts to estimate the effect of this emission reduction target policy on industrial performance from complexity perspective. The result shows more complex industrial structure is related to less coal consumption. In general, emission reduction target policy has a negative effect on the probability of branching into new industries and lower the productivity and profitability of a given industry. However, this negative effect is weaker for more complex industries. Only for industries with very high complexity, emission reduction target policy can improve the performance of an industry rather than exerting a negative effect. Our finding not only helps to design a more effective policy to achieve industrial development strategy, but also provides a potential way to achieve economic growth while reduce the emission of greenhouse gases at the same time. • We investigate the impact of Emission reduction target policy(ERT) on industrial performance from complexity perspective. • We apply the method of reflection to calculate the Economic Complexity of provinces and Industry Complexity of industries. • More complex industrial structure contributes to the coal consumption reduction. • ERT has negative effects on the probability of branching into new industries, lowers the productivity and profitability of a given industry. • ERT has weaker negative effects for more complex industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increase in frequency and intensity of extreme weather events caused by global climate change, the risks to grain production have become more and more prominent. This paper uses the economic and climate data from 1981 to 2016 in China's main grain-producing areas as its source data. The economic-climate model is combined with the grey model GM(1,1) and the sixth phase of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6) the second generation Beijing Climate Center Climate System Model (BCC-CSM2-MR) to further explore the impacts of climate change on China's grain production, and to estimated regional differences in China's grain production under different scenarios. The thresholds of grain production risk from climate change is mainly the value of the risks to the per capita grain production and to the grain yield per hectare under the SSP1-RCP2.6, SSP2-RCP4.5 and SSP5-RCP8.5 scenarios. Starting with historical data, we assess the safety and risk thresholds of China's grain production. The results show that the grain production in the northern region of China will gradually increase with the increase of emission intensity in different scenarios of climate change: SSP1-RCP26, SSP2-RCP45 and SSP5-RCP85, while that in the southern region is just the opposite in 2016–2050. The risks to grain production are mainly concentrated in southern region of China under the different emission scenarios, and the risks of grain production tends to decrease gradually over time. The northward shift of the grain production center further changes China's grain production and sales pattern from "sending grain from the South to the North" in to "sending grain from the North to the South". In order to understand the further climate situation from the perspective of economic, this study provides scientific support for the study of the main impacts of climate change on China's main grain-production areas. • Use the economic-climate model to separate socio-economic and climatic factors. • Use globe model (BCC-CSM2-MR) of CMIP6 to construct a comprehensive climatic factor. • Risks combine two aspects: per capita grain yield and grain yield per hectare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the Industrial Revolution, greenhouse gas emissions have caused global temperatures to rise gradually. The Paris Agreement aims to limit the global mean surface temperature increase to less than 2.0 °C relative to pre-industrial levels. China's land area accounts for ∼7% of the global land (65Ñ59S) area, and the arid area of China accounts for 12.41% of the total global arid area. Therefore, the degree of aridification/humidification in China is of great significance to climate change in China and the world. This paper evaluates the regional changes of drylands and humid lands in China based on the 1.5 °C and 2.0 °C increase targets for global mean surface warming(GMSW). We find a suitable warming target for China's climate from the perspective of aridification. The results show the following: 1) If the global mean surface temperature rises by 1.5 °C and 2.0 °C above pre-industrial levels, the mean surface temperature in China will increase by 2.0 °C and 2.8 °C, respectively. 2) Under the two GMSW targets, the degree of drought in some extremely arid areas in China was projected to decrease, which means that these areas may gradually be suitable for human habitation. 3) Regardless of which global surface temperature target is maintained, the humid lands in China will bear greater risks from warming than the drylands. Under these circumstances, the 1.5 °Ctargetwill lead to better outcomes for China than the 2.0 °C target. • The degree of drought in some extremely arid areas in China has decreased under global warming targets. • Humid lands in China will bear greater warming risks than the dry lands. • Global warming limited within 1.5 °C target for will lead to better outcomes for China than the 2.0 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid growth of energy-intensive and high-emission industries has underpinned China's economic boom over the past few decades. Since her economic development entered the new normal phase in 2013, China has faced the challenge of mitigating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions while achieving medium-high economic growth. Transforming the economic development pattern and restructuring the economy is a principal solution, and one important prerequisite is discerning great sectoral disparities of GHG emissions and corresponding environmental costs because the diversity of characteristics among different sectors causes the pollutants that are discharged to vary. Hence, this paper aims to assess the environmental costs of China's total and sectoral GHG emissions. Based on the System of Environmental and Economic Accounts and using the economic input-output life cycle assessment model, this study calculates the green GDP and green output value of 27 sectors to reflect the environmental costs of GHG emissions in China during 1991–2016. The findings are as follows: (1) while China's direct GHG emissions increased from 3,040.60 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO 2 eq) to 10,641.10 MtCO 2 eq during 1991–2014, declining trends were observed in the total and 16 sectors' direct GHG emissions in the subsequent two years; (2) although the ratios of direct GHG emissions to total GHG emissions in most sectors decreased, total GHG emissions in eight sectors rose first and then fell, and in 15 sectors continued to rise; (3) China's green GDP grew from 2,003.88 billion Chinese Yuan to 26,245.25 billion Chinese Yuan during 1991–2016, and the difference between China's GDP and green GDP decreased from 2.73% to 1.02%; and (4) differences between the output value and green output value decreased in over 20 sectors. Finally, some policy implications are given from the perspective of some key sectors of the Manufacturing industry, Agricultural sector, and Transport, storage, and post sector. • China's direct GHG emissions increased from 3,040.60 MtCO 2 eq to 10,641.10 MtCO 2 eq. • Total GHG emissions in 8 sectors rose and then fell, while that in 15 sectors grew. • China's green GDP grew from 2,003.88 billion CNY to 26,245.25 billion CNY. • Difference between China's GDP and green GDP decreased from 2.73% to 1.02%. • Difference between the output value and green output value fell in over 20 sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much of our existing knowledge of Middle Jurassic paleoclimate is based on well-dated marine isotopic records that show fluctuations between warm (greenhouse effected) and cool climates. In contrast, much less is known from contemporaneous terrestrial deposits that are often difficult to correlate stratigraphically with marine successions, and are typically considered as showing regional rather than global signals. In this paper we show that the carbon-isotopic, petrological and floral record through 20 m thick coals in the Northern Qaidam Basin (NW, China) represents a relatively comprehensive northern hemisphere Bajocian (Middle Jurassic) record for terrestrial climatic change. δ13C coal values for 88 samples from the Yuqia area in Northern Qaidam Basin range from–25.3‰ to –22.5‰, indicating that C3 plants were the main coal-forming vegetation in the region during the Middle Jurassic. This isotopic variation follows fluctuations in the composition of ferns and gymnosperms, where higher ratios correspond to more negative δ13C values. The similar carbon isotope values of gymnosperms and coal from the Yuqia area indicate that the coal comprises a high proportion of organic material derived from gymnosperm taxa, which is consistent with the very high abundance of diterpenoids in coal and especially pimarane and abietane that are produced primarily by gymnosperms. Results from the coal matrix provide an opportunity to record paleoclimate changes, showing several striking and regular coal-forming cycles with distinct long- and short-term variations. Trends of δ13C coal values changes coupled with the evolution of coal-forming plants may record a gradual increase in paleo-CO 2 (p CO 2) concentration, water-table level changes and the decrease in abundance of Classopollis conifer pollen through Bajocian. This result is in accordance with the published marine carbonate records for this time, with correlation enabled through matching carbon isotope curves from the terrestrial succession at Yuqia and marine records. The similarity of the terrestrial and marine geochemical and floral record is an indication that the observed paleoclimate signal is a global phenomenon. Furthermore, the high-frequency fluctuation of δ13C coal values, along with the coal petrologic variations may record short-term changes of environmental factors (e.g. temperature or humidity/precipitation), especially during intervals when palaeobotanical composition has not fluctuated intensely. • Paleoclimate trends evaluated from terrestrial Northern Qaidam Basin, NW China • Carbon-isotope, petrological and floral record of Bajocian age Yuqia coals revealed • Isotope value distribution indicate coals largely derived from gymnosperm plants • Variations in long- and short- peat deposition cycles record paleoclimate trends • Similarity of marine geochemical and terrestrial record supports global signal [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Farmers with more secure property rights are more likely to take action to adapt to climate change. • Security of property rights has an impact on managerial decisions concerning operational matters. • Farmer adaption is influenced by government provision of public goods and by the local extent of social capital. • Policy reform to add to the security of land tenure to support adaptation to climate change is important. Improving land rights in China is often considered as an important factor that facilitates farmers' investments in agriculture. However, whether securing land rights is important for farmers' adaptation to changing climate or not has not been addressed in the literature, particularly with respect to management decisions. This paper examines the relationship between land tenure types and farmer adaptation through management decisions in response to extreme weather events in Guangdong Province in China. Based on a household survey of rice farmers, our results show that compared to a normal year with minor weather events farmers with contracted land are more likely to implement adaptation measures in response to extreme weather events than those who have rented their land from the collective and from other farmers. The results suggest that farmers' adaptive behaviour in response to extreme weather events is significantly different from their day-to-day adaptation to ongoing changes in climate. Farmers' adaptive capacity is also positively influenced by age, the public provision of information, by the presence of social capital, and by plot quality. The results of this study highlight the importance of properly defined land rights for the likelihood of adaptation, and thereby increasing agricultural productivity and ensuring food security in the context of a changing climate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an economic means to cope with climate change, carbon trading has become an important measure to reduce carbon emissions in China. It has been over seven years since the initiation of seven pilot carbon markets, but has the implementation achieved the goal of controlling carbon emissions in the region? Are the effects really resulted from the carbon market other than other energy-saving and emission reduction policies? Based on the provincial panel data of China from 2005 to 2016 this paper conducts an empirical study on the emission reduction effects of pilot projects using the Difference-in-differences model (DID). The results show that: (1) The implementation of carbon markets in Beijing, Shanghai and Hubei exhibited a significant inhibitory effect on local carbon emissions, but a promoting effect in Guangdong, and no significant effect was found in Tianjin; (2) In terms of time lag effect, no significant inhibiting effect on the local carbon emissions is found during the first year of opening of Shanghai carbon market but the effect grew significantly from 2015 to 2016; while for Hubei and Beijing, significant effect was shown from the first year of running. Being an experimental program to see whether the carbon trading policy would work in China or not and if it does, under what conditions and settings the policy becomes effective, the 7 pilot markets provide important experiences and lessons to the upcoming nationwide market in China. Based on the empirical result that the carbon trading system in Beijing, Shanghai and Hubei effectively reduced carbon emissions, it is suggested that the national carbon market should actively learn from the experiences of these three pilot markets particularly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Optimization of the urban landscape composition and configuration through initiative planning is important to sustainable development of the drylands of northern China (DNC). Taking the agro-pastoral transitional zone of northern China (APTZNC) as an example, this paper developed an approach of sustainable urban landscape planning (SULP) under the stress of climate change in the DNC. First, we quantify the amount of water resources under the future climate change impacts (CCI). Then, we adjust the urban land area based on water resources carrying capacity constraints. Finally, we use the LUSD-urban (Land Use Scenario Dynamics-urban) model to adjust the configuration of the urban landscape to avoid occupying important natural habitats and corridors, prime croplands, and floodplains. We find that the SULP can effectively mitigate the comprehensive effects of regional urban landscape dynamics on water resources, food security, ecological security, and flood risks. By performing the SULP, prime croplands, floodplains, and important natural habitats and corridors occupied by urban land will decrease by 2,187 km2, 750 km2, and 130 km2, respectively, during the period of 2015–2050 in the APTZNC. We also find that the proposed approach can effectively manage the impacts of climate change on water resource capacity and reduce water stress of the entire APTZNC and its sub-regions. Thus, the proposed SULP approach and the experiences from the case study in the APTZNC are helpful for guiding urban landscape planning to achieve sustainable development of cities in the DNC and even in the drylands around the world. • Sustainable urban landscape planning under the stress of climate change was performed. • Urban land area was adjusted based on water resources carrying capacity constraints. • Urban landscape configuration was adjusted to avoid occupying important areas. • The planning can mitigate the comprehensive effects of urban landscape dynamics. • Addressing the climate change impacts should be incorporated into urban landscape planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper looks at the current state of multilateral development banks (MDBs) for climate change measures and the funding status of those invested in mitigation technology in order to briefly review the current outcome of the technology transfer and financial support. In other words, the aim of this study is to collect and analyze information about the current status of total investment in the field of technology for mitigating GHGs (Greenhouse Gases) from MDBs and identify implications of the status. In this study, a screening technique has been used three times to make a database for project information in the field of mitigation of climate change. So far, based on the finalized DB (Database), mitigation technology projects supported by MDBs have been investigated; based on the result, a connected analysis has been conducted between MDBs, mitigation technology, and countries. According to the derived current status, project support in renewable energy and energy demand areas turned out to be the highest at 75% of the entire mitigation technology. Rather than the renewable energy and energy demand areas where climate technology projects have frequently been performed throughout the world, it was confirmed that long-term climate technology projects for GHG fixation were being performed. According to the results of comparison and analysis of countries with high GHG emissions and their centrality, centrality turned out to be high in the field of GHG fixation in China, the country with the highest GHG emissions. This seems to indicate that countries emitting a substantial amount of GHGs will invest more on projects in the field of GHG fixation as well as on projects on renewable energy. Thus, this study is expected to contribute to understanding the trends of climate technology projects for coping with climate change and using them in establishing future policies on climate technology. In addition, it is expected to be used as a reference for countries with insufficient investment in climate technology despite the high Climate Risk Index (CRI). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This study reviews and lists all Chinese papers on Devonian miospores. • The Late Devonian miospore diversity was greatly overestimated. • The rise of land plants and the oxygenation event are discussed. • The spore diversity is affected by both climate and sea-level changes. The microfossil-based pattern of the Devonian land plants of China is revised and discussed based on a new, comprehensive dataset. This dataset compiles the chronostratigraphical distribution of 1677 species belonging to 190 genera of spores and pollen from the primary literature, which covers the history of fossil Chinese terrestrial palynofloras. From this, we describe the patterns and biodiversity dynamics using both range-based and sample-based data to illustrate the main fluctuations of Devonian taxonomic richness, including rarefaction by filtering out uneven sampling. Results show that the apparent terrestrial palynofloral diversity of China increases progressively from the Early to Middle Devonian, with a genuine Givetian peak followed by a plateau persisting during the Late Devonian. Results further suggest that sampling effects may strongly influence the perception of biodiversity trends in China, as well as that the observed Late Devonian taxonomic diversification may have been greatly overestimated. Compiled evidence is discussed in the light of the global evolution of marine-terrestrial ecosystems. We hypothesize that the rise of Devonian floras may have played a remarkable role in an oceanic oxygenation event during this Period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trend detection in hydro-climatological time series is a prime task under the context of climate changes. Rainfall is a key component of the water cycle and its variability can profoundly influence agriculture, ecosystems and water resource management. In this paper, an innovative trend analysis (ITA) method with a significant test is used for rainfall trend detection at 14 stations in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) during 1961–2016. The trends are separately evaluated for low (<10th percentile), medium (10th–90th percentile) and high (>90th percentile) rainfall at the annual and seasonal scales. The slope and significance of the rainfall trends derived from the ITA method are compared with those from the classical trend analysis methods Theil-Sen approach and Mann-Kendall test, respectively. The ITA shows significant increasing trends at the 99% confidence level in annual rainfall at all stations. While the same significant increasing trends are identified for summer and winter, decreasing trends dominate in spring and autumn. Contrasting trends are found for extreme rainfall with strong increasing trends in high rainfall in summer and winter and decreasing trends in low rainfall in spring and autumn. The results of the ITA confirmed by the classical trend analysis methods call for more attention to the risk management of flood in extreme seasons and drought in transitional seasons across the YRD region. • Trends analysis of rainfall across the Yangtze River Delta is performed by the innovative trend analysis (ITA) method. • Separate trends in low, medium and high rainfall are quantitatively calculated based on the ITA method. • Some advantages of the ITA method to classical trend methods (Mann-Kendall test and Theil-Sen approach) are presented. • High rainfall in summer showed significant increase while low rainfall in spring and autumn exhibited decrease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Terrestrial ecosystems have received considerable attention as a significant sink for organic carbon at regional to global scales. Previous studies were focused on assessment and quantification of carbon sinks for one ecotype, and few have worked on the interconnection of terrestrial sinks. In this paper, we synthesized the data from China's second national soil survey and direct measurements from 54 lakes. Meanwhile, we investigated the controlling factors of carbon accumulation dynamics in soils and lakes. Results showed varied spatial distribution of soil and lake organic carbon in different regions, and three storage modes were found. The storage mode of watershed collection was observed in the region of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, while the northeast China and Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau revealed another storage mode of autochthonous deposition, and the mode of human activities affection was represented by the East Plain and Mongolia-Xinjiang Plateau. The spatial difference throughout China was regulated by various climate patterns, geological conditions and anthropogenic interference. Our results provide insights into carbon storage modes in various regions, and also inform strategies for enhancing global carbon sequestration and future mitigation policies towards global climate change. • Climate, topography and human activity regulate regional soil and lake carbon storage. • Three carbon storage modes based on relationship between soil and lake carbon. • Suggestions to enhance carbon sequestration through soil and lake management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biomass power is one of the most important renewable energy sources in China. In order to provide a reference for China's biomass power planning, this paper builds a power sector-planning model using the Long-range Energy Alternatives Planning System (LEAP). The results show that in the base scenario, the installed capacity of agricultural and forestry residues, municipal solid waste and biogas will increase to 22350 MW, 21150 MW, and 4900 MW, respectively by 2030. From the point of view of total volume, biomass supply is not a constraining factor for biomass power source. However, there are some social and economic factors that impede the development of the biomass power industry, some of which may not be addressed in the short term. Therefore, the development of the biomass power industry in China is a long-term process. Some policy suggestions were proposed, including reasonable planning and more subsidies for biomass supply value chain. • An optimal power-planning model focused on bio-energy in China was developed. • Agricultural and forestry power, waste power and biogas power were all analyzed. • Social and economic factors that impede biomass power were investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The rainfall-runoff relationship has changed under climate change and human activities in the TRH region. • The impacts climate indicators of rainfall-runoff ratio in the sub-basins of TRH region were different. • The contribution rates of human activity in the YRB were a little higher than that in the YARB. Identifying the impact of climate change and human activities on rainfall-runoff relationship in the Three-River Headwaters (TRH) region is essential for water source conservation, ecological security, and biodiversity maintenance of China and East Asia. In this paper, the runoff-rainfall ratio was used as the index of rainfall-runoff relationship. Different methods were employed to identify the impact indicators and quantitative assessment of rainfall-runoff relationship from 1957 to 2016. The results are the following: (1) the rainfall-runoff relationship has changed in the source regions of Yangtze River basin (YARB) and Yellow River (YRB), and runoff-rainfall ratio has increased by 2.9% and decreased by 3.2%, respectively; (2) the main climate indicators of runoff-rainfall ratio were rainfall, potential evaporation and sunshine hours in the YARB, and rainfall, potential evaporation and temperature in the YRB; (3) the contribution rates of human activity in the YRB were a little higher than that in the YARB, and the contribution rates of climate change and human activity were 90.9% and 9.1% in the YARB and 42.9% and 57.1% in the YRB. The results can provide invaluable information for managing water resources and taking ecological protection measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The escalation of risks associated with environmental and climatic aspects has accelerated the introduction of voluntary personal carbon trading (PCT), a policy instrument for promotion and facilitation of low-carbon behavior in the domestic sector. This paper examines participants' motivation in the Guangdong pilot project, which aims to develop the first voluntary PCT scheme (Carbon Generalized System of Preferences, CGSP) in China to reduce the domestic sector's emissions and increase the liquidity of the Guangdong pilot emission trading scheme. The CGSP acceptance model is based on the technology acceptance model and explores the drivers of the public's participation willingness (PW) in the CGSP scheme. Further, the structural equation model has been adopted to explore the influence paths of each driver by using survey data (N = 1190) collected from Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China. The empirical results demonstrated that the strong and direct drivers are associated with the institutional technical environment, perceived usefulness and participation risk. However, other drivers affect PW through the mediation effect of perceived usefulness. Notably, implementation cost had no significant effect on PW. • An innovative voluntary personal carbon trading scheme in China was introduced. • A conceptual model was proposed to study the determinants of public acceptance. • Structural equation model was used to study the influence path of each determinant. • Both the direct and indirect paths of each determinant have been analyzed in depth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pyrolysis is considered to be an effective technology that not only provides renewable energy but also mitigates climate change. Biochar, one by-product of pyrolysis, can be utilized in multiple ways by different biochar applications, which could result in considerable changes in renewable energy production and carbon sequestration. In existing literature, however, the economic and environmental benefits of pyrolysis and biochar applications are rately discussed, thus, a thorough investigation on conjunctive applications of pyrolysis and biochar should be conducted. This study (1) reviews the pyrolysis outputs from various inputs such as energy crops, crop residuals, animal manures, municipal solid wastes, and sewer sludge; (2) discusses the economic and environmental consequences from pyrolysis and biochar applications through the investigation of a lifecycle assessment; and (3) illustrates the potential climate-induced impacts on agriculture and stability of feedstock supply. To do this, this paper adopts a sector-wide model to compare the effectiveness and efficiency of pyrolysis and biochar applications with and without impacts of climate change for a specific region as a case study; and addresses the influential factors that potentially affect the large-scale development of pyrolysis. The results show that, in the absence of climate change impacts, conjunctive applications of pyrolysis and biochar can reduce more than 2.69 million tons of CO 2 emission and generate electricity of 3,962 MWh annually. In the cases where climate-induced impacts do have influences on crop yields, transitions among pyrolysis technologies and agricultural practice would occur. Under such a circumstance, net electricity generation and emission reduction would decrease by 1.72% and 3.19%, respectively. Thus,taking potential climate change impacts into account is necessary to avoid considerable deviations from the target. • Various organic feedstocks and pyrolysis technologies are reviewed and discussed. • Pyrolysis and biochar applications improve sustainable energy and social development. • Climate-induced impacts are assessed to understand uncertainty. • Pyrolysis and biochar efficiency are introduced in the face of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Near-surface temperature records show that China warmed by about 0.8 °C from 1950 to 2010. However, there exists an ongoing debate about whether this warming might have been partially due to urbanization bias. In fact, homogenization approaches may be inefficient in densely populated provinces that have experienced a significant urban development since the 1940s. This paper aims to complement previous research on the topic by showing that an alternative approach based on the analysis of the divergence between the minimum (Tmin) and maximum (Tmax) near-surface temperature records since the 1940s could be useful to clarify the issue because urban heat island (UHI) effects stress the warming of nocturnal temperatures more than the diurnal ones. Then, the significance of the divergence observed in the data could be evaluated against the expectations produced by the CMIP5 general circulation model simulations. From 1945–1954 to 2005–2014, on average and over China, these models predict that Tmin had to warm 0.19 ± 0.06 °C more than Tmax. However, during the same period, the climatic records show that Tmin warmed 0.83 ± 0.15 °C more than Tmax. A similar analysis demonstrates that the effect is more pronounced during the colder months from November–April than during the warmer ones from May to October. A comparison versus China urbanization records demonstrates that the regions characterized by a large Tmin-Tmax divergence are also the most densely populated ones, such as north-east China, that have experienced a diffused and fast urbanization since the 1940s. The results are significant and may indicate the presence of a substantial uncorrected urbanization bias in the Chinese climate records. Under the hypothesis that Tmax is a better metric for studying climatic changes than Tmean or Tmin, we conclude that about 50% of the recorded warming of China since the 1940s could be due to uncorrected urbanization bias. In addition, we also find that the Tmax record from May to October over China shows the 1940s and the 2000s equally warm, in contrast to the 1 °C warming predicted by the CMIP5 models. • Mean surface temperature in China has warmed by 0.8 °C since 1950. • Atmospheric boundary layer physics predicts higher UHI warming during night. • The divergence between Tmin and Tmax is used to detect urbanization biases. • The China regions with the strongest Tmin-Tmax divergence are also the most populated. • Thus, the temperature warming in China is partially due to UHI biases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examining the effects of climate change on spring maize, and its suitability under dynamic cultivation patterns, will aid strategic decision-making for future agricultural adaptation. This paper investigates the climate suitability of spring maize, based on daily data from 50 meteorological stations, and statistics on maize yield and area at the county level in Jilin Province, China, between 1986 and 2015. Based on a significant correlation between the cultivation patterns indicator ≥10 °C accumulated temperature (AAT10) and the average yield (R2 = 0.503), the yield data are used to determine suitable thresholds for meteorological factors under the dynamic cultivation pattern, and a fuzzy fitness approach is used to evaluate the climate suitability. The results showed a good agreement between suitability estimates and scaled observed yields (average d = 0.705). Moreover, good consistency between cultivation patterns, climate suitability and yield show that the late-maturing varieties of maize have gradually moved northward and eastward, and the areas of high suitability and high yield have gradually expanded eastward. In addition, drought and chilling hazard factors limit the suitability of climate resources, especially in the eastern and western regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP) and rain-use efficiency (RUE) are important indicators in assessing the response of ecosystems to climate change. In this paper, the Changtang Plateau in the Tibetan Autonomous Region was selected as the study area to analyze the spatial and temporal changes of ANPP and RUE in grassland communities and their response to climate change. The results showed the following:(1) The spatial pattern of ANPP was closely related to rainfall on the Changtang Plateau. The average ANPP over the past 15 years increased gradually from the arid west to the humid east. A consistent pattern was exhibited in different grassland types and climate zones. (2) The RUE was higher at the east and west edges of the Changtang Plateau, especially in the arid west, but was lower in the center. From the perspective of different climatic zones, the average RUE in the southern Tibetan semiarid climate zone and the Ngari arid climate zone was significantly higher than that in other climate zones. However, the average RUE in different grassland types only varied from 0.07 to 0.09 g·m−2·mm−1. The spatial variation in RUE was more distinct in different climatic zones than in different grassland types. (3) Climate change influenced the interannual variation of ANPP and RUE, but the response of ANPP to rainfall showed a significant lag. The interannual change in RUE was negatively correlated with changes in precipitation. (4) In general, a greater area showed a significant increase rather than a decrease in ANPP on the Changtang Plateau, which meant that the grassland condition is improving. The temporal variation patterns of ANPP and RUE in different climate zones were consistent with the overall patterns on the Changtang Plateau, while the variation was not significant in different grassland types. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Air pollution caused by biomass burning has been a major concern over east China in recent decades. The distinct radiative effects of biomass burning aerosol due to its strong absorption also bring great uncertainty to the regional climate change. Therefore, it is urgent to investigate the spatial, temporal and vertical distribution of biomass burning aerosols over eastern China. In this paper, machine learning and multi-threshold method were used to identify biomass burning aerosol. We used a random forests model to identify biomass burning aerosols based on multi-source data includes Himawari-8 with high temporal resolution. The validated method would provide a basis for the study of aerosol radiation effect in China. This study is also useful to monitor smoke pollution in eastern China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human activities and climate change are two key factors influencing the variation of the total amount of available surface and groundwater, hereafter termed water resources. Quantitatively separating their impacts remains a challenge. To this end, we used time-varying Budyko-type equations and a hierarchical Bayesian model in this paper to separate their impacts in 31 provincial-level divisions of China. The time-varying Budyko-type equations treat the Budyko equation parameter w as a variable, which depends on human activities (represented by per capita gross regional production) and climate change (represented by temperature and precipitation). The hierarchical model quantifies the uncertainty of parameters and the interrelation between covariates across regions in China. The results show that the time-varying Budyko-type equation can improve the fitting capability for water resources in China. The hierarchical Bayesian model, which considered spatial dependence, reduced the uncertainty of the parameters compared to spatially independent counterparts. For most regions of China, human activities reduce water resources while climate change increases them. Southeastern China is the most influenced area, and its water resources decreased approximately 50 mm because of human activities. This study can provide a basis for water resource management under climate change and human activity constraints in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]