Weakening synergies in carbon and air pollution co-control necessitate robust structural transitions in China's transportation sector.

ABSTRACT: A fossil fuel-dominated country like China is promoting a policy shift toward synergistic governance integrating climate change mitigation and air quality improvement, especially in the on-road transportation sector. However, the efficacy of current emission control policies in mitigating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and air pollution remains poorly quantified through a synergy-focused lens. Here, we develop an integrated analytical framework incorporating a Synergy Index to evaluate policy performance across GHG abatement and air pollution-related health burden reduction. We find that China's on-road environmental policies reduced GHG emissions by 427 Mt CO₂e and averted 104 000 premature mortalities during 2010-2015, but these gains declined to 278 Mt CO₂e and 72 

SUBMITTER: Qi Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12604017 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature