Temporal and spatial evolution characteristics and decoupling trend of Chinese agricultural carbon emission efficiency

This study investigates the spatio-temporal evolution of agricultural carbon emission efficiency (ACEE) in China and its relationship with agricultural economic growth (AEG). The results indicate several findings: Firstly, between 2012 and 2021, China's agricultural carbon emission efficiency exhibited an upward trend, with the mean value increased from 0.349 to 0.807. Furthermore, the distribution pattern shifted from a dispersed, point-like distribution to an aggregated and continuous distribution. Secondly, the average agricultural carbon emission efficiency in China following a decreasing order: South China, Northwest China, Southwest China, East China, North China, Central China and Northeast China. Thirdly, the relationship between agricultural carbon emission efficiency and the agricultural economy in China has transitioned from weak decoupling to negative decoupling. Based on these findings, this study proposes some recommendations to enhance agricultural carbon emission efficiency and promote its decoupling from agricultural economic growth. These recommendations aim to achieve low-carbon and high-efficiency development of agriculture.