The impact of unmanned aerial vehicle applications on agricultural carbon emission

Agricultural carbon emissions constitute a major contributor to global warming, yet the specific impact of drone technology on such emissions remains unclear. This study attempts to fill this research gap. Taking agricultural drones as the key carrier, this paper constructs a Spatial Autoregressive Model by means of spatial econometric methods based on the panel data of 31 Chinese provinces spanning from 2014 to 2023. It empirically examines the impact of agricultural drones on agricultural carbon emission intensity and its spatial spillover effects, while also analyzing the synergistic effect between agricultural drones and traditional agricultural mechanization. The results show that the application of agricultural drones significantly reduces the agricultural carbon emission intensity of both local and adjacent areas. However, there exists a "synergistic paradox" between agricultural drones and traditional agricultural mechanization-their combined application will instead increase agricultural carbon emission intensity. On this basis, this paper puts forward policy recommendations including advancing the localization of drone technology, implementing "policy linkage" to guide the electrification of agricultural machinery, and strengthening the orientation of green R&D. These measures are designed to fully unlock the agricultural emission reduction benefits of drone technology and promote the coordinated development of low-altitude technology and green agriculture.