Performance Evaluation of Energy-Economy-Environment for 30 Provinces in China

Grey relational analysis was applied in this study to identify the key factors influencing the changes in energy-related CO
₂
emission and to explore the dynamic characteristics of energy-environment-economy (3E) system for 30 provinces in China. The result indicates that energy use has the closest relationship with total CO
₂
emission changes, with economic output second. It reveals that the main contributor to CO
₂
emission is coal-dominated energy consumption. Moreover, the performance analysis of 30 provinces shows that the 10 provinces including Tianjin, Hebei, et al., have the ideal 3E system. On the other hand, Fujian, Shandong, Guangxi, Henan and Inner Mongolia, has the worst performance of 3E. Attentions and policy efforts concerning the improvement of energy efficiency and the optimization of energy structure should be put upon these provinces to reduce energy use and CO
₂
emission.