1
Return

Global vessel carbon dioxide emission from navigable rivers

delete2026-07-23
delete0
PRE
AI
D
Dawei Lü
D
Di Zhang
S
Shuwu Wang
H
Haotian Wang
Z
Zhiyi Min
X
Xiangyu Li
Y
Yuehan Wu
H
Huang Yu-ming
T
Tengfei Wang *
刘少达 (Shaoda Liu) *
夏星辉 (Xinghui Xia) *
X
Xinping Yan
G
Guibin Jiang
DOI:10.1038/s41558-026-02718-6delete
deleteOriginal
deleteOriginal request for help
deleteShare
deleteSave
Abstract

Abstract

En 中文
Inland water vessels are a substantial but poorly quantified source of transport-sector CO2 emissions. Using approximately 20 billion automatic identification system records and a trajectory completion algorithm, we provide a global high-resolution assessment of inland vessel CO2 emissions. These vessels emitted 164.0 ± 1.58 TgCO2 in 2022, equivalent to 24.7% of global waterborne vessel emissions, despite operating on only 0.4% of the global navigable marine and inland water surface area. Emissions are concentrated within a few hotspot river corridors and exhibit baseline-dependent amplification (2019–2022) together with seasonal variability. These patterns reflect the combined effects of transport demand and hydroclimatic constraints on navigability. Because inland water vessel emissions occur within river corridors where riverine CO2 evasion is also active, they represent an important anthropogenic carbon source and may influence river–atmosphere CO2 exchange. These results provide a basis for improving inland transport emission inventories and informing targeted mitigation strategies under climate change. The magnitude and distribution of CO2 emissions from river transport are poorly constrained. This study finds that global CO2 emissions from inland vessels were about one-quarter of total vessel emissions, and that emissions were concentrated in the Northern Hemisphere, related to economic activity.

Journal

Nature Climate Change cover
Nature Climate Change
IF:
27.1
Papers:
4.3K
Citations:
5.4W

Organization

W
wuhan university of technology
Scholars:
6.0K
Papers: 1.8K
Citations: 0
B
beijing normal university
Scholars:
4.1K
Papers: 1.7K
Citations: 0
C
chinese academy of sciences
Scholars:
54.9W
Papers: 44.5W
Citations: 703
Cited Papers

Cited Papers

Citing Papers

Citing Papers