How Does Network Infrastructure Construction Affect Livestock Carbon Emissions?

Against the backdrop of new carbon peak and carbon neutrality targets, China must address livestock carbon emissions (LCEs), which account for the largest proportion of agricultural carbon emissions in China. China has been promoting network infrastructure construction (NIC) for digital transformation. This study explores whether NIC can affect LCEs. To capture the potential effects of NIC, a conceptual framework is constructed originally and its impacts on LCEs are tested empirically through a two-way fixed effect model. The results show that NIC can significantly reduce LCEs. The results hold steady in various robustness checks, and the impacts express heterogeneities across provinces with different LCE levels, NIC levels, and regions. Mechanism analysis reveals that NIC can increase LCEs through the livestock industry scale effect, which is nevertheless outweighed by technological innovation and factor allocation's reduction effects triggered by NIC. Additionally, transportation infrastructure construction serves a moderating role by reinforcing the reduction effect of NIC on LCEs. The conclusions are crucial for advancing the understanding of NIC's potential benefits and policymaking for carbon emissions reduction in China.