Background: With the continuous advancement of global urbanisation, humans have begun to overutilise or improperly utilise the natural resources of bay areas, which has led to a series of ecological and environmental problems. To evaluate the spatial distributions and potential ecological risks of heavy metals in sediments of Shenzhen Bay, China, an analysis of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, and Zn regarding their content, correlation (Pearson coefficient), pollution degree, and potential ecological risks was conducted. Results: The heavy metal contents in the sediments decreased in the order of Zn > Cu > Cr > Pb > As > Cd, with contents of 175.79 mg kg⁻¹, 50.75 mg kg⁻¹, 40.62 mg kg⁻¹, 37.10 mg kg⁻¹, 18.27 mg kg⁻¹, and 0.20 mg kg⁻¹, respectively. The results showed that the overall sediment quality in Shenzhen Bay generally met the China Marine Sediment Quality criteria, and the heavy metal contents were significantly lower than those reported in the same type of bay area worldwide. Furthermore, the order of grade of potential ecological risk of the heavy metals was as follows: As and Cd were found to pose moderate ecological risks, with their potential hazard indices reaching a high level, whereas the potential ecological hazard indices of Cu, Pb, Zn, and Cr were all at relatively low levels. Conclusions: The potential hazard indices of the heavy metals decreased from the inner bay toward the outside. The accumulation and content of the analysed heavy metals in the Shenzhen Bay sediments are mainly controlled by historical land-source pollution and land reclamation projects. This study presents the current state of sediment quality in Shenzhen Bay. The results may assist in the definition of future bay area management measures specifically targeted at monitoring heavy metal contamination.

Global warming has had a profound impact on human life, with animal husbandry being a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and playing a crucial role in the global greenhouse gas budget. Inner Mongolia is a major contributor to these emissions, making it vital to study the link between greenhouse gas emissions and animal husbandry in this region for the purpose of reducing emissions. In this study, the emissions of greenhouse gases (CH₄, N₂O, and CO₂) from livestock and poultry breeding from 2010 to 2020 and the emissions of each city from 2020 were estimated, the emissions characteristics were analysed, and the low carbon emissions reduction technical measures were proposed. The results show that (1) the overall greenhouse gas emissions from 2010 to 2020 in Inner Mongolia showed a fluctuating trend; the main emissions sources were gastrointestinal fermentation and faecal management. The annual average CH₄ emissions were 994,400 ta⁻¹, and the annual average N₂O emissions were 35,100 ta⁻¹. (2) In 2020, the total emissions of each league city were 38.05 million t equivalent of CO₂, and the emissions gradually decreased from east to west, with a significant emissions reduction potential. Based on these findings, this study also proposed technical measures for reducing carbon emissions, offering theoretical support to drive the industrial transformation and upgrading of the livestock industry, and promoting green economic development in Inner Mongolia as part of its carbon peaking and neutrality goals.

To improve household air quality, the Chinese government has launched a number of pilot stove renovation projects, but few studies have explored the impact of the project on people’s perception of and willingness to participate in these renovations; moreover, factors affecting willingness to pay for the project in rural China are not yet clear. We conducted a field measurement and a corresponding door-to-door questionnaire survey using the renovated group and the unrenovated group. The results showed that (1) the stove renovation project could not only reduce PM_2.5 exposure and the excess mortality risk of rural residents, but also (2) improve residents’ risk perception and self-protective willingness. (3) Specifically, the project had a deeper impact on female and low-income residents. (4) Meanwhile, the higher the income and the larger family size, the higher the risk perception and self-protective willingness. (5) Furthermore, willingness to pay for the project was related with residents’ support for the project, benefit from renovation, income, and family size. Our results recommended that stove renovation policies should pay more attention to families with lower income and smaller size.