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Could China be our ticket out of the climate crisis?

Written by Holly Birkett
Tuesday, 08 December 2009 00:00

The Copenhagen climate change summit has begun, and the Chinese premier Wen Jiabao wants to play an active part in negotiations, pushing for a commitment from both developed and developing countries to dramatically reduce their carbon emissions.

Wait – that’s a bit rich, isn’t it? After all, statistically, China is the biggest emissions villain in the world. But, did you know the country has actually cut its emissions by 47% since 1990, and has big plans for continued reduction?

So can China help us out?

Firstly, maybe we should cut China some slack. After all, it is still a developing country, and has only had 30 years to achieve the 200 years of industrialisation we had in the West.

The Chinese economy is growing at a steady rate of 8%, and will soon overtake Japan as the second biggest economy in the world. China is also home to some of the world’s most populous cities, and, of course, increased development and population lead to more intense consumption of energy.
To meet the demand, China currently relies on its coal resources (the biggest in the world) to provide 70% of its energy – making China the world’s biggest consumer of coal, and the biggest emitter of carbon dioxide from energy consumption.

During the past 25 years of growth, 600 million of China’s people have been pulled above the World Bank’s new poverty line (earning over $1.25 a day). However, 135 million people still live on less than $1 a day, and many villages don’t even have electricity yet.

“Imagine when electricity reaches these villages. Not only are farmers going to be able to dig deeper, but their children are going to be able to watch television for the first time,” said Madam Fu Ying, the Chinese ambassador to the UK, speaking at LSE last week.

“They will see a wonderful world outside the village, and they will dream for better lives. Who are we to tell them that they have no right to a better life? And who are we to tell them that they cannot live like the people in Shanghai and London they see on the television?”

“And why can’t they have an iPod, refrigerators, or even cars – and that’s the human dimension, the challenge.”

This is the dichotomy that binds China – the gargantuan challenge of finding a way to enable 1.3 billion people to increase their standard of living in an environmentally responsible way.

Forecasters predict that China will soon become the biggest nation of car owners in the world. Increased car ownership might be environmentally calamitous, but would benefit the lives of millions.

“The solution,” as Fu Ying says, “is not to stop the market but to develop a better way of using the modern means.”

In other words, technological research and innovation will get us out of this mess – backed up by governmental policy and investment. In the Chinese Government’s recent stimulus package, worth £400 billion, 15% was invested in projects and research to counter climate change.

Low-carbon enterprises and energy conservation projects have become growth sectors in China, and now many UK companies are getting involved. Forty per cent of new clean energy projects in China are partnered with UK companies.

What is more, the environmental revolution in China is being spurred on by the people themselves, thanks to discussion, online and in the media, raising public awareness of green issues.

“People at the bottom level have realised more and more that environmental damage and climate change is hurting the improvement of their livelihood. And people have also realised that improving living standards doesn’t only mean you have a car, it also means you have good air,” Madam Fu Ying said.

Indeed, the environmental damage China has wreaked is becoming palpable in the country. Seventy per cent of China’s rivers are polluted to some degree, and the average temperature has risen by 1.1°C in the past 50 years – higher than the global average.

More frequent bouts of extreme weather conditions have become noticeable in the country too. Last spring, the most severe drought in 50 years hit northern China, affecting 4 million people.

In response, China is becoming alive with new green schemes, such as re-forestation. “Chinese people have really taken tree-planting to heart,” said Madam Fu Ying. To date, the country has planted over 2.6 billion trees – more than any other country.

The Chinese people have also taken to solar power. One in ten Chinese family homes are already solar heated, making China the biggest user of solar energy and photovoltaic generation in the world.

Clean energy sources, such as solar power, have accounted for around 30% of China’s new power capacity in the past nine months – and China is continuing to increase the percentage of these energy sources.

The widespread public support means it is also easier for the Government to pass carbon reduction legislation, despite the fact it might slow GDP growth. China, in its voluntary carbon reduction programme, aims to reduce energy intensity per unit of GDP by 20%, between 2006 and 2010.
And guess what –  they’re well on target.

Coal-dependent China has even managed to reduce its average coal consumption per unit of power by 20%, by shutting down inefficient, polluting power plants and factories.

By 2020 China aims to reduce CO2 emissions per unit of GDP by 40-45%. Non-fossil energy sources are planned to be increased by 15%, and forest coverage by 40 million hectares – that’s one and a half times the size of the UK.

According to the International Energy Agency, if China meets its 2020 target, it will have reduced its CO2 emissions by 1 billion tonnes since 1990.

Climate change, then, is something that developed nations really need to wake up to in the same way that China has.

Although they only account for 20% of the world’s population, developed countries pump 55% of the total emissions into the atmosphere.
For this reason, as Madam Fu Ying points out, “When it comes to emissions, developed countries and developing countries cannot be compared like for like.”

At the summit in Copenhagen, Wen Jiabao will push for an agreement committing developed countries to substantial emission reduction targets, for the second commitment period under the Kyoto protocol. Countries such as the US, who have not signed up, will be urged to formulate their own similar reduction targets.

China will also push developed countries to commit to providing financial and technological support for developing countries who are working within a framework of sustainable development.

“Climate change is a global challenge that can only be resolved through global co-operation,” in the words of Madam Fu Ying.

Likewise, at Copenhagen, China will fight for developing countries’ right to development – but understands better than anybody that development comes at an environmental expense, and developed countries need to wise up and start paying their dues.