Thought we’d share with you an article written by Audrea Laffely, a member of the Sustainnovation Consulting Team
During late May 2009, I traveled to China with nineteen other students from the Simmons School of Management under the guidance of Dr. Teresa Nelson and Dr. Susan Duffy, to study sustainable business in emerging global markets. My focus was to investigate developing government plans within Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Beijing in terms of energy security and energy efficiency targets. China is already the world’s largest emitter of carbon dioxide, and its decisions in the next few years will have an enormous impact on the world’s ability to prevent dangerous climate change. China’s emissions are increasing rapidly, faster than most people predicted just six years ago when China’s carbon emissions were still about 42 percent those of the United States, and their carbon emissions are predicted to continue to increase in the future as their economy continues to develop. [i]
According to James Hansen, of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the first scientist to warn about global warming more than two decades ago, “If humanity wishes to preserve a planet similar to that on which civilization developed and to which life on Earth is adapted, paleoclimate evidence and ongoing climate change suggest that carbon dioxide will need to be reduced from its current 385 parts per million to at most 350 parts per million.” [ii] If China does not shift in the near future to a new generation of environmentally friendly technology, there may be no hope for the world’s climate. So my quest throughout my travels was (1) to explore China’s long-standing problem with energy, (2) to see if there was tangible proof that China is actually putting renewable energy on the forefront of its governmental policies, and (3) to investigate whether or not renewable energy technology was evident in the three cities that I visited.
CHINA’S DEPENDENCY ON COAL
In 2007, eighty-two percent of China’s energy supply came from coal-fired power plants, which equals an estimated 1.9 billion tons per year. Couple that figure with the fact that a new coal-fired electricity plant is built every seven to ten days, and we have a serious problem. [iii] Coal plants generate a massive amount of pollution, and 16 of the 20 most polluted cities in the world are in China. This pollution is thought to cause an estimated 400,000 premature deaths a year. When I arrived in Beijing, my allergies immediately acted up, likely due to the tremendous amount of pollution visible in the pervasive thick smog. On the other hand, during the time of our visit, Beijing was said to have experienced its best air quality in over a decade. Environmental protection experts have attributed this marked improvement of air quality to measures that were taken during the Beijing 2008 Olympic games. [iv]
GROWING ENERGY CONSUMPTION
China currently accounts for more than half of the G5 countries’ (Brazil, China, India, Mexico, and South Africa) global carbon emissions, and the National Energy Strategy Policy (2003) states that China aims to quadruple its GDP by 2020 while doubling energy consumption. [v]To meet this ambitious goal, China will have to expand its efforts in all areas of energy production, including doubling its coal and large-scale hydropower capacity and quadrupling its nuclear capacity. The Chinese government is now looking for more sustainable energy sources and is putting a large amount of money into the development and application of renewable energy, with an estimated 440 billion dollars stimulus package to expand its renewable energy use.[vi] The development of renewable energy in China could be viewed as a long-term measure to ensure energy security and create a low-carbon era of sustained economic growth in China.
While traveling throughout China, I noticed a great many houses with solar powered water heaters on their roofs. So some citizens are clearly taking some action, if even it is just for the savings and conservation they receive from these energy savers. While in Shanghai, we visited the Coca Cola University’s Center for Global Innovation, located in the Minhang District, which is the district’s first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified building. During the presentation, I asked if the company had received government incentives to assist in the procurement of LEED certification, which can often incur steep costs for the company seeking certification. I was told that they did not receive subsidy money to assist in the procurement or construction process, but that the government does look favorably upon companies that take the initiative to build sustainable facilities that are energy efficient.
SO WHAT IS THE GOVERNMENT DOING IN REGARDS TO RENEWABLE ENERGY?
As mentioned above, many believe that the government’s stimulus plan is spurring renewable energy infrastructure at a rapid rate. In fact, the country’s wind, biomass, and solar industries are moving at an impressive pace — officials are planning to generate roughly 120,000 megawatts (MW) from renewable resources by 2020. [vii]Currently, the Chinese government is in the process of drafting the Alternative Energy Revitalization Plan, which focuses on a wind power capacity goal more than triple the goal announced in 2007.The plan also calls for non-hydropower renewable energy to increase to at least 6% of non-renewable energy production in China by 2020. Presently non-hydropower renewable energy accounts for just 1.5% of non-renewable energy output in China. According to the World Watch Institute, China’s renewable energy targets for 2020 could create a market worth around 100 billion dollars and the Chinese will spend in excess of 3 trillion Yuan RMB [approx. US $462 billion] on renewable energy through 2020. [viii]
THE OUTLOOK
There is no question that the U.S. and China share considerable responsibility for the current global environmental situation. On the international stage, the Chinese government has ratified the Kyoto Protocol, which sets binding targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. However, Chinese officials have refused any of the limits on carbon emissions that have been accepted by other industrialized countries, claiming that such commitments would obstruct national development. Many Chinese government officials have said that it is up to developed countries like the United States to take the first steps in reducing carbon emissions. In fact, that is exactly what may happen, with the recent passage of the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES), also known as the Waxman-Markey Bill. The passing of ACES advances an aggressive cap-and-trade global warming reduction plan designed to reduce economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions 17 percent by 2020.[ix] It also includes new renewable requirements for utilities, studies and incentives regarding new carbon capture, grants for green jobs, and much more. My hope is that China will look at the United States’ new policies as benchmarks for their own energy policies and that these two nations can work together to solve these formidable challenges.
[i]
Zeppezauer, Dr. Christian. “Holy Smoke! China is the World’s Leading Host for Clean Development Mecanism Projects.” Business Forum China , March-April 2009.
[ii] Understanding 350 . www.350.org (accessed 15 2009, June).
[iii] Tulloch, James. Allianz.com. World Wildlife Foundation . 1 2009, July. http://knowledge.allianz.com/en/globalissues/climate_change/top_climate_stories/scorecards09_interview (accessed July 2, 2009).
[iv] Zhang, Micheal. China’s Pollution Reduction Targets: revisiting statistics for early 2008. Feb 10, 2009. www.greenlaw.org (accessed June 5, 2009).
[v] Economist, The. “A Green Revolution .” The Economist, May 2009, 2009.
[vi] AFP. China plans 440-bln dlr stimulus for green energy. 24 2009, May. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5i7wWkoCABy_Y7poh8ym0TI7CjJjA (accessed 28 2009, May ).
[vii] Schwartz, Lou. Are the Chinese Working To Curb Their Emissions? 30 2009, June. www.renewableendergyworld.com (accessed 1 2009, July ).
[viii] Schwartz, Lou. Are the Chinese Working To Curb Their Emissions? 30 2009, June. www.renewableendergyworld.com (accessed 1 2009, July ).
[ix] Sheppard, Kate. Grist.Org. June 3, 2009. http://www.grist.org/ (accessed June 15, 2009).
