China To Cut Emissions In 2011 With Drastic Action

BEIJING — China said Friday it would cut emissions this year by rejecting construction projects that pollute too much and developing new technologies that curb greenhouse gases.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection set a target to cut emissions of major pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, ammonia nitrogen and nitrogen oxide by 1.5 percent in 2011 compared to last year, a report on the ministry's website said.

China is the world's largest polluter, with energy demands growing sharply every year. The consumption boom reflects the country's transformation from a nation of subsistence farmers to one of workers increasingly trading bicycles for cars and buying energy-hungry home electronics.

Environmental Protection Minister Zhou Shengxian said in the report that construction projects that fail to meet environmental standards will not be approved or suspended.

New technologies, such as treatment plants for waste recycling and wastewater treatment, are also in development, Zhou said. Other measures include developing technology to remove sulfur, nitrogen and other polluting materials from industrial manufacturing.

It wasn't clear how the technologies being developed would be applied this year.

The report said more efforts will be made to control vehicle emissions and heavy-polluting industries such as paper-making, textiles, leather and chemical plants, but did not give any details.

In international climate change talks, Beijing has long said developed nations should make bigger cuts, reflecting their larger historical contribution to greenhouse gases. China also has resisted international pressure for it to take a larger role in curbing greenhouse gas emissions.

China's total 2009 energy consumption, including sources ranging from oil and coal to wind and solar power, was equal to 2.265 billion tons of oil, compared with 2.169 billion tons used by the United States, the Paris-based International Energy Agency said last year.

Comments

[bcgd]

06:21 PM on 01/18/2011

Communism is a sociopolitical movement that aims for a classless and stateless society structured upon common ownership of the means of production, free access to articles of consumption, and the end of wage labour and private property in the means of production and real estate.

Sure the globalization of this planet will consume all idealogies eventually, but Marx believed in the common wealth through access to materials. Not a monitary system like Capitalism. It took them the 90's and most of 00's but they are getting to work while stalling with their tactics at the g20 meetings. They are getting ahead of the curve (by setting it) and curbing an addiction to finite materials. America is simply procrastinating and hoping 300million people will pay the price of a failing economy yet again with their jobs, money livleyhood and health.

Its really funny we cant get anything done to help or consumption when we are the #2 polluter with a 1/3 the population of china. It would suck if they make $10T in a decade and decide to open a draft...cause we owe them and the dont really need it but can hold it over our heads for a generation or 2 or 10. Oh and we set a new record for exporting to THEM.

[dragonmaster]

03:46 PM on 01/17/2011

China still opens a coal fired plant nearly once a week- so this tiny effort while a step forward does little to reduce C02.

CO2 is still rising nearly 2.5ppm a year- and that will increase to 3ppm by the latter part of this decade. Making a 2 degree rise in global temperatures a sure thing, and a 3 degree rise all but inevitable now.

[Christopher Hendrickson]

04:28 PM on 01/18/2011

It's still more then we have done, and are likely to do in the next decade...

[tabatha]

12:24 PM on 01/16/2011

China's bad air pollutes the entire Asian area and wafts clear across the Pacific to California and other parts.

In Hong Kong, southern China, it's often difficult to see across the street on a clear day due to the smog.

How many new coal plants come online there each week?

(to say nothing of our own in Texas and other areas.....)

We're stuck on this planet at the margins of our own solar system and galaxy, with vastly unconquerable distances to any other areas and yet look how we, humans, destroy our home and the other species who inhabit it.

[Kenz300]

12:24 PM on 01/16/2011

China is investing heavily in wind, solar and biofuels production.

They have doubled wind capacity in each of the last 4 years and that capacity continues
to grow.

They are now making a big bet on electric vehicles.

They are investing heavily in what they believe will be the technologies of the future.

[Denise Gonzalez]

12:13 PM on 01/16/2011

The only reason that China has higher amount of pollution than the US is that most of our products are maufactured there. When the corporations start to influence Chinese government the way they do here or threaten to take away their business they will roll back such efforts.

[bcgd]

06:14 PM on 01/18/2011

Communism is a sociopolitical movement that aims for a classless and stateless society structured upon common ownership of the means of production, free access to articles of consumption, and the end of wage labour and private property in the means of production and real estate.

Kinda nipps that in the but, sure the globalization of this planet will consume all idealogies eventually, but Marx believed in the common wealth through access to materials. Not a monitary system like Capitalism. It took them the 90's and most of 00's but they are stalling with their tactics at the g20 meetings and whatnot. They are getting ahead of the curve (by setting it) and curbing an addiction to finite materials. America is simply procrastinating and hoping 300million people will pay the price of a failing economy yet again with their jobs, money livleyhood and health.

[Mildmannered]

01:12 AM on 01/16/2011

build no more dirty coal plants, China -- that is all I ask

[csuciadams]

08:38 PM on 01/15/2011

This doesn't seem "drastic" of them to do, but it is a step in the right direction.

[sonofsamphm1c]

06:10 PM on 01/15/2011

Several months ago I commented that China was more likely than the United States to act on reducing GHGs due to China's higher average IQ.

Since then the United States has elected a gaggle of representatives who do not believe science. They think they can legislate physics out of existence.

See what I meant?

[PersonFromEarth]

10:22 AM on 01/16/2011

"China's higher average IQ"

Not sure where you pulled that statistic from, although my guess is you can't be that smart if you're making a statement like that.

If Chinese people have higher average IQ, you'd have to wonder why so many of them are living in the US, Canada, the West, etc.

[sonofsamphm1c]

01:37 PM on 01/16/2011

China has an estimated average IQ of 100. The United States, bogged down by the red states, has an average IQ of 98.

[rikster]

05:25 PM on 01/15/2011

that..is unbelievable....!

[Corners]

01:13 PM on 01/15/2011

This about face doesn't match the rhetoric that America go first so im still on the fence.

[Eric in Ayden]

08:57 AM on 01/15/2011

China 1 GOP Deniers 0

[daultman463]

12:19 PM on 01/15/2011

If you believe what the chinese are telling you then you are not as smart as you think you are my friend.

[Blodo]

01:17 PM on 01/15/2011

No one's as smart as they think they are. But if it's a choice between betting on China's central environmental planning working in conjunction with their booming capitalist economy and aided by trillions in government cash vs the US right's 1950s vintage zero control economy and utter disdain for environmental considerations, aided by trillions of debt....I think the cautious money would be on the former.

[mothergrace]

02:04 PM on 01/15/2011

Oh I believe it. Think about a country with a population the size of China taking on all comers for jobs and production. Add to that no environmental laws to curb any type of pollution. Some cities are literally choking.

I think it is just a matter of self-defense.

[unionave]

05:47 AM on 01/15/2011

I have often wondered why the E85 models are not the most popular models ordered in America . Auto buyers ordering more of the E85 models could save our bees and birds and reduce our need to drill in the debated parts of Alaska . The manufacturers specs on the E10 , which is the present popular model , and the E85 are the same in mileage and power and many filling stations sell the E85 mix . It is a great pollution cutter .

[PenGoddess]

09:51 AM on 01/15/2011

I work for a large University's physical plant and the majority of our fleet can take E85 or unleaded. We also work collaboratively with student groups experimenting with biofuel alternatives. They have been recycling cooking oil from the residence hall dining rooms and processing it. We have been using it in a mix for our heavy trucks and equipment for over a year now.

We have also signed on to a major climate action plan with some fairly aggressive goals regarding our power plant and alternative energy sources. What has impressed me the most is the extent of the student involvement. They are the ones pushing things forward and pushing back when the local community has negative excuses for not doing anything. They are walking the walk -they brought fewer cars to school this year and the use of mass transit and a short-term car rental program have increased dramatically. They are working hard to build awareness and promote sustainability. It has been really fun and exciting to be part of, even peripherally. I hope it catches on everywhere. 

[unionave]

01:22 PM on 01/15/2011

F&F ! Beautiful . It is great to know someone is trying to dig us out of this quagmire of big oil and big food processing profits which is killing our birds and bees . To control fuel pricing BP and other giants are buying up large positions in ethanol production around the world . Extra heavy in Brazil where they have been using E25 for many years . Here in the U.S. most of the ethanol comes from corn because the giants ADM and ConAgra can push food prices up . Some Universities have shown that switch grass can produce more ethanol per acre but big oil produces a high per cent of the E10 we use in our autos and are against the use of other ethanol producers product . Something not talked about is the Indie 500 autos all use 100% ethanol . Our EPA has been dragging their heels on approving E15 here mainly because of demands by big oil but their claims of more investigation are unfounded because we already have E85 on the road . The energy difference to produce one gallon of gasoline and one gallon of ethanol is enormous . And the ethanol produced using natural gas is almost a non polluter compared to gasoline , which fills the surrounding air with very toxic pollutants . That is why autos using ethanol last longer and so do human lungs .

[rikster]

05:26 PM on 01/15/2011

because the oil Sheiks have a say in it ....

[unionave]

06:08 PM on 01/15/2011

F&F !

[socialtalker]

03:42 AM on 01/15/2011

as long as our politicians are brought and paid for by powerful lobbies that represent the status quo like the oil companies, we wont be leaders in the field of green tech. not only will our green tech stay underfunded, but we will continue to send armies into battle for oil fields as well until the country is finnally crushed with debt. i live in detroit, and i saw the auto companies for years/decades battle and win against the push for more fuel efficient cars. they kept building the gas guzzlers, well we know what happened.

[PenGoddess]

10:02 AM on 01/15/2011

I think the big oil companies are starting to see the light. I mean, who better than they know how much oil is there and how long it will last.  BP has invested heavily in University alternative fuels research initiatives. And while they are not very concerned with the environmental impacts of what they are currently doing, they do seem to be looking towards the day when they can no longer do it.

There are  many big corps talking the energy conservation/sustainability talk (Ecomagination, for one!). It will be interesting to see if they actually start walking.  Someone is going to figure out how to get the job done (maybe too late, but they will do it) and the big boys don't want to lose control. They will figure out a way to exploit it. Plus, in a way China has thrown down the gauntlet - they can't let the commies do better than them or even give the impression they are. Could get interesting...

[Corners]

01:15 PM on 01/15/2011

Didn't bp win a reward for pretending to be green and all those "green commercials stating they spend tons of cash(think it was less then 1% or something) on alternative clean fuels. Was mostly spin and most people believed including myself untill the oil spill.

[Mikeeee]

02:45 AM on 01/15/2011

China's total 2009 energy consumption, including sources ranging from oil and coal to wind and solar power, was equal to 2.265 billion tons of oil, compared with 2.169 billion tons used by the United States.
1 billion+ people, 300+ people. Let's all do the math on that shall we?

[Jimmy2010]

10:07 PM on 01/15/2011

Exactly, each American consumes natural resources 4 times more than one China person does.

[DAE]

01:00 AM on 01/15/2011

Read this HP post,( which for some reason is no longer listed on the front page: (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alex-wang/the-warriors-of-qiugang-a_b_808382.html) and watch the documentary at (http://e360.yale.edu/feature/the_warriors_of_qiugang_a_chinese_village_fights_back/2358/). If what is depicted becomes widespread and continues to gain central government sanction there is real hope for a grass roots democratic transformation of Chinese society. There is a grass roots struggle for democratic governance in China using new laws, investigative reportage, NGOs and spontaneous protests. This is affecting all elements of Chinese society. China has surprised us time and again. A true grass roots democratic upsurge in China supported by elements within the government is a real possibility.

[PenGoddess]

10:19 AM on 01/15/2011

Thank you for the links. I read the article, haven't had time for the documentary yet.  It's encouraging for China but reminds me how unfortunate it is that humans are too afraid or complacent or whatever to react strongly until conditions get so bad grave illness and death are the results. And historically, it is when the people cannot take any more and take to the streets that things get done. We must learn to be more proactive in our world. We must not wait to react or it will be too late. But, again. Thanks for the links and fanned!

[HLL]

11:32 AM on 01/15/2011

Great links, DAE. Thanks for posting. Most inspiring. Can this/will this happen in the USA? And all around the world? Hope so. We all need to become "environmental warriors" to save what's left of our beautiful planet. Fav'd from a longtime fan ☮

If you haven't already seen this documentary about the Earth, highly recommend. Click on the upper right hand corner for the full "English" version: http://www.youtube.com/homeproject