China to boost green shift in cities and villages: ministry

BEIJING -- China will facilitate the green shift in urban and rural construction amid the country's efforts to achieve its carbon neutrality and carbon peaking goals, the country's housing authorities said at a press conference on Thursday.

Efforts will be made to improve the structure and distribution of urban areas, said Zhang Xiaohong, vice minister of housing and urban-rural development, adding that strict restrictions will be imposed on the new construction of skyscrapers.

The ministry will promote the green renovation of existing buildings to improve energy efficiency, and optimize the energy structure for green, low-carbon urban construction, Zhao said.

The country will increase the number of low-carbon villages by promoting the use of renewable energy and optimizing the treatment of rural waste and sewage, he said.

A statistical monitoring system and an evaluation system for urban and rural construction will also be built to monitor dynamic carbon emissions and evaluate the green transformation of construction, he said.

China issued a guideline in October underpinning green development in urban and rural areas, with the aim of making substantial progress on the green transformation of construction and solidly advancing carbon reduction by 2025.