Voices of change

The Fourth China Forum on Environment and Development organized by the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and All-China Environment Federation was held in Beijing recently.

Government officials, scientists and economists discussed the nation's latest technological developments in energy conservation and emissions control at the forum. China Business Weekly is sharing their views and suggestions about how to make the world more energy efficient and environmentally friendly.

Zhou Shengxian, minister of environmental protection

The Green Olympics has left us valuable experience in controlling air pollution. We should maintain our efforts to protect our environmental heritage, and continuously work on environmental protection in the post-Olympics era.

As we successfully improved Beijing's air quality during the Olympic Games, we should have more confidence solving the environmental problems while maintaining economic development.

In order to improve the urban environment, the city must enhance regional cooperation in its plans for preventing and controlling pollution and other public hazards.

We must adapt the comprehensive measures that combine pollution treatment and environmental management.

And we must fully and accurately analyze the features and reasons for the environmental problems, so as to effectively readjust the policies or plans.

And also we should educate citizens to raise their consciousness about environmental protection and encourage them to cultivate environmental ethics.

Chen Jiagui, vice-president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

Our economic growth rate slowed down to 9 percent this year. Our industrial growth rate has also seen a remarkable decrease, indicating slower consumption and a reduction of high polluting factories.

It helps in achieving energy saving and environmental protection targets, but the government's fiscal revenue will also decrease with the slower industrial growth, which means the government may do not have sufficient money to deal with environmental protection.

And also being at the early stage of industrialization, some provinces will unavoidably consume more energy because they have to boost their economies by developing heavy industries. And we also cannot pay the environmental cost while burning increasing amounts of fossil fuels.

So we should pay attention to balancing both economic growth and environmental protection.

I personally prefer that the government take economic incentives to encourage the enterprises to increase energy efficiency and reduce emissions.

Ma Heli, China Representative of United Nations Development Program (UNPC)

Coal consumption still accounts for 70 percent of China's total energy consumption, so we (UNPC) have to find a way to make China's energy consumption structure cleaner, and find the best technology to help China achieve the goal.

China is increasingly turning to clean, alternative solutions to its growing energy demands, such as wind and hydropower. China has already become the world's top dog in harnessing hydropower, and also has large biomass projects in its rural areas.

China has proved that it can make good use of renewable energy, and should make more endeavors in these fields.

When talking about low-carbon emissions economy, it is not only related to technology renovation, but also about adopting new mindsets about lifestyles. UNCP will cooperate with the Chinese government to launch a low-carbon project to educate and inspire people how to lead more energy efficient lives.

Zheng Guoguang, director of China Meteorological Administration (CMA)

China has been very serious in dealing with climate change, in terms of economic restructuring and technological advancement.

China's energy consumption per unit of GDP has dropped 47 percent, saving 800 million tons of standard coal equivalent and reducing 1.8 billion tons of CO2 emissions in 15 years. Coal consumption proportion has dropped to 69.1 percent from 76.2 percent in the 1990s.

China also made huge efforts on developing renewable energies including wind power and solar power. China's wind turbine installed capacity increased 137 percent in 2007 compared with a year ago.

China also encourages afforestation and the protection of forests to mitigate climate change. China has the world's largest areas of forest plantations, accounting for one third of global forest plantations.

Combating global warming is a global responsibility, I have several suggestions to fulfill the responsibility.

First, we should rely on the progress of science and technology and promote the adjustment of our energy and economic structures.

Second, protect the ecological environment and biodiversity, improving their capabilities to adopt to climate change.

Third, step up protection of resources and the environment in nature reserves and more attention should be paid to national ecological demonstration zones.

And combating desertification and restoring ecological systems in those areas should also be emphasized. Last but not the least; use scientific planning of urban areas to increase the green coverage to reduce the heat island effect.

Song Jian, chairman of All-China Environment Federation

The "Green Olympics" has spread its concept into the national consciousness and it will continually change people's attitudes towards production and lifestyles.

Although we have achieved preliminary positive results in energy saving, we still have a long way to go to shake off our polluting burden. China is in the development stage of rapidly promoting industrialization and still practices the extensive production and management methods, so we should pay more attention to how to change the economic model, raise the utilization rate of resources and substantially reduce emissions.

Although China has become a big emissions producer, compared with developed countries that make up 13 percent of the world population and produce over half the CO2 emissions, China has a small per capita carbon footprint by international standards.

In that situation, we need new concept, new policy, and we need developed countries helping developing countries with technology transfers.

Business Weekly News

(China Daily 11/03/2008 page4)