Learning to be 'low-carbon'

Tian Yao, a Beijing media employee, recently replaced her electric toothbrush with a traditional one to save 30 yuan; a prudent financial move as the global economic slowdown starts to hit home. But without thinking Tian also saved 48 g of carbon dioxide (CO2) emission each day.

Tian is just one of many Chinese who may unconsciously help the environment by slashing spending during the global economic slowdown.

Others, such as Li Jun, a Hangzhou citizen, are among the growing number of well-educated Chinese who purposefully act to cut greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions.

Li cycles to the local market every morning to buy food directly from local farmers, a habit she began after watching An Inconvenient Truth.

"The vegetables are fresh and I buy locally-produced goods on principle," said Li. "It cuts out all the energy and carbon emission involved in long-distance transportation."

Such climate-friendly lifestyles do not require drastic changes or major sacrifices, according to the UN Environment Program (UNEP).

Global greenhouse gas emissions can be cut by 2 million tons of CO2 a year if every airline passenger kept their baggage below 20 kg and bought anything else they needed on arrival, for example.

China encourages energy- efficient lifestyles and promotes green consumer options.

Solar water heaters are now found across the country now. The Ministry of Commerce estimates 20 to 30 percent of Chinese households will have them by 2015. China also has regulations forcing manufacturers to put tags on products detailing their energy efficiency.

One of China's ten key energy-saving projects in its current five-year plan (2006-10) is promoting energy-efficient light bulbs.

Many Chinese cities banned plastic bags in 2008, cutting at least 300,000 tons of CO2 emission a year.

But the country still has a long way to go compared to some of its Western peers. "Low-carbon consumption is a start in China and worldwide," said Chen Dongmei, director of Climate Change and Energy Program of WWF China. "Governmental policy and manufacturer and consumer awareness are vital."

(China Daily 01/05/2009 page6)