Tackling Climate Change: China in Action

RECORD-BREAKING hot days worldwidein recent years have made peoplerealize that global warming is nolonger merely a warning， but a grimreality. The most recent alert came from Spain’scatastrophic flooding in late October. Today，not only temperatures， but also precipitationpatterns are drastically changing as a result ofglobal warming.

According to the State of Global Water Resources2023 report released by the World MeteorologicalOrganization recently， as a result ofrising temperatures， the hydrological cycle hasaccelerated， and the world is facing growingproblems of either too much or too little water.A warmer atmosphere holds more moisture，which can cause heavy rainfall. Spain’s floodingis a case in point.

Last year， the COP28 UN Climate ChangeConference in Dubai， the UAE， was the largestof its kind， demonstrating the world’s determinationfor green and low-carbon transition. Theconference concluded with the first ever GlobalStocktake （GST）， a mid-term review of theprogress made toward the goals of 2015 ParisAgreement. The GST showed that progresswas too slow across all areas of climate action，from reducing greenhouse gas emissions tostrengthening resilience to a changing climate，to getting financial and technological support to vulnerable nations. Countries responded byagreeing to speed up action across all areas by2030. This includes speeding up transition fromfossil fuels to renewable energy， such as windand solar power.

A major task of the 2024 UN Climate ChangeConference （COP29） in Baku， Azerbaijan， was toagree on a post-2025 climate finance target andmake preparations for a new round of nationallydetermined contributions to be submitted bythe member states by February 2025.

China’s Stance

Where does China stand in all of this？ InNovember China released the 2024 Report onChina’s Policies and Actions for Addressing Cli-mate Change ， explaining its stance. The reportsays while China is steadfast in implementingthe United Nations Framework Convention onClimate Change （UNFCCC）， which marks its30th anniversary this year， and the Paris Agreement，multilateralism is the only way to addresscommon challenges.

There should be agreement on a “new collectivequantified goal” （NCQG） on climate finance，and also support in technology and capacitybuilding. For funding， the primary task is toensure developed countries fulfill their obligationsof providing and mobilizing funding fordeveloping countries and guaranteeing fundingtransparency in accordance with the UNFCCCand the Paris Agreement. In particular， devel-oped countries should fulfill their commitmentof contributing US $100 billion annually by 2025and come up with a roadmap for doubling adaptationfinance， providing sufficient， predictableand sustainable financial support to developingcountries under the NCQG. China stressesthe importance of the principle of common butdifferentiated responsibilities and respectivecapabilities in light of different national circumstances.Climate funding cannot add to thedebts of developing countries.

China also calls for strengthening internationalsolidarity and cooperation. In recentyears， some countries have practiced unilateralprotectionism in the name of climate change.They built green barriers， disrupted free tradeand investment regarding green products and industries，and hindered the transfer and spreadingof low-carbon technology. These moves haveseverely undermined mutual trust and capacityof the world as a whole to cope with climatechange， and will increase unnecessary negativespillover effects and the cost for all countriesto fulfill their commitments. Efforts should bemade to talk parties out of unilateral measures，including the United States and some Europeancountries， strengthen solidarity and cooperation，and bring positive energy and favorableconditions for multilateral climate action.

A Fair Transition

Also， pragmatic measures should be taken topromote green transition in a fair manner. Effectiveclimate action has to be rooted in the realitiesof each country. Only by respecting eachcountry’s differing circumstances， developmentstages and capacities， and promoting transitionin a fair manner under the framework ofsustainable development and poverty reduction，can the climate ambition be achieved. Developedcountries should take the lead in reducingemissions but the overall Paris Agreementshould be implemented， rather than merelysetting emission reduction targets.

Han Wenya， a senior expert with the PolicyResearch Center for Environment and Economy，China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment（MEE）， stressed that the principle of commonbut differentiated responsibilities should berespected by all member states. Han was criticalof practices ignoring the principle and implementingtrade protectionism in the name ofclimate action， like imposing trade barriers ortariffs on green and low-carbon products likeelectric vehicles. “[Such practices] jeopardizethe multilateral trade system， and ultimately hinder international cooperation in addressingclimate change，” Han told China Today .

This was also discussed at COP29， at a seminaron the sidelines titled “Synergy of GlobalEconomy， Climate and Trade Policy.” Han saidfair， reasonable， and convenient policies forgreen trade facilitate optimal allocation of resourcesworldwide and sustainable developmentof the world economy. “Synergy of industry，climate and trade policy is conducive to innovationof green and low-carbon technology， thetransformation of traditional industries， as wellas the development of emerging green industries.”

China in Action

Xia Yingxian， head of the Department of ClimateChange at MEE， has described China as “acountry of action in climate change.”

Ensuring harmonious coexistence of manand nature is an important part of China’smodernization drive. President Xi Jinping hasannounced that China will peak carbon dioxideemissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutralityby 2060， which means China will realize carbonpeaking and carbon neutrality in the shortestperiod of time in history. In July， the Communist Party of China （CPC）’s leadership pledged effortsat the third plenary session of the 20th CPCCentral Committee to improve climate adaptationmechanisms， the first time the central Partyleadership said so.

China has also introduced the concept of“ecological civilization.” Going beyond the drivefor common prosperity， it envisions respectingnature and living in harmony with nature. ZhaoYingmin， deputy minister of MEE who headedthe ChineseUfxFDRwHNE7UhdvV07FGVz6EdFdqRN3Qb/Nj6xlBE9M= delegation at COP29， summarizedhow China was advancing ecological civilizationat a side event at the China Pavilion of COP29on November 11， when the climate conferencestarted.

China is addressing climate change andpromoting comprehensive green transformationof the economy and society. It is fighting pollutionto significantly improve the environmentand conserving as well as restoring mountains，rivers， forests， and their ilk.Over 30 percent of the landterritory is currently withinecological conservationredlines – areas with specialimportant ecological functions，and forest coverage hasreached 24.02 percent， makingChina the country withthe fastest expanding forestarea and the largest afforestation area.

Zhao said China is willing to contribute tobuilding a global system for climate governancethat is fair， reasonable and mutual beneficial，and work with the international community toincrease political mutual trust and global cooperationfor a prosperous， clean and beautifulworld.

Local Practices on Global Stage

At a COP29 side event on ecological civilizationand beautiful China practice， officials fromdifferent Chinese cities elaborated on how theircities were taking part in ecological conservationand fighting pollution， presenting internationalobservers a peek into China’s specificpractices in this regard.

Shi Chunguang， deputy mayor of Yichhun incold Heilongjiang Province in northeast Chinabordering Russia， described how air pollutionin the city， once severe due to rapid economicgrowth， had improved： “For over 97.5 percent ofthe days in a year we have good air quality forseveral years in a row.” In recent years， the cityhas been making use of local snow and forestresources to develop snow tourism and sports.

Zhou Weibing， executive deputy mayor ofQuzhou in Zhejiang Province in east China， saidQuzhou has established carbon accounts. By2022， the city had established carbon accountsfor over two million enterprises and individualsand developed financial products based onthe carbon account. Quzhou’s carbon accountfinance was presented as a case study of localpractice for climate change policy and actionduring COP27 in Egypt.

In an interview with China Today ， Yang Shuying，chief expert with the Policy Research Center forEnvironment and Economy of MEE， noted thatChina is witnessing dropping energy intensity atthe fastest speed in the world.

“China’s economy and society are on the track of green transformation. Its installed capacitiesfor wind， solar， biomass and hydro powergeneration lead the world. China has emergedas a leading supplier for wind and solar powerequipment and batteries in the world， enablingsubstantial drop in the cost of using renewableenergy and helping developing countries gainaccess to clean， reliable and affordable power，”Yang said.

International Cooperation

Xi has stressed the importance of unitedlytackling global challenges like climate changeon multiple occasions. When he met the Frenchand EU leaders in May， he stressed deepeningChina-Europe green partnership， saying Chinaand Europe have common interests and hugecooperation potential in green development.

At the third Belt and Road Forum for InternationalCooperation in 2023， he announced China’seight action plans for high-quality Belt andRoad cooperation， including green development.China will continue to deepen cooperation inareas such as green infrastructure， green energyand green transportation， and step up supportfor the BRI International Green DevelopmentCoalition. It will continue to hold the BRI GreenInnovation Conference， and establish dialogueand exchange mechanisms for the solar industryand a network of experts on green and low-carbon development. China will also implementGreen Investment Principles for the Belt andRoad， and provide 100，000 training opportunitiesfor partner countries by 2030.

In November 2023， China’s then Special Envoyfor Climate Change Xie Zhenhua and his U.S.counterpart John Kerry released the Sunnylandsstatement on enhancing cooperation to addressthe climate crisis. The two countries decided tooperationalize the Working Group on EnhancingClimate Action in the 2020s， and make energytransition， methane reduction， the circulareconomy and subnational cooperation key areasof their cooperation.

In addition， China has been working with theUNFCC’s Green Climate Fund， the multilateralfund Global Environment Fund， and financialinstitutions like the World Bank， Asian DevelopmentBank， Asian Infrastructure InvestmentBank and New Development Bank to scale upsupport for green and low-carbon developmentin developing countries. It supported UN-Habitatin setting up the Global Award for SustainableDevelopment in Cities or the Shanghai Award， and has memoranda of understandingwith 14 countries on cooperation in green developmentinvestment.

China has also been supporting other developingcountries in coping with climate changeunder the framework of South-South Cooperation.By the end of June 2024， it had signed 52agreements to assist other developing countrieswith their capacity building in this area. Climatefunding provided and mobilized by China hashelped other developing countries use cleanenergy efficiently， enhanced their capabilities toadapt to climate change， and facilitated coordinateddevelopment of climate action and environmentprotection. The funding also improvedlocal people’s livelihood and wellbeing.

“China will continue to strengthen South-South cooperation in climate action. We will leverageour strengths in solar power， new-energyvehicles and early warning， among other areas，to carry out pragmatic cooperation projects inways like material aid， technology transfer， exchangeactivities and joint research，” MEE’s XiaYingxian said.

Energy Upgrade

Over the last decade， China’senergy intensity went down26.4 percent. The countryshored up an average annualeconomic growth rate of over6 percent with an averageenergy intensity growth rateof 3 percent， equivalent tosaving 1.4 billion tons of coal，preventing nearly 3 billion tonsof carbon dioxide emissions.

China’s installed hydroelectric，wind and solar powergeneration capacities rank firstin the world. Carbon intensitydropped more than 35 percent，reversing the trend of rapidgrowth in carbon emissions.

Pollution Control

Since 2012， China has seenremarkable improvement in theenvironment. Official statisticsshowed that the averageconcentration of ambientparticulate matters in urbanareas decreased from 46 μg/cubic meters in 2015 to 30 μg/cubic meters in 2023.

The proportion of watersections with good-qualitysurface water reached 89.4percent. The water qualityof the main stream of theYangtze River was of Grade IIstandard for four consecutiveyears， and that of the YellowRiver for two years in a row.