China can achieve economic growth without degrading the
environment, should it increase its reliance on renewable energy
and raise energy efficiency, an energy investigation report
found.
The report, Energy Revolution: A Sustainable China Energy
Outlook, was released yesterday in Beijing. It charts the
findings of a joint global study carried out by Greenpeace and the
European Renewable Energy Council (EREC).
"Our report shows that China can maintain economic growth while
also keeping carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions at their current level
by 2050," Sven Teske, an energy expert with Greenpeace
International, said. "However, any hope of this occurring must stem
from both industrialized and developing countries cooperating on
moving investment away from fossil fuels and toward energy
efficiency and renewable energy."
China now releases about 5 billion tons of CO2 a year.
The report accounted for China's development needs and paid
attention to the country's energy saving plan, which seeks to lower
energy consumption for every unit of GDP by 20 percent by 2010 from
2005. ?
The report also indicated China's target is close to matching
Greenpeace's energy revolution scenario, which seeks a 23.7 percent
lowering.
On renewable energy, the report encouraged China to adopt a more
aggressive stance on the development of wind energy and a solar
photovoltaic (PV) system. Currently, China plans to depend on
renewable energy for 16 percent of its demand by 2020.
To achieve this, China will develop the means to create 300 GW
of hydropower, 30 GW of wind power, and 1.8 GW of solar
photovoltaic. According to the energy revolution scenario touted by
Greenpeace, China could set the bar much higher, aiming for 118 GW
of wind power and 25 GW of solar PV power by 2020.
Yang Ailun, Greenpeace China climate and energy campaign
manager, said: "Greenpeace calls for the Chinese government to
introduce strong policies such as feed-in-tariffs to support the
development of wind and solar PV industries in China."
"China must break its coal dependency. Fortunately with the
enforcement of energy-efficiency targets and also the decision to
close down the 50-GW coal plants, by far the least efficient, the
trend of massive plants should be slowed down from 2008 on."
(China Daily April 26, 2007)