The trampling of Hong Kong's freedoms, the paper argues, demonstrates that there is no point negotiating with the Chinese Communist party on long term issues like climate change
Questioning China's Endorsement of Net Zero Emissions
Xi Jinping, the Chinese 'president for life,' last September pledged that his country aims 'to have CO2 emissions peak before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality (Net Zero) before 2060. 1
Yet China's latest five year plan increases investment in coal and omits any cap on total energy consumption. This leads to the observation that 'the central contradiction between expanding the smokestack economy and promoting green growth appears unresolved.' The lack of a cap on total energy consumption was a notable exclusion. 2
“Despite pledges to cut emissions, China goes on a coal spree,” a Yale Environment 360 headline proclaimed. In the article, China based freelancer Michael Standaert argues that there is a 'real and figurative haze about how strong its climate ambitions really are and how quickly the country can wean itself from coal. 3
There were no specific targets for increasing wind, solar or hydro capacity, although there have been pledges to invest more in renewables. 2
As a result, there's no guarantee that emissions growth will slow down, let alone stop by 2025.
Coal remains at the heart of China's flourishing economy. In 2019, 58 percent of the country's total energy consumption came from coal, which helps explain why China accounts for 28 percent of all global CO2 emissions. And China continues to build coal fired power plants at a rate that outpaces the rest of the world combined. In 2020, China brought 38.4 gigawatts of new coal fired power into operation, more than three times what was brought on line everywhere else. 3
A total of 247 gigawatts is now in planning or development, nearly six times Germany's entire coal fired capacity. China has also proposed additional new coal plants that, if built, would generate 73.5 gigawatts of power, more than five times the 13.9 gigawatts proposed in the rest of the world combined. Last year, Chinese provinces granted construction approval to 47 gigawatts of coal power projects, more than three times the capacity permitted in 2019.
In spite of all this, China publicly demands the USA fulfill Obama's Paris Agreement pledges, and makes a big deal of their conversion to green energy. However behind the scenes the Chinese green scene is starting to look like a gigantic coal plant construction exercise. 4
Emissions
In 2019 the US had the most significant reduction in CO2 emissions on a country bases, while as an entire block, the EU had a more considerable reduction. However, China's emissions growth averaged 2.6% between 2008 and 2018. China now accounts for 28% of global 'greenhouse gas' emissions, almost double the next largest emitter, the United States at 15%. 5
While China is building coal plants around the world, the United States is shuttering its coal fired power plants, despite having, by far, the world's largest supply of coal. Between January 2017 and May 2019, the United States shuttered 50 coal fired plants, with 51 more shutdowns announced, bringing the total shutdowns to 289 since 2010.
China's party leaders know that its so-called production of renewable generating technologies, many of which are not connected to the grid, is a good smokescreen for its coal power, and few Western governments will dare to criticize China. 6
The New York Post recently editorialized China's betrayal of its commitment to Hong Kong, together with its duplicity regarding the COVID pandemic and its dissembling on the treatment of the Uighurs, signals that the country cannot be trusted to keep its word. The trampling of Hong Kong's freedoms, the paper argues, demonstrates that there is no point negotiating with the Chinese Communist party on long term issues like climate change. 7
Jack Dini is author of Challenging Environmental Mythology. He has also written for American Council on Science and Health, Environment & Climate News, and Hawaii Reporter.
