From Chinese Press

Chinese cities adopt low-carbon policies

(People's Daily)
Updated: 2010-07-09 09:43

Green innovation activating green industry

In the Shanghai Expo Park, the Expo Center and Expo Axis adopt a river water source and a ground-source heat pump for cooling. Hundreds of automobiles provide transport service for the Expo and moreover the solar PV generation, the collection, processing as well as full use of rain water and sewage have also been employed.

"Shanghai has set an example of building a low-carbon city at the World Expo," said Zhang Guobao, deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

Behind these environment protection projects, which Zhang is delighted with, there is support for innovative technologies. These innovative technologies are subtly helping to adjust the cities industrial structure and economic development.

"The development of the city's low carbon methods has become a new platform for us to deal with climate change and promote sustainable urban development," said Zheng Guoguang, Party secretary and director of the China Meteorological Administration, at the forum.

Shanghai established a low carbon economic model site in Lingang New City and Chongming Island, promoting the integrated utilization of a low-carbon economy by constructing a low-carbon society, business district and industrial parks. Changzhou in Jiangsu province established a low-carbon demonstration area, and is striving to develop low carbon-based industries featuring energy conservation and emissions reduction, low pollution as well as low consumption.

They have already set up LED lighting, wind and solar energy and an electric vehicle industry. At the same time, Nanchang, Wuxi, Hangzhou, Shenyang, Sanya, Qingdao, Chongqing and Chengdu have all put forward suggestions and objectives for the development of a low-carbon city, and they have also made a firm position and a feasible plan according to their own practical situations.

The changes green innovation has brought to the environment are obvious. He Jiankun, director of the Low Carbon Energy Laboratory attached to Tsinghua University and vice director of the Expert Panel on Climate Change, said energy efficiency has improved and made tremendous achievements in term of energy consumption reduction. Unit product energy consumption for energy-intensive products has dropped by 1 to 2 percent every year, which is very rare in the world.