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The View | Why China won’t give up on its carbon goals, despite the difficulties
- Beijing sees the move to a low-carbon society as a driver for radical upgrading of its manufacturing and energy sectors, which will open up new areas of investment growth
- Climate action is also a diplomatic tool amid Sino-US rivalry, and can help stem the tide of deglobalisation
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The recent power outages and forced production stoppages in many parts of China may suggest a bumpy road ahead for its carbon goals. But observers should not confuse the clumsy local implementation of environmental goals with an absence of conviction at a national level.
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Beijing is serious about reaching its goals of peak carbon by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060. It sees the move towards being a low-carbon society as a driver of a radical upgrading of its manufacturing and energy sectors.
It is intended to open new avenues for investment as growth slows in traditional areas such as real estate and fixed-asset investment. In short, China appears clear-eyed in pursuing decarbonisation for the sake of its long-term interests.
Indeed, the rest of the world should understand the importance of China’s participation in solving the problem of global warming. China is not only the world’s fastest-growing large economy; it is top-heavy with heavy industry.
For example, it produces considerably more than half the world’s crude steel, cement and aluminium, and accounts for around half of global coal, copper and nickel consumption. This dominance is, in part, a consequence of the rest of the world outsourcing so much of its manufacturing to China.
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Chinese manufacturing thrown into disarray as country's electricity crisis rolls on
Chinese manufacturing thrown into disarray as country's electricity crisis rolls on
To that extent, consumers everywhere own a share of China’s carbon emissions – last year, to take just a few examples, 88 per cent of the world’s mobile phones, 82 per cent of air conditioners and 70 per cent of TVs were made in China.
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