Transcript China - PBworks

Climate Change - China
The following presentation is a brief introduction to the
possible influence of China.
 The presentation may allow you to want to discuss the
impact on Africa, the Middle East and elsewhere of the
growth of the Chinese economy.
 China became in April 2008 the largest polluting country
in the world. The build-up to the Beijing Olympics is
being closely monitored as climatic conditions may affect
some events.
John, April 2008
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What do we know?
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“China is a big
country, inhabited
by many Chinese”
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Charles de Gaulle
China rising
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Between now and
2015, half of the
world's construction
will take place in
China
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China now boasts
345,000 dollar
millionaires and 106
billionaires.
“ To get rich is glorious” – Deng Xiaoping
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China is the world’s
third-largest car
market
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Rising consumer
culture
Social consequences
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The great divide –
increasing inequality
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Unregulated
economy; informal
labour
Rising eco-crisis
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Nearly one-third of its landmass, 2.64
million square km of land, devoured by
desertification
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16 of the world’s 20 most polluted cities
are in China
Water scarcity
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China has 1/4 of global per capita
average available fresh water
400 out of 600 Chinese cities have
inadequate water supplies
1 in 6 experience severe shortages
Deep wells around Beijing now have to
reach 1,000 meters to tap fresh water
(World Bank)
Effects on Health
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In Zhejiang province, five to eight times
more morbidity of intestinal cancer caused
by microcystin toxins in water than among
people who have access to cleaner
drinking water
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In 2007, the World Bank estimated that
pollution causes 750,000 premature
deaths a year in China
What has China got to do with
her?

30% of the sulphate
particulate matter this
student at UCLA
breathes come from
China (US EPA)
What has China got to do with
him?
Climate impacts in China
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Over the next 13 years, China’s average
temperature is expected to increase by
1.3- 2.1°C
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In reality, this means that many parts of
the country will see drastic temperature
increases
Precipitation is expected to increase by
2% by 2020 and 7% by 2050
 This will not alleviate chronic water
shortages in the north
 It will add to flooding problems in the south
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Negative agricultural impacts will dramatically
undermine food security
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Increased vulnerabilities from salt water
intrusion and erosion in coastal zones, including
the economically important regions of the Pearl
River and Yangtze River deltas
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China is the
country in the
world with the
largest
population in
low elevation
coastal zones
Low elevation coastal
zones (LECZ), defined
here as land area
contiguous with the
coastline up to a 10metre rise elevation
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The Tibetan plateau is heating
up by 0.3°C each decade,
more than twice the worldwide
average
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Its glaciers are shrinking by
7% a year
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Increased risk of large-scale
flooding
Rich countries
have the
deepest carbon
footprints
Disaster risks are
skewed towards
developing countries
Disaster risks are
skewed towards
developing countries
China/US
Population
(% worldwide)
Oil consumption
(% worldwide)
China
22%
6.4%
US
4.7%
25.5%
Rich countries dominate in terms of cumulative emissions
(Tyndall Centre)
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23% percent of China's carbon emissions
are from the manufacture of goods
exported to western consumers
Business-as-usual emissions on a rising trend
King coal’s emperor in the East
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China is the world’s largest consumer and
supplier of coal
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China derives 69% of its primary energy
and 52% of its electricity from coal
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In 2006, China burned more than twice as
much coal as any other country, 39% of
the global total
•In 2003, more than half the CO2 produced by
burning coal came from China and the US
• By 2025, if current trends continue, China will
produce twice as much as the US, or 40% of the
world total
China consumes
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If China consumed paper at the same rate
as the US, we would need four times the
existing forests on earth
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If China had the same rate of car
ownership as the US, the batteries would
need four times the world’s lead supply
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In 2006, residents submitted 1,650 formal
complaints about pollution every day, a total
of 600,000 and a 30% rise on the previous
year
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One in 10 of China’s urban residents
considers the city they inhabit “unfit for
living”
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Four in 10 are unhappy with their local air
quality and believe pollution is affecting their
family’s health
Another reason why the central government
is concerned
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“Mass incidents” - cases of popular unrest
–numbered 74,000 in 2004, over 200 a day
Government action
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Environmental protection
was listed as a national
policy in 1983
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Sustainable development
policy was introduced in
1996
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9 environmental protection
laws are in place
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15 natural resources
protection laws are in effect
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51 international agreements
have been signed
A global leader in re-newables?
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China will likely achieve—and may even
exceed—its target to obtain 15% of its
energy from re-newables by 2020
Rizhao, Shandong.
Solar water heaters
are installed in 99%
of all urban
buildings. More than
6,000 families in
Rizhao use solar
cookers.
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China is the world’s largest market for
solar hot water:
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Nearly two-thirds of global capacity
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More than 10% of Chinese households
rely on the sun to heat their water
The green GDP campaign
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Green GDP = GDP - the costs of natural
resource consumption - the costs of
environmental depletion
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China emitted US$64 billion worth of
pollution in 2004, equivalent to 3.1% of
GDP
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(Pollution costs China 8% to 12% of GDP
annually in direct damage)
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In April China’s State Council issued a new
set of regulations on open government
information.
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The Institute of Public and Environmental
Affairs used this to develop an online
database of Chinese water pollution
Why should we care,
and what can we do?
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China has a global environmental impact
There is no solution to climate change
without China