Archive for China
Certified Chinese forest reaches million hectares
Posted by: on January 9, 2009 in Tags: Asia, China, forests, Sustainable development
According to a press release from the WWF a conservation program reached the mark of one million hectares of forests in China being certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).
This is done to fight the important local illegal logging and improve the management of forests as they represent a strong defense against climate change as well as valuable goods.
A sound management of all our natural resources is needed to reach truly sustainable development and forests management is part of this. Continue reading »
Obama’s environment dream team: Steven Chu
Posted by: on December 26, 2008 in Tags: China, Climate change, USA
I described Barack Obama’s election as a new hope for a planet in peril. This couldn’t be more true as the President-elect chose real scientists to run the environment and energies agencies.
This is a stark difference with President Bush’s policies and environmental record. But a fact was little noticed: Dr. Steven Chu, the new Secretary of Energy, could be a great link with China.
What if under the impulse of this Nobel Prize, the two largest greenhouse gases emitters were working hand in hand to solve the climate change issue ? Continue reading »
According to Associated Press, China is increasingly aware of the threats of climate change, water crises and air pollution. This is palpable at the current Poznan talks.
More willing than ever to cooperate on mitigating the phenomenon, the top greenhouse gases emitter and world’s most populous nation will become greener in the next years.
This could go faster with the new US Administration as President-elect Obama will bring to the White House brand new plans and views on environmental issues. Continue reading »
Huge air pollution: atmospheric brown clouds
Posted by: on November 14, 2008 in Tags: Asia, China, Environment, India, pollution, UN
I already wrote about how air pollution in China is a major issue as it kills thousands of people. Little did I know that this problem is far worse than I previously reported and that it is spreading.
Indeed atmospheric brown clouds are increasing throughout Asia and are also seen in Europe or in the United States, making this issue a global one.
The latest UNEP report tackles the many impacts of the phenomenon on both Mankind and its environment and the least I can say is that the news are most worrying. Continue reading »
News on greenhouse gases emissions in China
Posted by: on November 3, 2008 in Tags: China, Climate change, CoalFor the past days I collected four articles on Chinese greenhouse gases emissions. It begun with a single tweet on October 23 reporting that they could double by 2030 if nothing was done.
Then, the WWF issued a report on the external cost of coal burning in China which is estimated to $250 billion (200 billion €) for last year alone, or the equivalent of 7.1% of the country’s GDP.
I also found an article on how China is leapfrogging the USA to cut energy consumption and another one on how future climate change mitigation will be tough. Continue reading »
We’re responsible for a third of China’s pollution
Posted by: on September 25, 2008 in Tags: China, pollution, Sustainable development
According to a previous article from TreeHugger, up to a third of China’s greenhouse gases emissions (and pollution) is due to the manufacturing of the goods we buy.
So, if China became the world’s largest carbon dioxide emitter with a quarter of the total, it is partly because of us and our severe addiction to stuff.
If millions of people are sick from breathing dirty air to the point some of them die, it is also partly because of us. Could we change this before it gets worse ? Continue reading »
After last week’s article on the decreasing demand of SUV in the United States, my dad sent me an article mentioning a Chinese plan on taxing more large cars.
Even if this is not due to contribute much to the country’s objectives on cutting pollution and fossil fuel energy consumption, it is always an additional sign of the political will of China in reducing pollution.
The adopted system there is quite similar to the one adopted in France, but it won’t have the same results because of the lack of depth of the initiative. Continue reading »
Beijing Olympics and the fear of bad air quality
Posted by: on July 22, 2008 in Tags: China, Environment, pollution
After the algae bloom come the worries on Beijing’s air quality. To improve this, the local government took a drastic measure : cars will be allowed to drive on alternate days.
This measure is due to decrease by up to 60 percent the pollution of the 3.3 million cars of the city. Meanwhile, new subway and bus lines were opened.
Will all these measures be enough for athletes to have a good air quality ? It is to be hoped as many eyes worldwide will look at China’s efforts on pollution. Continue reading »
China: the red giant goes green
Posted by: on June 26, 2008 in Tags: China, Climate change, Energy, Sustainable developmentI was reporting it last week, China now surpasses the United States as the first greenhouse gases emitter. It accounts for 24 percent of global greenhouse gases.
Meanwhile, pollutions of all kinds are soaring in the country. To put an end to all this, the Beijing government is moving towards a greener country.
The French magazine Terra Economica provided me a lot of interesting data on the changes that are due to take place there. Continue reading »
World CO2 emissions rose by 3.1 percent last year
Posted by: on June 16, 2008 in Tags: China, Climate change, USA
Global carbon dioxide rose by 3.1 percent in 2007 compared to 2006 levels. This is mostly due to Chinese emissions as the country accounts for two third of the increase.
Meanwhile, the world’s most populous nation becomes the largest contributor to climate change as China emitted 14 percent more greenhouse gases than the United States.
This is a serious problem as if no drastic actions were taken by the Beijing government and its Washington counterpart, the situation could only worsen. Continue reading »
