China makes significant progress in low carbon efforts

Wednesday marks the 11th National Low-carbon Day in China, with the theme of Taking Active Measures against Climate Change and Promoting Green and Low Carbon Development.

In recent years, China has made significant progress in global green and low-carbon development.

“China is an important participant, contributor, and torchbearer in addressing global climate change and in the global endeavor for ecological civilization,” said Deng Boqing, vice chairman of China International Development Cooperation Agency at a high-level conference on Monday.

China's efforts in ecological civilization are evident in its remarkable achievements in reducing carbon dioxide emissions relative to GDP. By 2022, the country had successfully decreased its carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP by an impressive 36.7 percent, compared to the levels recorded in 2012. The proportion of non-fossil energy consumption reached 17.5 percent, an increase of 7.8 percentage points compared to 2012.

Along with the decrease in carbon emissions intensity, forest coverage has also seen significant improvement. Currently, the forest coverage in China has reached 24.02 percent, with a forest stock volume of 19.493 billion cubic meters, surpassing the 2025 target.

China put forward the commitment to achieving a carbon emission peak by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060, at the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly in 2020.

To achieve the goals, China has continuously increased the proportion of renewable energy, represented by wind power, solar power, and hydropower.

As of the end of April this year, the total installed capacity of wind and solar power generation in China has exceeded 800 million kilowatts, accounting for 30.9 percent of the country's total installed power generation capacity. The Baihetan hydropower station, with its 16 units fully operational, generates over 100 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per day.

Over the past decade, China has achieved a cumulative reduction of 26.4 percent in national energy intensity, equivalent to a reduction in standard coal use by approximately 1.41 billion metric tons and a decrease in carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 3 billion metric tons.

As outlined in a five-year plan on energy conservation and emission reduction released by the State Council in 2022, China will appropriately control its total energy consumption and cut energy consumption per unit of GDP by 13.5 percent by 2025 compared with the 2020 level.

Furthermore, China's dedication to combating climate change extends beyond its domestic efforts. In September 2021, it announced at the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly that it would no longer build new overseas coal-fired power projects and would actively promote and support green and low-carbon energy in developing countries.

At the High-level Dialogue on Global Development held in June 2022, "climate change and green development" became one of the eight important areas for pragmatic cooperation between China and international partners, especially developing countries.