BEIJING: China has vowed to reach CO2 emissions peak before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality ahead of 2060. To realize these goals, outlining measures to achieve the targets will be a significant step in the country’s 14th Five-Year Plan.
Carbon intensity target is expected to be set for the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025) in accordance with the carbon emission targets, and specific plans will be drawn up to tackle climate change, according to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.
As China has tied its carbon promise to a specific year for combating climate change, some Western critics have questioned its ability to realize the goals while trying to achieve economic growth.
China is a country that keeps its words. Once the five-year plan is finalized, the country — from the Central Government to local governments — will ensure its implementation. For instance, eight of the nine objectives related to ecological environment defined in the 13th Five-Year Plan have been realized ahead of schedule. The remaining objective which is meant to ensure that 337 cities experience good air quality for more than 84.5 percent of the days by 2020 is expected to be realized as planned.
The COVID-19 pandemic and a global recession have posed formidable challenges to growth prospects, but China will not let uncertainty derail the country’s efforts to push green development and tackle climate change. While seeking quality development, the country will not cross the red line of ecological protection or ease regulations because of concerns over economic and social fallout. The Government has not underestimated the challenges of achieving ecological progress in the long term. To achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, social, economic, energy and technological systems need to adapt and transform. It is important to see the push to go green as a source of growth rather than a drag on the economy. Policymakers will seize the historic opportunities presented by the new round of scientific and technological revolution to promote the transformation and upgrade of economic, energy and industrial structures.
– The Daily Mail-Beijing Review News exchange item
