Download China Growth and Pollution

China
The “new workshop of the world.”
Growth and Pollution
• http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/04/world/
asia/china-burns-much-more-coal-thanreported-complicating-climatetalks.html?_r=0
New York Times article about recent coal consumption statistics
in China
GA study sheet - Coal
• Why has China’s coal consumption increased
so much?
China’s growth over the past 20+ years has been
rapid.
Such that, China’s GDP is expected to outgrow
that of the USA in 2017-18.
Shanghai, China.
Before & after.
China’s GDP per capita.
How do average incomes compare to those in the USA?
Remember: GDP per capita is
an ‘AVERAGE’ & will disguise /
hide significant inequalities in
the Chinese labour market.
USA
China
Today; the average Chinese
worker earns 22% of his/her
equivalent in the USA.
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)
in China.
China has received very high levels of
FDI, fuelling rapid industrial growth.
Where? Pearl River Delta Region
Much of this growth has been in the Pearl
River Delta area, the focal point of China’s
inward FDI.
Pearl River Delta is roughly the size of
Belgium.
Pearl River Delta
Environmental problems
The environmental problems in the region
include;
a) Air pollution,
b) Water pollution, and
c) Deforestation.
Because;
High concentration of manufacturing /
factories, and
Huge increase in car ownership.
What is particulate matter, PM2.5?
1) Particulate Matter PM2.5 refers to the diameter
measured in microns of particulates such as
ammonia, carbon, nitrates and sulfate - which are
small enough to pass into the bloodstream and
cause diseases such as emphysema and cancer.
2) Airborne PM2.5 is considered one of the most
harmful pollutants to human health.
3) The World Health Organisation (WHO) considers a
"safe" maximum – to be 25 micrograms.
Why?
The main source of PM2.5 is
China’s massive and growing use of
coal for its power generation.
China
Widespread environmental problems.
http://factsanddetails.com/china
/cat10/sub66/item392.html
China’s Cancer Villages.
Lung cancer remains the most common - and
deadliest - cancer in the world, with an estimated 1.8
million new cases and 1.6 million deaths in 2012.
More than one-third of such cases occurred in China
The latest edition of the
World Cancer Report said
China accounted for 21.8%
of the global total of newly
diagnosed cases, & 26.9%
of the world's total cancer
deaths - about 2.2 million.
China - Guangzhou
• Due to the city's increasing urban and
economic development, most low wage
labour has now moved away from the
Guangzhou to other regions of China.
Guangzhou – Acid rain
acid rain (precipitation pH value<5.0)
Very Acid
Acid
Acid rain - & its affects.
Acid Rain – The consequences;
1) Kills plants and trees,
2) Kills fish and organisms living in the
water systems,
3) Causes lung & breathing problems in
children,
4) Causes chemical weathering on
buildings & statues made from
Limestone & Marble.
5) Causes birth abnormalities in water
based organisms.
Danger in the tap?
"China's drinking water has become an extremely dangerous matter,"
Tests on tap water have found Benzene present at
200 micrograms of per litre of water. The national
safety standard is 10 micrograms.
Benzene is a petroleum product, originally
manufactured from coal tar that is used as a
component in numerous industrial and consumer
products.
Benzene is known to be a human carcinogen.
Global impact of Chinese pollution.
Global impact of Chinese pollution.
In 2008, China became the world’s
largest emitter of greenhouse gases,
ahead of long-time leader the United
States.
However, the average American still
has a much larger carbon
footprint than the average Chinese
person.
As China's economy continues to
grow, and especially as the population
becomes wealthier and looks to
western standards of living as a goal,
the projected emissions from China
alone could doom any hopes of
keeping climate change within
manageable ranges.
China – the world’s largest CO2 emitter.
?
13½% of China's 45% rise in
greenhouse gas emissions between
2002 and 2005 can be attributed to
export production for Western
countries. (Core & periphery –
exporting pollution).
Because China was considered a developing economy when the Kyoto
Protocol was written in the 1990s, China is not obligated to cut
greenhouse gas emissions under the treaty.
Homework Task:
What are the likely projections for China’s
emissions? Explain your reasons.
China – growth – pollution; WEBSITES.
1) China's Lanzhou Warns Drinking Water Contains Dangerous Levels Of
Benzene
• http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/11/lanzhou-waterbenzene_n_5131728.html
2) China's Drinking Water in Crisis
• http://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/water-05102012090334.html
3) China the hardest hit by global surge in cancer, says WHO report
• http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1422475/china-hardest-hitglobal-surge-cancer-says-who-report
4) Biggest Emitter China Best on Climate, Figueres Says
• http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-01-13/top-global-emitterchina-best-on-climate-change-figueres-says.html
What are the alternatives?
• Nuclear
Watch this
Nuclear power has an important role, especially in the coastal areas remote
from the coalfields and where the economy is developing rapidly.
Generally, nuclear plants can be built close to centres of demand, whereas
suitable wind and hydro sites are remote from demand.
What about renewables?
Watch this – renewables are
becoming much more important
http://www.unep.org/greeneconomy/SuccessStories/RenewableEnergyinChina/tabid/29865/Default.aspx
UN Green economy – renewable
energy in China (same as the link
above)
• Mainland China has 30 nuclear power reactors in operation,
21 under construction, and more about to start construction.
• Additional reactors are planned, including some of the
world's most advanced, to give more than a three-fold
increase in nuclear capacity by 2020-21 and much more by
2050.
• The impetus for increasing nuclear power share in China is
increasingly due to air pollution from coal-fired plants.
• China has become largely self-sufficient in reactor design
and construction, but is making full use of western
technology while adapting and improving it.
• China’s policy is to ‘go global’ with exporting nuclear
technology including heavy components in the supply chain.
Energy policy and clean air
•While coal is the main energy source, most reserves are in the
north or northwest and present an enormous logistical
problem – nearly half the country's rail capacity is used in
transporting coal.
•Because of the heavy reliance on old coal-fired plant,
electricity generation accounts for much of the country's air
pollution, which is a strong reason to increase nuclear share.
China has overtaken the USA as the world's largest contributor
of carbon dioxide emissions.
•China has shale gas resources, but much of it is in the
northwest which is very arid, so water supply is a constraint.
• By 2035 the US Energy Information Administration expects
China’s gas to come equally from conventional, coal bed and
shale sources.