Download Research on the Sustainable Development Road Being Oriented by Low-carbon Economy

Research on the Sustainable Development Road Being Oriented by
Low-carbon Economy
SUN Fang1, WANG Xiaofeng2
1. College of Management, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo, China, 255049
2.School of Population, Resource and Environment, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, China, 255049
[email protected]
Abstract: With the development of world economy, how to actively cope with the serious challenges
caused by the global warming has become a focus of world widespread concern at present. From China's
actual conditions, developing low-carbon economy, pushing forward the low-carbon consumption
patterns, taking a low-carbon road, and gradually reducing dependence on high-carbon energy sources,
is an important way and effective way to implement the strategy of sustainable development, but also
are the objective requirements of scientific development outlook. So China take the road of low-carbon
economy, not only in line with China economic and social requirements of sustainable development,
also in line with the requirements of global environmental cooperation. This paper describes in depth the
content of low-carbon economy, the necessity of developing low-carbon economy. This article also
analyzes development status quo of low-carbon economy in China combining China’s realities and puts
forward a number of possible ways achieving low-carbon development on China's economy in future.
Keywords: Low-carbon economy, Sustainable development, Carbon trading, Low-carbon consumption
1.
Introduction
In 2002, the World Summit on Sustainable Development has reached some common understandings in
the international community for climate change under the framework of the sustainable development.
The United Kingdom in 2003 put forward the concept of low-carbon economy. The international
community more deeply felt more than ever before that it is necessary for mitigation and adaptation to
climate change action to be put into the national socio-economic development plan. So national must
change economic development mode and be reliance on science and technology, especially the advances
in clean energy technology. Low-carbon economy has become the dynamo of the next round economic
growth universally accepted around the world in the context of financial crisis. It emphasizes on
reducing dependence on fossil fuels, through the technological innovation, organizational innovation
and transformation of the development model of real economy, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and
adapt and mitigate the Earth's climate warming. Developing low-carbon economy is to continuously
increase technology research investment in the climate change, so as to improve energy using efficiency,
develop clean energy technology, optimize the industrial structure, develop recycling economy and
reconstructs the micro-foundation of economic and social sustainable development.
2.
The Content of Low-carbon Economy
Low-carbon economy has the basic characteristics with low-energy consumption, low emission and low
pollution. Its basic requirements are how to cope with the impact of carbon-based energy sources on
climate warming. The basic purpose is to achieve economic and social sustainable development. So
low-carbon economy is a general kind of green economy forms, such as low-carbon development,
low-carbon industries, low-carbon technologies and low-carbon life. Essence of low-carbon economy is
to raise energy efficiency technologies, energy-saving technologies, renewable energy technologies and
greenhouse gas emissions reduction technologies, to promote and realize the efficient use, clean use of
energy and the low-carbon or carbon-free energy development and to maintain the global ecological
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balance. This is an economic development model with evolution from high-carbon energy era to the era
of low-carbon energy sources. Developing low-carbon economy is the inevitable choice of China's
reality and future development.
Among them, the essence question of low-carbon development is energy efficiency and clean energy
structure, the core of it is the technology and institution innovation of energy sources and the goal is to
mitigate climate change and promoting sustainable human development. Therefore, low-carbon
economy is to rely on technological innovation and policy measures to implement an energy revolution
and establish a model of economic development with fewer greenhouse gas emissions in order to
mitigate climate change.
Low-carbon technologies, also known as clean energy technologies, mainly refers to improving energy
efficiency in order to stabilize or reduce the demand for energy, while reducing dependence on fossil
fuels such as coal. The dominant technology involves in electric power, transportation, construction,
metallurgy, chemical, petrochemical and other sectors as well as the clean and efficient use in renewable
energy, new energy sources and coal, exploration and development of oil and gas resources and coal-bed
methane, and the new technologies of effective controlling the greenhouse gas emissions in carbon
dioxide capture and underground storage areas.
3.
The Necessity of China Developing Low-carbon Economy
3.1 Developing low-carbon economy has become the mainstream strategic choice of the
international community
The world economy is through industrialization, information technology moving towards low-carbon. It
is predicted that in the current global energy consumption structure, the proportion of the carbon-based
energy (coal, oil, natural gas)is as high as 87%. If the future development continues to use the
high-carbon model, to 2050, the world's economic scale is 3-4 times higher than it is now, the Earth will
be overwhelmed. As a result, development model with the basic content of low carbon economy is put
on the agenda. In 2003 the British Government published a White Paper on Energy - "Our Energy
Future: Creating low carbon economy", in which the "low-carbon economy" concept was first put
forward. Japan and the United Kingdom in the low-carbon economic development, there are many
common visions. They put forward the building of low-carbon society and around the world are
scrambling to develop low-carbon city. In June 2007, Japan and the United Kingdom co-sponsored the
seminar with the theme "the development of sustainable low-carbon society". And they invested heavily
in developing and utilizing solar energy, wind energy, light energy, hydrogen energy, fuel cells and other
alternative energy sources and renewable energy sources. They actively develop the research on tidal
energy, hydropower and geothermal energy. They stop or limit the development of high energy
consumption industries, encourage them to move abroad and develop a particularly stringent standard of
energy consumption for some energy-intensive products. In July 2007, the United States issued a "Low
Carbon Economy Act", published a report entitled "Seize the Energy Opportunity: Creating a low
carbon economy", in which proposed 10-step plan. The report also proposed to implement a series of tax
breaks for wind, solar, bio-fuels and other renewable energy projects, offer loan guarantees and financial
support and other preferential policies. In addition, Brazil, Mexico, South Korea, India and other
developing countries also took the initiative to reduce emissions, limit row, and made positive efforts in
developing low-carbon economy.
3.2 Developing low-carbon economy is the realistic choice for dealing with climate change
A Nobel Prize winner Arrhenius as early as 1896 once predicted: fossil fuel combustion will increase
carbon dioxide concentration of the atmospheric, which cause global warming. In the past 100 years,
greenhouse effect caused by carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases increased the global average
surface temperature by 0.3-0.6 . The latest research report shows that only the increase in carbon
dioxide concentration of atmospheric is controlled 2-fold less of pre-industrial level until 2050,it be
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possible to avoid the occurrence of extreme climate change. The latest assessment report on climate
change issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change showed there is 90% confidence and
also present that in recent years climate change are mainly from human activities emitting carbon
dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and other greenhouse gases. They also predicted that if this trend
continues, global average temperature will rise by 1.0-3.5
to 2100. Consequences of global warming
is glaciers melting, sea levels rising, ecosystem degradation, frequent natural disasters. These would
threaten agriculture and food security, water security, energy security, ecological security and public
health and safety, and also be a direct threat to human survival and development.
In the background of global warming, China's climate has undergone significant changes. In China,
from 1986 to 2006, there is continuous emergence of 21 national warm winters. The frequency and
intensity of extreme weather, climate events and disasters increased significantly and the loss increased.
At the same time there appears shortage of water resources and aggravation of regional imbalances,
environmental degradation, loss of agricultural production, pressure increased of food security, sea-level
rising and economic and social development in coastal areas is under threat.
According to the report issued in the end of 2006 "National Assessment Report on Climate Change,"
predicted that the rate of China's climate warming in the future would further be accelerated, and most
probably in the next 50 years to 80 years the national average temperature would rise 2-3 . Climate
change would add the instability of agricultural production. Facing the future with temperatures rises
and a series of serious consequences could be caused, developing low-carbon economy has become the
urgent affair.
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3.3 Low-carbon economy is an important driving force for China's economic development
Low-carbon economy is based on the premise of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to achieve the
greatest output of the economic development of ideas or forms. It will bring more innovative activities,
which led to a decline in production costs and improve the international competitiveness of enterprises.
Broadly, the "low carbon" can be seen as new constraints of economic development in environmental
protection and energy saving, etc.. However, such conditions is not just the passive limitations and
restrictions of development, but can induce enterprises to innovate or take the initiative to introduce new
technologies by technology and systems matching with the new constraints, so as to enhance
international competitiveness, thus promoting development. At present, many companies worldwide
have already tasted the sweetness of low-carbon economy. At the same time, Developing energy-saving
technologies, carbon capture and storage technology, developing and using wind energy, solar and other
renewable energy sources and improving the efficiency of electric power facilities, etc., all can create
employments and stimulate economic growth. According to statistics, export revenues of the German
wind power equipment in 2005 reached about 60 billion Euros, accounting for half the volume of
transactions of the global wind power generation equipment. In Japan photovoltaic power generation
technology takes the first place in the world. It can be predicted that developing low-carbon economy is
an important engine of China's economic development.
4.
Development Status of China's Low-carbon Economy
China is in the rapid development stage of industrialization, urbanization and modernization and the
development of heavy chemical industry is relatively rapid. A large-scale infrastructure construction can
not stop and great demand and rapid growth of energy are hard to change. In other words, at present
China's energy consumption is at a "high-carbon consumption" state. In 2007, China's coal consumption
accounts for 69.5% of total primary energy consumption. The long-term energy consumption structure
dominated by coal brought about serious environmental problems to our country. At present, 85% of
carbon dioxide, 90% of sulfur dioxide and 73% of the dust emission are caused by coal-fired. This kind
of energy structure with the core as coal, now and in the future for a long period of time are unlikely to
change. With the further development of industry-oriented and heavy and chemical industry, the
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proportion of coal in total energy consumption will continue to increase and carbon dioxide emissions
will continue to grow. As the technology and equipment is relatively old, China's carbon dioxide
emissions per Unit GDP are much higher than developed countries. And the accelerated development of
six high energy-consuming industries such as energy, automobile, steel, transportation, chemicals,
building, materials and etc. would make China become a typical representative of "high-carbon
economy". In the next 30 years, China will continue to be the disadvantage of lower end of the
international industrial chain, in the accelerating development period of the "heavy industry” of
industrial medium-term and the stage of industrialization and urbanization development. This stage also
is a period of the rapid growth of energy and resources consumption. The area of production,
consumption and circulation are in the situation of high-carbon economy, which will inevitably lead to
higher emissions of greenhouse gases and result in a series of political, economic, diplomatic, and
ecological consequences. At present, China's carbon dioxide emissions are in the second of the world. It
is expected that carbon dioxide emissions in China account for 20.7% of the world until 2015 and more
than in the United States (20.1%), which becomes the first emissions big power all over the world.
Overall, the status quo of carbon emissions in China is quite severe in the future and developing
low-carbon economy is the strategic choice of achieving sustainable development of China.
5.
Conclusion
According to the experience from the United Kingdom, low-carbon policies and measures mainly
include three aspects: The first is to increase the energy efficiency and develop renewable energy
resource. The second is to establish carbon trading and other market mechanisms, to set emission caps,
and to encourage investment on increasing energy efficiency and clean technology development relying
on carbon emissions trading. The third is setting the Carbon Fund and the government should pay an
important role of the role of supporting and encouraging the development of low-carbon technologies.
Foreign experience can not be copied. combined with China's realities, there are two viable roads to
choose in the development of low-carbon economy: the first is continue to accelerate high-carbon
industrialization and advance low-carbon economy until reaching the level of developed countries. And
the second is from now transformation and to go directly to a low-carbon industrialization road. While
the former continue to walk this path, there has experience, technology is mature and the risk is small,
but are more likely to lose the unique opportunity for development, the consequences will inevitably
cause the conflict in resources and the environment. The latter is in contrast, although there are likely to
enjoy the "monopoly rent" of developing low-carbon economy, this is, after all, a new road being lack of
operational experience and hiding a huge risk.
So how should China choose exactly? From the external environment, as the world's largest developing
country, the third largest economy, the second largest energy consumption and carbon emissions
countries, in the increasingly fierce international competition, to achieve the "Peaceful Rise" must take
the lead in realizing the economic transition - undergoing the road of low-carbon economy with Chinese
characteristics. From within the perspective of sustainable development, If you continue to walk the
industrialization road of high-carbon, it is bound to rely heavily on the support of electric power and
other infrastructure. In accordance with the general experience, these infrastructures have large-scale
investment, long construction period and long period of use, easily in the technical foundation and social
infrastructure level, forming a "lock" effect or "path dependence". Then we can only become a
developed country a base for the transfer of carbon-intensive industries and once again lagging behind
in front of the new development opportunities.
The essence of China low-carbon road to industrialization is through the development of
low-carbon-style, across the inherent phase of the traditional industrialization path, through the “peak”
of carbon emission and realizes leap-forward development. As a developing country, if China want to
achieve industrialization transition from high-carbon to low carbon, it can through effective policy
measures, absorb, introduce and imitate sophisticated low-carbon production technology of the
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developed countries. These can develop from a higher starting point, have a more faster and better
development in the less cost of environment and resources and achieve the level of the developed
countries development at a smaller costs and a higher limitation. So the technology gap of low-carbon
can make China’s low-carbon industrialization having the late-development advantage. Developing
low-carbon economy is the first choice to achieve China's sustainable development.
In order to achieve low-carbon economic development, we must be promote low-carbon economy
through concept renewal, technological innovation, consumption innovation, management and structure
innovation, and handle with four low-carbon links such as the production, circulation, distribution and
consumption of low-carbon. Through low-carbon economy, technology, industry, energy, trade and
investment policy formulation and implementation, the land, capital, populations (human capital) and
other factors of production are be guide concentrating into the low-carbon technology R & D and, the
field of diffusions and the low-carbon industry. And further we participate into the new international
division of labor and are adapt to the international environment changes, and go out of the sustainable
development road under the constraints of a low-carbon economy.
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