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Copenhagen Positions

Historical and Projected Data

International Climate Policy

China is at the center of the debate over how the agreement in Copenhagen should include developing country commitments to reduce GHG pollution, in keeping with the “common but differentiated responsibilities” principle that was at the foundation of the original 1992 UN Climate Convention. ¹ China is now putting more GHG into the atmosphere than any other country, though its cumulative contribution is much smaller, and on a per capita basis, is a fraction of the United States and other industrialized countries.   However, though per capita emissions of China remain low as a whole, it has also  been recently noted that parts of China have per capita emissions approaching those of some European countries. ²

In the past two years, China has demonstrated a more flexible stance in the negotiations regarding what types of developing country commitments should be discussed, both in the UN process as well as within other international for a such as the Major Economies Forum (MEF), recognizing their essential role in curbing global GHG pollution.  Differently from India, China has been more public in acknowledging that a continued focus on a common per-capita emissions level is not feasible or helpful, “China will not continue growing emissions without limit or insist that all nations must have the same per-capita emissions. If we did that, this earth would be ruined.” ³

However, China is insistent that stronger reduction commitments from the developing world, and the United States in particular, must be part of a Copenhagen package, along with substantial new sources of support to fund low carbon growth in developing countries.⁴ Driven by a dual desire curb its pollution growth and to address growing energy security concern, China is particularly interested in greater access to low carbon technologies, which it is pursuing both on a bi-lateral basis with many countries as well as within the Copenhagen negotiations.⁵

Just days after US President Barack Obama announced specific emissions reductions targets, China President Hu Jintao announced that the Standing Committee of China’s State Council (China’s highest policy making body) had taken a decision that China would cut carbon emissions per unit of economic output by up to 40-45 percent by 2020 versus 2005 levels, in what is called a reduction in carbon intensity.   This goal marks a  shift from focusing separately on three major components of its climate policy—-energy efficiency, the mix of energy sources, and reforestation policy—-to using a single metric to define their goal in terms of reducing the amount of greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere.

Specific Domestic Strategies

1. Reducing overall national energy intensity by 20% by 2010.

Implementing a 2005 policy, China reduced its energy used per unit of GDP by 1.79% in 2006, 4.04% in 2007, and 4.59% in 2008.

Windpower Investment. China is currently the world’s fastest-growing installer of wind turbines, installing 6.3 GW of new wind power in 2008, with total installed capacity reaching 12.2 GW. Following the success in Spain and Germany, Chinese utilities pay fixed rates for new power – called “feed-in tariffs” – that are higher than those paid for electricity from coal to provide an additional incentive for wind power.

Solar Explosion: China is the world’s largest PV producer –though most of the panels are produced for export.  To spur stronger domestic installation, the Chinese government has announced increased spending on R&D and subsidies for installing PV systems.

Negotiation Bloc:  G-77 & China
Participant in: Major Economies Forum (MEF), G20

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