Environmental commitments must be seen in light of the need for food and energy security, President tells PolitburoChinese President leader Xi Jinping. Picture: GETTY IMAGES/NICOLAS ASFOURI
Xi said China needs to make sure it has enough coal, and that oil and gas output grows steadily. His comments follow an unprecedented energy crisis that struck the nation in the autumn, as well the pledge made at last year’s climate talks in Glasgow to phase down the use of fossil fuels. In his latest comments, Xi also called China’s mission to reduce carbon “urgent and difficult” and said that cutting emissions can’t mean cutting productivity.
To a large degree, Xi’s intervention seems designed to set the tone for policymakers rather than signal any substantive change in direction. The government has already released five-year plans in recent weeks across a swathe of industries, including materials and energy efficiency, which build on last year’s overarching policy directive that will guide China’s economic development through 2025.
Curbing coal use is the best way for China to meet its commitments to limit the rise in global temperatures. But last year it was forced to ramp up production of the fuel to record levels to stave off the worst effects of the power crisis. Also of interest is that China’s latest five-year plan for energy efficiency failed to reiterate its target of reducing carbon intensity in the economy by 18%, which could suggest less emphasis on that measurement even as the nation advances its broader climate goals.
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