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China's President Hu Jintao addresses the Summit on Climate Change at United Nations headquarters in New York - Source: Reuters -
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Chinese President Hu Jintao promised to put a notable brake on
the country's rapidly rising carbon emissions, but dashed hopes he
would unveil a hard target to kick-start stalled climate
talks.
The leader of the world's biggest emitter told a United Nations
summit that China would pledge to cut carbon intensity, or the
amount of carbon dioxide produced for each dollar of economic
output, over the decade to 2020.
His promise is a landmark because China had previously rejected
rich nations' demands for measurable curbs on its emissions,
arguing that economic development must come first while millions of
its citizens still live in deep poverty.
"It's still a very significant step - a Chinese leader standing on
that platform and saying China will make a mid-term carbon
intensity target," said Yang Ailun of Greenpeace China.
"We should think of this as a clear signal that China wants to
de-couple carbon emissions from economic growth," she said.
But without a firm figure attached, the offer to reduce emissions
intensity may not be enough to rekindle faltering talks on a new
global deal to tackle climate change.
Hu said only that carbon intensity would come down by a notable
margin by 2020 from the 2005 levels, which still leaves Beijing and
other major powers room for manoeuvre before final negotiations in
Copenhagen in December.
"I didn't hear new initiatives so much," said Todd Stern, special
envoy on climate change in the United States, one of the most vocal
critics of China's emissions policy.
"It depends on what the number is and he didn't indicate the extent
to which those reductions would be made."
But Xie Zhenhua, China's top environment official, later told
reporters China would soon unveil a target, based on projections
that by 2020 it will double its use of renewable energy and
dramatically cut energy use per dollar of GDP.
"After further study and discussion, we should be able to announce
a target soon," he said in New York.
Hu's choice of a global stage to answer rich nation demands that
China take stronger, verifiable steps to control carbon dioxide
output was a sign of how rapidly climate change has risen up the
agenda of leaders in Beijing.
The country's geography has made it particularly vulnerable to the
effects of a warming world, from droughts to flooding and rising
sea levels, adding to their sense of urgency.
Impressive leadership
Nobel laureate Al Gore praised China for impressive leadership and
said Hu's goals pointed to more action.
"They are very important and we've had ... indications that in the
event there is dramatic progress in this negotiation, that China
will be prepared to do even more," he said.
Hu also made clear, however, that China had high expectations from
the rest of the world, repeating a long-standing request for more
support in moving away from dirty growth.
Backed by India and other developing nations, China argues that
rich nations emit more per person and enjoyed an
emissions-intensive industrialization, so they have no right to
demand others do differently - unless they are willing to pay for
it.
"Developed countries should take up their responsibility and
provide new, additional, adequate and predictable financial support
to developing countries," Hu said.
Hu also repeated well-established targets including boosting the
portion of renewables in China's energy mix, to 15% by 2020, as the
country strives to move away from dirty coal.
Beijing's worries about energy security and severe pollution have
already prompted the introduction of an energy intensity target
from 2006.
A carbon target should speed up a planned boost in renewables
like wind and hydropower.
It will also appeal to those in the financial industry who hope to
see China set up a carbon trading scheme, because Beijing will be
forced to step up its ability to measure output of the gasses,
which is key to any market in credits to emit.
But while carbon intensity is a financially viable way to contain
emissions growth, if economies expand too fast, even massive
improvements in efficiency might not be enough to contain
dangerously high output of greenhouse gasses.
