What to do about China? It's a fraught question for anyone who cares about the environment. On the one hand, China may have already surpassed the U.S. in terms of greenhouse gas emissions; on the other, China is using all that energy to improve the lives of its people.
Can you ask a nation whose people are starving to lower its emissions? Not if you don't help them to do so. And help is exactly what China's minister of science and technology recently asked for:
China has called on the international community to increase the flow of technology to developing countries to help them fight climate change.
Wan Gang, minister of science and technology, said developed nations "need to establish a mechanism for technological transfer" of environmentally friendly technology so developing countries can afford them.
China - which rivals the US as the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases - has pledged to raise energy efficiency but has declined to sign up to internationally agreed emissions reductions.
Along with other developing countries such as India, China says their economies should not be penalised by binding cuts in emissions when their per capita emissions are much below those in developed countries.
Mr Wan said the solution to global warming lies in international cooperation and technology.
"Science and technological innovation will not only discover the nature of the problem we face, but also provide possible solutions to the climate change problem," he said.
From what I read, China is rapidly trying to grow all their energy sources. Solar, nuclear, LNG, the works.
Posted by: R Margolis at April 29, 2008 5:07 PM