China, the 'world's factory', has launched a new project to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions by targeting rural enterprises.
BEIJING: China, the 'world's factory', has launched a new project to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions by targeting rural enterprises.
Funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), a technological transformation programme is helping 100 rural enterprises save China 451,000 tonnes of coal and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1.13 million tonnes annually, Vice Minister of Agriculture, Wei Chaoan said.
Only eight firms signed up for the project in March 2001 when it was launched with a fund of $8 million from GEF.
The project aims to help Chinese rural enterprises in the brick-making, cement, foundry and coking sectors reduce GHG emissions by improving their production methods.
Statistics show rural enterprises in the four sectors account for 16.7 per cent of China's carbon dioxide emissions and use up 56 per cent of the energy consumed by all Chinese rural firms.
China has 23 million rural enterprises, producing 30 per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) and providing 143 million unskilled farmers with job opportunities.
"These enterprises used to be bedevilled with environmental problems such as low energy efficiency, high consumption and heavy pollution", an official with the Project of Energy Efficiency and GHG Emissions Reduction for Chinese Rural Enterprises, Wang Xiwu said.
The 100 rural enterprises were chosen as "role models" to encourage more firms to take part in the programme, as well as to exhibit the government's resolution in reducing greenhouse gas.
Wei said an increasing number of rural enterprises have voluntarily signed mid- and long-term pledges with local governments, promising to reduce energy consumption and GHG emissions, another official with the Ministry of Agriculture said.
The government in turn have allowed them to enjoy preferential policies in tax payments, fund raising and technological research, Bai said.
As a developing country, China is not obligated to meet targets set by the Kyoto Protocol, under which 38 industrialised countries must reduce their GHG emissions by an average of 5.2 per cent below 1990 levels, during the period 2008 to 2012.
But the Chinese government realised it must do its part to slow global warming as the country has become the world's second largest carbon dioxide emitter and is likely to overtake the United States in the near future.
Carbon dioxide is produced by burning coal, oil and gas for heat, power and transportation and scientists believe it is a major contributor to global warming.
The challenge of reducing energy consumption and GHG emissions has proved arduous as China's economy grew 11.1 per cent in the first quarter but power consumption surged 14.9 per cent, suggesting there had been no major changes in the country's overall emissions trend.
China has set a target of reducing energy consumption for every 10,000 yuan ($1,298) of GDP by 20 per cent by 2010 while pollutant discharge should drop by 10 per cent.
China has vowed to advance reforms in the pricing of natural gas, water and other resources, raise the tax levied on the discharge of pollutants and severely punish those who violate environmental protection laws.
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