Source: Official WeChat account of the Global Times
The Economist magazine stated in an article that China's carbon dioxide emissions may have already reached their peak.
Before introducing this article from The Economist, let us briefly explain what it means for carbon dioxide emissions to reach their peak and why this is significant.
According to official documents and media reports in China, reaching the peak of carbon dioxide emissions (also known as "carbon peaking") refers to a point where a region's carbon dioxide emissions reach their historical maximum and then stabilize with fluctuations before beginning a continuous decline.
Therefore, this is considered the "historical turning point" where carbon dioxide emissions shift from increasing to decreasing. It holds significant importance not only for China's path towards green, low-carbon, and circular development but also for achieving high-quality development and addressing global climate change issues.
Meanwhile, The Economist published an article on May 29th stating that China might have reached this crucial moment. A recent analysis report released by the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), a Finnish think tank, shows that during the 12 months from last March to this March, China's carbon emissions decreased by 1% compared to the previous cycle.
The Economist noted that this news sparked "cautious celebrations" among environmentalists—after all, given the size of China's economy and industry, if this trend continues and can be corroborated by other signs, its impact will be profound.
The Economist also believes that this situation is related to China's decreasing reliance on fossil fuels. This Western media outlet mentioned that although coal remains a key pillar of China's energy mix, China is also increasing the proportion of clean energy such as wind power, solar power, and nuclear power at a rate greater than the combined efforts of all other countries and regions globally. Currently, half of the world's under-construction nuclear power plants are in China; data from China's National Energy Administration shows that in 2024, despite having cumulative installed capacity of 441,430,000 kilowatts for wind power and 609,490,000 kilowatts for solar power, China added another 79,250,000 kilowatts and 277,170,000 kilowatts respectively.
When introducing these figures, The Economist made an intuitive comparison with the UK and the US, stating that China's cumulative installed capacity for wind power is five times that of the entire UK grid, while its cumulative installed capacity for solar power is nearly four times that of the US.
In the conclusion of the article, The Economist believes that although climate change still poses uncertainties to China's emission reduction efforts, reaching the peak of carbon dioxide emissions is inevitable. If it hasn't happened yet, China is likely to achieve this goal within the next few years.
Previously, China's official commitment was to achieve carbon peaking before 2030 and carbon neutrality before 2060.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7510371634512020022/
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