Guided by the philosophy that “Green is Gold,” China will advance the goals of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality by coordinating actions to cut carbon, reduce pollution, expand green capacity, and promote growth.
by Mei Xin
On Nov. 19, a mobilization meeting was held in Beijing before China launched the latest round of national ecological and environmental inspections.
After the meeting, ten inspection teams were dispatched to carry out routine inspections in regions including Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei, as well as five major state-owned enterprises. Meanwhile, another set of missions will focus on the ecological protection of the Grand Canal, an iconic and historical waterway running through eight provinces, from Beijing in the north all the way to Zhejiang Province in the south.
This epitomizes the range of efforts that China is making to build a beautiful home for the Chinese people. In the Recommendations for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development adopted in October, a resounding message was sent: “Green development is a defining feature of Chinese modernization.”
Guided by the philosophy that “Green is Gold,” China will advance the goals of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality by coordinating actions to cut carbon, reduce pollution, expand green capacity, and promote growth. To drive this comprehensive green transformation, the Recommendations outline four key priorities.
A CARBON-CENTERED POLICY FRAMEWORK
It features dual controls on both total carbon emissions and emission intensity. Accelerating its establishment will serve as a key steering mechanism for China’s green transition, enabling a shift from controlling overall energy consumption to more precise, quality-based carbon management. This will allow China to pursue its emission-reduction goals more directly and effectively.
To that end, a complete set of mechanisms will be established, including carbon performance assessments for local governments, carbon management for industries, enterprises, and projects, and product-level carbon footprint tracking.
Together, these systems will form an integrated network of incentives and constraints that align all sectors toward emission reduction.
A GREEN AND LOW-CARBON ENERGY SYSTEM
The aim of the Chinese government is that by the end of the 15th Five-Year Plan period, most of the new electricity demand will be met by new clean-energy generation.
To that end, China will pursue three main pathways:
1. Expanding non-fossil energy and accelerating the construction of major wind, solar, hydro as well as nuclear power bases, while developing biomass, geothermal, and ocean energy according to local conditions.
2. Making fossil fuels cleaner, shifting the role of coal-fired power from a basic source of supply to a flexible, supporting one.
3. Building a modern power system, ensuring that green electricity can be generated, transmitted, and fully used through coordinated upgrades in generation, grids, and end-use systems.
GREENING INDUSTRIAL STRUCTURE
China is pursuing a dual strategy of industrial “addition and subtraction,” simultaneously bolstering new green growth engines and phasing out outdated, high-polluting capacity.
Specifically, China will expand the green and low-carbon industrial chain. During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, China plans to build about 100 national-level zero-carbon industrial parks and implement targeted energy-saving and emission-cutting campaigns in key sectors such as steel, non-ferrous metals and petrochemicals. These efforts are projected to save over 150 million tonnes of standard coal and cut carbon dioxide emissions by about 400 million tonnes.
PROMOTING GREEN PRODUCTION AND LIFESTYLES
The transition will change how goods are made and how people live.
On the production side, by 2030, the annual reuse of major solid wastes is expected to reach 4.5 billion tonnes. Energy-saving retrofits of buildings and municipal facilities will accelerate, and rail-and-water transport will take a larger share of bulk cargo.
On the consumer side, nationwide campaigns will promote low-carbon, living-saving food, water and electricity, sorting household waste and using green products and services to make sustainable lifestyles part of everyday life.
TOWARD A BEAUTIFUL CHINA
These four pillars will move China toward its long-term vision: a green economy, a cleaner environment, with ecological well-being and economic prosperity reinforcing each other.
Looking ahead, a “Beautiful China” — with bluer skies, greener mountains and cleaner waters — is moving from vision to reality, offering a vivid illustration of a modernization path where humanity and nature truly thrive together.
Editor’s note: Mei Xin is an observer of international affairs.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Xinhua News Agency.■
