"Winter Olympics Economic Spillover Effects" Series Four:
"Low-carbon spring breeze" blows out of the Winter Olympics, China's actions light up a "green future"
People's Daily Online reporter Wang Renhong
Inside the arena, the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics are full of splendor; outside the arena, the enthusiasm for ice and snow sports is high, the consumption of ice and snow is heating up, and the ice and snow industry is booming driven by low-carbon technology and digital technology.
Taking advantage of the East Wind of the Winter Olympics, People's Daily Online launched a series of reports on "Winter Olympics Economic Spillover Effect", explaining from multiple perspectives that "Ice and snow are also invaluable assets", showing the strong economic spillover effects of Winter Olympics + and Ice + Snow +.
On February 20, the 24th Winter Olympic Games officially closed at the National Stadium.
At 21:35, in the singing of "Snowflake", the main torch "Big Snowflake" was slowly descending and the Olympic rings were rising, and the Olympic flame that had been burning for 16 days gradually went out.
Recalling that 16 days ago, at the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics, the lighting ceremony was presented in a unique way - the snowflake platform, which symbolized the unity and gathering of the 91 participating delegations, radiated dazzling light.
The "flying" torch was embedded in the snowflake platform, and the Olympic fire burned in the form of "micro-fire" in the National Stadium, illuminating the entire bird's nest.
A cluster of small flames has become another classic moment in the history of Olympic development.
The creative design of the torch lighting of the Winter Olympics further confirms China's firm determination to reduce carbon emissions.
Behind this grand event, the high-quality development potential hidden behind each green achievement is also revealed.
The "green fruit" of the Winter Olympics
At the press conference held by the International Olympic Committee and the Beijing Winter Olympics Organizing Committee, Li Sen, Director of the General Planning Department of the Beijing Winter Olympics Organizing Committee, used the keywords of "low carbon management" and "ecological protection" to summarize the preparation practices of the Winter Olympics The achievements of the "Green Olympic Games".
The "Flying" torch is embedded, and the snowflake platform rotates and rises, forming the main torch of the Beijing Winter Olympics.
It is reported that the carbon emission of "micro-fire" is only about 1/5000 of the traditional way of burning.
"Small Fire" is a vivid practice of the concept of "green Olympics". The shadow of energy saving and environmental protection can be seen everywhere inside and outside the stadium.
——For the first time in the history of the Olympic Games, 100% green electricity was used, and wind, photovoltaic, hydropower, etc. from Zhangjiakou were continuously delivered to 26 venues in 3 competition areas.
——A large number of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles were invested in transportation support during the competition. Energy-saving and clean energy vehicles accounted for 85.84% of all vehicles, the highest in the previous Winter Olympics.
——The large-scale use of carbon dioxide transcritical direct refrigeration systems in ice venues not only makes the temperature difference between the ice surface smaller and the state more stable, but also makes the venues carbon emissions close to zero.
——Maximizing the use of existing venues and facilities, the "Water Cube" has been transformed into an "Ice Cube", and many sports venues have been transformed into winter and summer projects through renovation and upgrading.
At the same time, all newly built and renovated venues and facilities meet the green building standards, which not only provides a healthy and comfortable living environment for athletes from all over the world, but also sets an example in saving resources, protecting the environment, and treating waste and wastewater.
"The Olympic Games are a platform for showcasing innovative solutions," said Marie Sarua, Director of Corporate and Sustainable Development at the International Olympic Committee. She visited Beijing in 2008 and is now back in Beijing after 14 years. The outstanding feeling is that the 2008 Olympic Games venues have been transformed into "Double Olympic Stadiums" after renovation and reuse. This mode of venue utilization brings together the sustainable advantages of previous Olympic Games and provides a reference for future Olympic Games.
According to Shakir Lamai, CEO of Pakistan's Asian Ecological Civilization Research and Development Institute, building the Winter Olympic venues in a low-carbon way fully felt China's attitude towards green development.
This once again shows the world that China has achieved green and sustainable economic and social development through technological innovation.
Innovative Practice of "Green Winter Olympics"
The Winter Olympics is not only a sports event, but also a window for my country to practice green development and show the world its responsibility for emission reduction and carbon reduction. Behind it is the unremitting efforts and struggles of the Winter Olympics builders.
Located on Xiaohaituo Mountain at an altitude of 2,199 meters in Yanqing District, Beijing, the National Snowmobile and Sleigh Center is like a "Snow Dragon" nestled in the mountains.
Here, a number of Winter Olympics events such as men's double sled, quadruple sled, and women's single sled have been held successively.
"In the construction of venues in high-altitude mountains, how to practice the concept of 'green Winter Olympics' and break down technical barriers has become a difficult problem for us." said Zhao Anguang, chief engineer of the Shanghai Baoye National Snowmobile and Sled Center Project.
In order to minimize the impact of the stadium construction on the surrounding ecology, at the beginning of the construction, the project team protected the original trees in situ or ex situ, and stripped about 11,600 cubic meters of topsoil rich in organic matter and rare seeds to preserve the precious materials in the competition area. Topsoil and seed bank resources are used for the subsequent ecological restoration of the venue.
The ecological protection of the competition area is the epitome of "green Olympics", behind which is the process of countless scientific research and staff working silently and long-term to achieve the goal of "more environmentally friendly".
It is reported that the 7 ice venues and 9 ice surfaces newly built and renovated at the Winter Olympics have innovatively used environmentally friendly refrigeration systems and refrigerants.
Taking the "Ice Ribbon" as an example, the newly-built National Speed Skating Stadium "Ice Ribbon" has an ice surface area of nearly 12,000 square meters.
Such a huge ice surface area means a huge demand for ice. If traditional ice-making materials such as Freon are used, it will undoubtedly generate a lot of energy consumption.
According to experts' calculations, under the same dosage, the carbon emissions produced by traditional ice-making technology are nearly 4,000 times that of carbon dioxide refrigerants.
Experts from international individual sports organizations have said that the national speed skating hall can meet the standards of the Winter Olympics by using the internationally used environmentally friendly ice-making technology.
"But after 18 months of exploration, the Chinese team turned over the information on the refrigeration systems of the speed skating halls in the previous Winter Olympics, analyzed the advantages and disadvantages of all refrigerants in the world one by one, and finally came up with a more advanced ice-making technology."
"Over the past six years, we have minimized carbon emissions through measures such as low-carbon venues, low-carbon energy, low-carbon transportation, and low-carbon offices. At the same time, we have adopted forestry carbon sinks and corporate donations to achieve carbon compensation, thus ensuring the The carbon neutrality goal of the Beijing Winter Olympics has been successfully achieved," said Li Sen.
"Low-carbon spring breeze" blows from the stadium to the whole country
A few days ago, the British "Nature" magazine quoted Michael Davidson, an energy systems researcher at the University of California, San Diego, as saying that the Beijing Winter Olympics will reduce carbon emissions by about 1.3 million tons.
The result "demonstrates that carbon neutrality is possible in a more comprehensive campaign".
Among the green achievements of the Beijing Winter Olympics, there is a huge potential for China's green development.
Many companies have expressed that the platform of the Winter Olympics has improved the society's awareness of the environmental protection industry, which will play an important role in promoting application promotion and cross-field cooperation in the future.
It is understood that after the Winter Olympics, the renewable power resources from Zhangbei area will continue to be transported to Beijing Yanqing and other places to increase the proportion of renewable power resources in Beijing.
Shen Yu, member of the Party Committee and Deputy General Manager of State Grid Hebei Zhangjiakou Wind Power Storage and Transmission New Energy Co., Ltd., said that the 100% green power supply for the Winter Olympics venues is a concentrated demonstration of my country's continuous breakthroughs in new energy technology over the years. It reflects the effectiveness and reliability of new energy power supply.
"Through the Winter Olympics platform, the public and industry's awareness and recognition of green power has been enhanced, and our confidence in green power applications has been enhanced. play an important role.”
The relevant person in charge of Toyota China is also optimistic about the development prospects of clean energy vehicles in China.
It is reported that Toyota China provided a total of 2,205 clean energy vehicles for the Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympics.
In order to meet the needs of vehicles in high-slope, low-temperature, and slippery mountain environments, it has developed a new hydrogen energy battery model specially for the event.
"It can be said that the development of Toyota's FC (hydrogen fuel cell) business in China has ushered in a new milestone with the opportunity of the Beijing Winter Olympics and Winter Paralympics. We will plan to continue to expand the development of hydrogen energy business with relevant partners. Help promote the development of China's hydrogen energy industry." The person in charge said.
Although the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics has ended, in the spring breeze of the "Green Olympics", the concept of green, low-carbon and sustainable development will be more deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and will continue to release a strong impetus for the development of green industries.
(Wang Lianxiang and Li Nanhua also contributed to this article.)