(East-West Question) Sun Faping: What can the "third pole of the world" do to achieve the "dual carbon" goal?
China News Agency, Xining, April 22, title: Sun Faping: What can the "third pole of the world" do to achieve the "dual carbon" goal?
China News Agency reporter Pan Yujie
Today is Earth Day.
It has become an international consensus to cherish the earth and promote the harmonious coexistence of man and nature.
As an advocate and practitioner of ecological civilization construction, China has clearly stated that carbon dioxide emissions "strive to peak before 2030, and strive to achieve carbon neutrality before 2060".
What does China's "dual carbon" goal mean for the world?
As the "third pole of the earth", what special role does the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau play in restraining climate warming, and what useful references can it provide for the practice of "dual carbon"?
China News Agency "East and West Questions" recently interviewed Sun Faping, vice president and researcher of Qinghai Academy of Social Sciences, to answer the above questions.
The following is a summary of the interview transcript:
China News Service: At the 75th United Nations General Assembly in September 2020, China made it clear for the first time that its carbon dioxide emissions “strive to peak by 2030 and strive to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060”. Why did China propose this goal?
Sun Faping:
Since the Industrial Revolution, human activities have burned fossil fuels, and a large amount of carbon dioxide emitted from industrial processes, as well as changes in agriculture, forestry and land use, has remained in the atmosphere, becoming the main cause of global warming.
According to 2020 data from the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, total global greenhouse gas emissions have grown by an average of 1.4% annually since 2010, reaching a record high in 2019.
In response to climate change, more than 190 parties around the world signed the Paris Agreement, the core of which is to strive to limit the increase in global average temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels by the end of the century.
At present, with the spread of the new crown epidemic around the world, it has caused people to deeply reflect on the relationship with nature and pay attention to climate governance.
On November 13, 2021, the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) concluded, and the parties finally completed the implementation rules of the Paris Agreement.
Photo courtesy of the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change issued by China News Agency
In this context, 46 countries and regions have achieved "carbon peaks", mainly developed countries.
At the 75th United Nations General Assembly in September 2020, China first proposed the goal of “strive to peak by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060” for carbon dioxide emissions.
This means that in the next 40 years, China will face enormous challenges such as economic restructuring, industrial upgrading, and energy structure optimization.
Adhering to the concept of a community with a shared future for mankind, China has taken the initiative to increase its nationally determined contribution, and put forward this "dual-carbon" goal in a "self-pressured" manner, reflecting its determination to work with the world to tackle climate change and its responsibility as a major country in the face of human problems.
China News Service reporter: Why do you say that "achieving carbon peaking and carbon neutrality is a broad and profound economic and social systemic change"?
Sun Faping:
From a global perspective, the realization of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality is no less significant than the three industrial revolutions.
Since the 1760s, human beings have successively experienced the age of steam, electricity, atomic energy and information, from handicraft workshops to large-scale machine industry, to assembly line production and artificial intelligence. In the process of industrialization, with the great increase in productivity, people's behaviors and thoughts have also changed. Huge changes have taken place.
Although "Double Carbon" does not have a symbolic product of the times, it is similar to the three industrial revolutions. With the major adjustment of the economic structure, people's lifestyles, consumption preferences, and value concepts have been "updated", the goal pursued by technological innovation. It will also achieve a major shift from "improving efficiency" to "circular sustainability", and its influence will penetrate widely and lastingly into all aspects of social life.
It should be recognized that at present, China has achieved comprehensive poverty alleviation and is firmly ranked as the second largest economy in the world. Although the "dual carbon" goal brings great challenges, it is more in line with the laws of economic and social development, and pursues ecological civilization, green technology and low-carbon life. , phasing out high-energy-consuming and high-polluting industries is an inevitable demand for high-quality development.
China News Service: What special role does the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau play in restraining global warming? What useful references can this region provide for the regional realization path of "dual carbon"?
Sun Faping:
The Qinghai- Tibet Plateau is known as the "roof of the world" and "the third pole of the earth". It is an extremely important ecological security barrier for human living environment and sustainable development, and also plays an important role as an ecological carbon sink.
Relevant studies have shown that the grassland ecosystem on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau accounts for 14% of China's carbon sink; the glacier covers an area of about 47,000 square kilometers, which is the concentration of glaciers in the middle and low latitudes of the earth; the storage of different types of wetlands and soil organic carbon reaches 160 billion tons The permafrost regions are important organic carbon pools.
Therefore, protecting the ecosystem of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is of great significance for conserving carbon sink function, improving the ability of natural carbon absorption, and controlling the increase of greenhouse gases.
Zigtang Cuo, a lake in Nagqu Plateau, Tibet.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Sun Zifa
Restricted by geographical and climatic conditions, the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau has a small population and an underdeveloped economy for a long time.
Taking Qinghai Province in this region as an example, it has long relied on mineral resources to develop its economy, and the heavy chemical industry with high pollution and high consumption accounts for about 80% of the industry.
However, taking advantage of the plateau's natural conditions of "rich light, abundant water and good wind", in recent years, the construction of 10 million kilowatt-level renewable energy bases, innovative technologies, and various high-tech industries in developed areas have promoted the upgrading and optimization of local industries and energy structures. .
By the end of 2021, Qinghai Province will account for over 90% of the installed capacity of clean energy, and will build China's first UHV delivery channel for 100% clean energy.
Talatan Photovoltaic Industrial Park, Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Ma Mingyan
Due to the randomness of clean energy power generation, it will be affected by uncertain factors such as water conditions and weather, and it is easy to cause the problem of "dry winters and summers, abundant days and nights" in the operation of the power grid.
To this end, the local government of Qinghai has built the world's largest hydro-solar hybrid power generation project by building a "wind-solar, water-storage and multi-energy complementation" model, innovating and breaking through key technologies, effectively improving peak shaving capabilities and making power transmission more stable.
At the same time, as a region rich in carbon sinks in western China, Qinghai takes advantage of electricity prices to attract high-capacity, low-emission enterprises and upstream and downstream industries such as data centers in the east to settle in the local area, realize "the east is counted in the west", and improve the level of local industrialization to achieve A win-win situation between industrial integration and local consumption of new energy.
From the example of Qinghai, it can be seen that in the process of realizing the "dual carbon", the economic development of the region will be restricted in the short term. Regional development brings historic opportunities.
China News Agency reporter: Taking the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau as an example, could you please talk about how to enhance the synergistic effect of ecology and society in the process of realizing "dual carbon"?
Sun Faping:
98.5% of the Tala Beach on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau was once desertified land, with little precipitation, no grass and yellow sand, which seriously affected the ecological security of the upper reaches of the Yellow River.
However, taking advantage of the high altitude and sufficient sunshine, the photovoltaic power generation base has been built in this area since 2012, and the area has now expanded to more than 600 square kilometers.
On the Gobi Desert, solar photovoltaic modules are arranged in concentric circles, which can effectively block and reduce wind speed. Regular cleaning of photovoltaic panels increases the amount of watering, and the shaded part of the board can reduce water evaporation. Plateau ecological crops such as thorngrass, grassland vegetation restoration, overall environment improvement, and "photovoltaic ocean" built on the vast and flat desertified land. Nearby herdsmen help to clean photovoltaic panels and battery components, and raise "photovoltaic sheep", which increases economic income. .
Sheep graze in Qinghai Talatan Photovoltaic Industrial Park.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Ma Mingyan
In recent years, many places in China have adopted the "photovoltaic poverty alleviation" model to build distributed photovoltaic power generation applications on the roofs and idle land of rural residents. Different regions have also carried out "new energy + "project.
These practices coordinate ecological effects and social development, and are consistent with the ultimate goal of "Double Carbon" to solve the problems of protection and development and improve human well-being.
China News Service reporter: In your opinion, how should countries or regions solve the "contradiction triangle" of low carbon, economy and security in practice?
Sun Faping:
From international experience, the full decoupling of economic development and carbon emissions requires the full completion of industrialization, the development of science and technology and the maturity of the market adjustment mechanism.
In underdeveloped areas similar to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the level of industrialization and urbanization is still rising, and it is difficult to reduce the demand for energy consumption and carbon emissions. The low-carbon development model will inevitably reduce the economy in the short term.
Zaduo County, Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Li Jiangning
As far as one is concerned, developing first and then reducing carbon, or blindly seeking speed, and going to high-energy and high-energy-consuming industries before iterative technologies and industries appear are all trends that should be avoided.
Achieving "Double Carbon" requires systematic planning, scientifically setting peaks, first establishing and then breaking. From a long-term perspective, it is necessary to anticipate and manage multiple factors such as ecological protection, low-carbon development, industrial construction, employment stability, and people's livelihood security, and issue practical regulations and policies. , coordinate the progress, and reduce carbon and increase sinks in a safe and step-by-step manner.
I believe that in the implementation stage of the target, regions can ignore carbon sinks and increase income, and take the equalization of carbon sources and carbon sinks as the guide to accelerate the introduction of new energy, new materials, digital economy and other industries that supplement the chain, extend the chain, and strengthen the chain, and gradually replace the high load. The industry can attract employment.
At the same time, strengthen energy conservation in key areas such as industry, commerce, transportation, and construction, continue to improve the stability of the ecosystem, advocate a green and low-carbon life for all, and ultimately achieve a balance between low-carbon, economy and security.
China News Service reporter: In your opinion, under the "dual carbon" goal, how can China strengthen cooperation with countries along the "Belt and Road"?
Sun Faping:
In recent years, in the process of realizing the "dual carbon", China has strengthened energy cooperation with countries along the "Belt and Road" by connecting the infrastructure construction and market consumption needs along the "Belt and Road".
The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is an important land passage from China's inland to South Asia. South Asian countries can strengthen regional linkages with China's Qinghai-Tibet region, and organize personnel training and technical exchanges in clean energy industries such as electricity and photovoltaics.
Taking Nepal as an example, the country has abundant hydropower reserves, but insufficient hydropower construction, and the utilization rate of hydropower resources development is less than 3%.
Cooperation with Qinghai, Tibet and other places in China can effectively alleviate the shortage of power supply in Nepal, and can also export to neighboring countries and create foreign exchange income.
At the same time, the cooperation also creates opportunities for China's clean energy companies, and drives the export of photovoltaic cells, wind turbines and other supporting components and technology output.
(Finish)
Interviewee Profile:
Sun Faping, vice president and researcher of Qinghai Academy of Social Sciences, won the honorary titles of "special allowance expert of the State Council", "Qinghai scholar" and "outstanding talent" of Qinghai Province.
He has been engaged in the research and teaching of economic development strategy, regional economics and Qinghai economic issues for a long time. He has been independent, cooperative and editor-in-chief of more than 10 books, and has published more than 100 papers in newspapers such as Guangming Daily, Economic Daily, and Qinghai Social Sciences. , presided over and participated in the completion of 2 National Social Science Fund projects, 9 social science planning projects in Qinghai Province, more than 40 entrusted projects of various types, and more than 60 think tank reports, and won 4 first prizes for outstanding achievements in philosophy and social sciences in Qinghai Province, 2 second prizes, and more than 20 think tank reports have received affirmative instructions from leaders at or above the provincial and ministerial level.