China claims to lead global climate change and handle domestic environmental issues after decades of unparallelled economic expansion. China has ambitious goals, from addressing smog in large cities to establishing a new “1+N” policy framework to demonstrate its commitment to its 2030 peak emissions and 2060 carbon neutrality targets. How successfully is the nation achieving its goals?
The World Economic Forum hosted Ma Jun. His Blue Map, China’s first public environmental database that tracks local air, water, and pollution statistics, seeks answers.
Ma, a journalist-turned-environmentalist and founding director of the nonprofit Institute of Public & Environmental Affairs (IPE), believes data and transparency can check China’s green ambitions.
Ma discussed the need for real-time, granular data to accelerate China’s greening with Harvard University Centre for the Environment director Professor Daniel Schrag at the Fairbank Centre for Chinese Studies’ Critical Issues Confronting China talk. This article will talk about the five key takeaways from the whole event.
China’s Progress Faces Obstacles
China has emerged from three years of COVID-19 confinement to volatile markets and escalating geopolitical tensions. Thus, economic concerns have trumped environmental and climatic activities. The European war has aggravated China’s energy crisis. Recent power shortages and disruptions show that, despite significant investments, the switch to renewable energy is far from complete.
Due to its relevance to energy security, coal plants are migrating from coastal regions and population centres to sparsely populated western provinces. Ma believes a detailed database will help provinces and cities share best practices and collaborate while spotting energy transition shortcomings.
Ma notes the rising climate problem in addition to economic and geopolitical issues. The Yangtze River Basin experienced an unusual months-long drought during the monsoon season. Two years ago, the Zhengzhou flooding highlighted climate change’s seriousness. “Increasingly, people are worried about climate change,” says Ma. China must address climate change occurrences like these to meet its green goals.
Concerns Around State-led Data Transparency
Ma’s Blue Map collects data from government agencies in environmental protection, water, land, and marine resources, housing, development, and industry. Ma recognises that data is sensitive, but he has seen a trend toward government transparency.
“Government agencies are getting better at transparency,” says Ma. For instance, China disclosed 162,000 environmental infraction data in 2017, up from 2,000 in 2006, demonstrating its willingness to confront issues like state-owned firms’ pollution violations.
China has implemented legislation requiring corporate environmental disclosure, which Ma applauds as honouring COP promises from Paris to Glasgow.
He said, “This is in keeping with worldwide corporate accountability.”
It is now possible to establish a corporate greenhouse gas emissions accounting platform and identify the embedded carbon content of products and services through voluntary and pioneering disclosures. The Blue Map tracks roughly a million firms to assist with green financing, undertake due diligence, and provide supply chain transparency to combat climate change.
Data Drives Citizen Action
Data empowers citizens to report local issues at the grassroots level. The Blue Map helps Chinese people comprehend and visualise environmental data so they may report local infractions on social media, and micro-report, and hold firms and the government accountable for their green commitments.
“We colour code the data and make it easy for citizens to share this data via social media to facilitate micro-reporting,” explains Ma, while adding, “This has compelled hundreds of emitters to resolve their environmental violations.”
Ma stresses that public activities have reduced air and water pollution like smog. Beijing’s PM 2.5 concentration has dropped by two-thirds, improving air quality. Climate change is harder to address collectively because local consequences are less noticeable and public opinion is harder to generate.
Ma says “The effects of climate change are not as visible locally compared to other problems like air and water pollution,” while remaining optimistic that province- and city-level indexes would inspire action.
Requirement Of Strong Data Infrastructure
China has devised a top-level strategy to meet carbon peak and neutrality dates. Step-by-step movement involves coordination among many moving pieces, says Ma. A carbon map that breaks down emissions and energy usage by provinces and cities will reveal which regions are leading and which are lagging.
With an examination of listed firms, a carbon peak and neutrality index can help China take better climate action.
“The objective with this database is not simply to detect shortcomings but also to exchange best practices,” says Ma.
In his presentation, “Blue Map and Green Choice,” Ma emphasises that China may focus on emissions sources instead of end-of-pipe technologies by creating a strong data infrastructure. In the end, Ma wants Chinese people to know they have better, greener future options.
Prospects For Global Collaborations
“There is a chance for collaboration,” Ma says, as he wants to create a worldwide tracking system to hold firms accountable for the Paris COP 1.5 degree Celsius objective. Ma thinks the key to reaching peak emissions in China in seven years is involving stakeholders beyond the government, 68% of those efforts are by corporations.
His database increases company-level data to ensure that local companies know their environmental track records, apart from multinational players like Gap, H&M, and Uniqlo enhancing their supply chains by raising sourcing standards.
Additionally, Ma emphasises the need for worldwide efforts to create a global tracking system. After the talk, Ma and Professor Schrag agree that the United States, China, and other nations must collaborate to raise corporate climate change accountability and address climate change collectively.
China’s journey towards achieving its ambitious environmental goals is marked by both progress and challenges. Despite economic concerns and geopolitical tensions, the nation is actively working towards its 2030 peak emissions and 2060 carbon neutrality targets. Ma Jun’s Blue Map initiative exemplifies the importance of data transparency in monitoring and accelerating China’s green initiatives.
Key takeaways reveal the complexities involved in China’s green progress, including economic priorities, climate-related challenges, and the need for robust data infrastructure. Government-led improvements in data transparency are enhancing environmental accountability, empowering citizens to engage in grassroots activism, and driving corporate responsibility.
As China navigates its climate journey, collaboration emerges as a crucial component. Ma Jun advocates for international cooperation to hold corporations accountable for climate action and establish global tracking systems. The partnership between the U.S., China, and other nations is essential in collectively addressing climate change and fostering sustainable practices on a global scale.