Climate Change: China Innovating in the Clean Coal Technology Market
| Author | Sarah Jessup |
| Position | PhD, Director of the China Program at the Creative and Innovative Economy Center (CIEC), George Washington University Law School, focuses attention on China's initiatives to develop clean coal and alternative energy technologies |
China is regarded as one of the world's leading emitters of greenhouse gas (GHG). It is reported that some 70 percent of China's energy comes from coal, the greatest part of which is burned in outdated power plants that are primary contributors to GHG.1
Coal is still used in most home stoves for cooking and heating as well as by big power companies for generating electricity, using processes that produce high levels of wasted heat. About 86 percent of coal is burned with limited pollution controlling measures; flues are poorly maintained on the few homes that have them.2
The situation is dire, as reportedly respiratory diseases from air pollution cause more than a million deaths a year, while more than 400,000 avoidable deaths are from indoor air pollution that leads to illnesses such as lung cancer, weakened immune systems and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.3
But there is a potential conflict between environmental protection and economic growth. The country has a population of over one billion and a growth rate of a staggering nine percent a year; however, at least 135 million Chinese survive on less than US$1 a day, and millions more on barely more than that. The Chinese government is making an effort to figure out ways to balance economic progress with cleaner energy.
Are there solutions to tackle the problem without sacrificing economic growth? What kinds of research and development (R&D) are under way to assure a greener future?
Despite the serious problems caused by its use, coal is cheap and plentiful and will not be abandoned as an energy source any time soon. It is mined on all continents except for Antarctica. China has recognized the economic potential in developing clean coal technologies for both the foreign and local market. Creating a clean coal technology (CCT) market could possibly balance China's dual efforts to reduce pollution and maintain economic growth. China's one-billion strong market would allow a fast learning curve for CCT manufacturing and marketing, which would reduce production costs. China would be in a position to control the market on clean coal technologies if it could invent the right clean coal solutions. Its scientists are already making strides in that direction.
The search for alternative and renewable energy sources drives much science and technology research in China today. The Chinese Academy of Science (CAS), a government research administration that maintains numerous research institutes and has partnerships with local and foreign non-governmental organizations and companies, has a strong focus in this area. The push towards clean coal technologies is not driven by environmental regulations as elsewhere but by the promotion of technical...
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