Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
flights from and to EU therefore are also included into this system, leaving a new
challenge to China, which had no compulsory emissions reduction obligation under
the framework of the Kyoto Protocol. Still under negotiation, it shows that China, as a
major economy heavily dependent on foreign trade,
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needs to resolve discrepancies
between domestic and foreign emission mechanisms. Otherwise, European
governments and international enterprises will levy carbon taxes and other trade
barriers on imported Chinese goods under the guise of trade equalization. In the
future, more industry sectors will encounter a similar situation as aviation.
China issued its target to explore the establishment of a low-carbon product
standard, identification and certification system, the establishment and improve-
ment of GHG emissions calculation and check system, a gradual establishment of
carbon emissions trading market and promotion of low-carbon pilot and demon-
stration projects.
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But the target calls for a series of capacity and mechanism
building steps which can be realized by a stronger bilateral cooperation and
extensive experience exchanges on the basis of current achievements. The EU
can play its comparative advantages to increase its input in the capacity and
mechanism building in China so as to promote China's action against climate
change and achieve a win-win result.
The evident success of EU support for China's climate mitigation efforts
contrasts sharply with the EU-China aviation emission quota confrontation. Both
the experience of success out of cooperation and communication and the lesson of
failure out of unilateralism and bad communication are valuable examples for the
stakeholders from both sides to readjust their approach to each other.
10.4.2 The Sino-EU Competition on Low-Carbon Technology
Transfer. Most of the Technologies Combine the Function
of GHG Emissions Reduction and Industry Competitiveness
Promotion
Low-carbon technology reduces emissions and can enhance energy efficiency,
develop new energy and promote economic competitiveness. Since it covers almost
every industry, the low-carbon technology transfer is much different than that in the
global mechanism in curbing the stratospheric ozone depletion.
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The EU largely
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Weber, Christopher, Peters, Glen, Dabo, Guan and Hubacek, Klaus, The Contribution of
Chinese Exports to Climate Change, Energy Policy, September 2008.
34
12
th
Five Year Plan on National Economy and Social Development, 2011.3.16, Xinhua website,
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Dilip R. Ahuja and J. Srinivasan ,“Why controlling climate change is more difficult than
stopping stratospheric ozone depletion”,
Current Science
, Vol. 97, No. 11, 10, December 2009,
pp. 1531-1534.
