China - Comparing Environmental Policies in 16 Countries - page 268

the right of the developing countries to industrialize and the need for money
from the First World. China participated in the preliminary negotiations for
the eventual Framework Convention held at the UN headquarters in New
York in the months preceding the Rio Summit. Its spokesmen argued that
it would be unfair to impose restrictions on China, when Western coun-
tries had been polluting the atmosphere for more than a century, and China
had only recently become a significant offender. “It's not good enough to
calculate total emissions of a year, but for the last 200 years. … If you cal-
culate the emissions for 200 years, China's concentration is very small.” 8
Chinese Premier Li Ping traveled to Rio de Janeiro, where he stressed the
right and need of the underdeveloped countries to pursue economic growth.
With the exception of the United States, nearly all the industrial countries
were eager to exempt the Third World, and to promise them money.
In preparation for the Kyoto Conference, China cooperated with the
Group of 77, the block of 77 developing countries. Although the concept
of these countries being exempt from limits was proposed in Toronto and
affirmed in Rio and in annual negotiations, the PRC wanted to be sure
that is was reaffirmed at Kyoto. While the Rio Convention had given many
privileges to underdeveloped countries, these were not necessarily blanket
exemptions and indeed could be interpreted as providing several catego-
ries of graduated responsibility. The Chinese goal at Kyoto was to ensure
total exemption from emissions limits and to garner foreign aid funds.
Premier Li Peng argued that restrictions on developing nations would be
unfair because the industrial countries had had more than a century dur-
ing which they had built up the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. “Those
who are overweight need to be on a diet, while those who are undernour-
ished need more nutrition,” Li said. 10 The head of the Chinese delegation,
Chen Yaobang, told the convention that his country could not undertake
emissions limitations until it reached the level of a medium-developed
country, estimated to take 50 years. He criticized the industrial countries
for failing to meet their emissions targets and for shirking their respon-
sibilities by means of carbon trading and joint implementation. By the
end of the conference, China had gotten its way. The developing countries,
including China, were still exempt and still entitled to financial aid.
The Chinese government asserts that it is greatly improving its energy
efficiency, using less fuel to produce the same output. The Chinese Energy
Research Institute claimed energy use was increasing only half as fast
as the total economy. It further pointed out that the country consumed
only one-tenth as much per capita as the United States. Yet analysis by the