China makes pledge to be ‘carbon neutral’ by 2060

In what some commentators are calling a bold and audacious pledge, President Xi announced to the UN that China will be carbon neutral by the year 2060. That gives the world’s second largest economy, and contributor of 28% of global carbon dioxide emissions, four decades to literally clean up their act.

Carbon what? Good question! A carbon neutral economy is one which either has no carbon dioxide emissions at all, or are able to balance their total emissions to zero through carbon removal or carbon offsetting.

As an economy which has seen rapid development in the last three decades, propelling them to their current position as the second largest economy in the world, most of this growth has gone hand in hand with huge amounts of pollution and environmental damage. For this reason, as well as being the planet’s largest emitter of carbon dioxide, the message from the Chinese government has attracted a lot of interest.

Whilst there are no specific details on how the Chinese government plan to implement their goal, there is much optimism to draw from the simple fact that this announcement has taken place. For an economy like China, a country which has profited hugely from a gas-guzzling industrial sector, to publicly display such strong support for combatting climate change is a beacon of hope.

It is likely that in the years to come China will initiate a variety of different environmental policies to tackle their carbon emissions and get closer to their 2060 target. In addition to increased investment in renewable energy such as wind and solar, China is also on a mission to rapidly expand the market for electric vehicles, with the government generously subsidising manufacturers of both the cars and batteries.

THINK LIKE AN ECONOMIST!

Q1. Explain the relationship between strong economic growth and environmental damage.

Q2. On a supply and demand diagram show the effect of the Chinese government giving subsidies to manufacturers of electric cars.

Q3. Explain one more policy the Chinese government could use to protect the environment.

Q4. With reference to the information above, and your knowledge of economics, evaluate the impact of environmental policies on the economy of China.

Click here for the source article

TheCuriousEconomist

Recent Posts

Can Defense and Housing Turn the Tide on Sluggish GDP Growth in the UK?

The U.K. economy is still stuck in low gear. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR)…

3 days ago

PepsiCo Plans $1.95 Billion Poppi Acquisition

PepsiCo is planning to acquire prebiotic soda brand Poppi for $1.95 billion, marking a major…

2 weeks ago

South Africa Unveils $54.5 Billion Infrastructure Plan to Boost Growth

South Africa has announced a three-year, 1 trillion rand ($54.5 billion) public infrastructure plan aimed…

3 weeks ago

Canada Pulls U.S. Alcohol from Shelves in Retaliation for Trump Tariffs

The U.S.-Canada trade war is spilling over—literally. In response to Trump’s 25% tariffs on Canadian…

3 weeks ago

U.S. Economy on Track for Contraction as Spending and Exports Decline

Early 2025 economic data suggests the U.S. economy may be slowing down faster than expected.…

4 weeks ago

India’s Consumer Market Shrinks as Wealth Inequality Deepens

India’s consumer market is far smaller than its population suggests, with only about 130-140 million…

1 month ago