Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Cleaning up Its Act: How China Can Convert to More Environmentally Friendly Energy


If China doesn't take steps to prevent it, a big black cloud may soon engulf its economic boom. The country is growing at a torrid rate, but pollution from its hard-chugging industrial engine is expanding even faster, according to energy experts at the recent 2008 Wharton China Business Conference.

"China has passed the U.S. as the world's largest emitter of carbon dioxide," the main contributor to global warming, said Mike McElwrath, chief executive of Houston-based Far East Energy and a former assistant U.S. energy secretary, noting that "20 of the 30 most polluted cities in the world are in China. One third of China experienced acid rain last year. I once was one of those people who questioned the science behind global warming. But as China and India emerge economically, if the current science is anywhere near correct, we'll have quite a problem."

Pollution aside, energy presents a hefty challenge for China. Simply put, the country doesn't have enough of it, said McElwrath and other experts who came to Wharton. "Twenty-one of 34 provinces experienced electricity shortages in 2004," he said. "China will need to add a total of 1,300 additional gigawatts by 2025." According to Bloomberg News, China currently has about 800 gigawatts of electric capacity. "If coal provides 70% to 80% of that power, what this implies for air quality and global warming is surreal," McElwrath warned.

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