China and Climate Change

In my first week here in Beijing, I have spoken to a number of scholars here about climate change.  A few observations;  1.  China's scholars are thinking about climate change mitigation but I haven't met many talking about adaptation.

3 minute read

September 10, 2009, 1:43 AM PDT

By Matthew E. Kahn


In my first week here in Beijing, I have spoken to a number of scholars here about climate change.  A few observations;

 1.  China's scholars are thinking about climate change mitigation but I haven't met many talking about adaptation.

2. On the mitigation side, there are a number of efforts underway to create a "Report Card" for cities in terms of total carbon emissions.  They say that industry is responsible for 70% of a city's footprint.  Relative to the USA , transportation's share is very small.  To reduce a city (such as Beijing's) carbon footprint, there is talk of moving highly energy intensive factories (such as electronics or steel) out of cities that are close to their internal carbon caps.  So, I smell "leakage big time".  If I understood correctly, carbon intensive activity will not shut down but will be deflected to less populated cities who have not reached their carbon caps.  The net effect is something similar to the USA where manufacturing left the big cities and moved to more rural areas.  The irony here is that this would "green cities" but not green the regions.  Within the regions, there will be an element of a zero sum game as smaller cities will enjoy an influx of energy intensive factories moving in. Now, if new capital is cleaner than old factories then the country as whole will enjoy a reduction in its industrial emissions factor as the factories move out.  Intuitively, an energy intensive old factory will close in the big city and it will be replaced by a new (more energy efficient) factory that opens in a small city.

3. Nobody can tell me how seriously the local government officials would be "punished" for not meeting a co2 target.

4. I can't tell if China actually cares about directly mitigating its carbon or if it seeks to score brownie points with President Obama and other liberal governments .  To avoid international "shame and ostracism" for being a polluter and to help Tom Friedman cheer it on , it makes good public relations sense to try hard on green issues.  Perhaps more importantly, the smart chinese government may anticipate its next global export market. If it builds up (using its home market ) a successful energy efficient durables market, it can then export all of these products to the carbon constrained world (assuming carbon regulation will soon be enacted).

5. On the adaptation side, I can't find any experts who are too worked up about the prospects of Sea Level Rise in Shanghai and the potential for disaster. Perhaps Marty Weitzman needs to visit here to discuss fat tail risk.

 Overall regardless of "true motives", I'm quite impressed with how China is "talking" about the issue of climate change and there appears to be actual effort behind it.  Now Beijing is smart about property rights, it wants global carbon permits to be allocated on a per-capita basis. Based on that metric --- China would get over 12% of the world's permits and could make a lot of money selling permits and exporting "green durables" as I discuss above in point #2.

 

 


Matthew E. Kahn

Matthew E. Kahn is a Professor of Economics at the University of California, Los Angeles. After earning his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Chicago in 1993, he served on the faculties at Columbia University, Harvard University, Stanford and Tufts University. He has published numerous articles on environmental and urban topics. In September 2006, the Brookings Institution Press published his book Green Cities: Urban Growth and the Environment. He blogs on environmental and urban topics at greeneconomics.blogspot.com.

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 16, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Green vintage Chicago streetcar from the 1940s parked at the Illinois Railroad Museum in 1988.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails

Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

July 13, 2025 - WTTV

Blue and silver Amtrak train with vibrant green and yellow foliage in background.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail

The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

July 14, 2025 - Smart Cities Dive

Worker in yellow safety vest and hard hat looks up at servers in data center.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power

Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

July 18 - Inside Climate News

Former MARTA CEO Collie Greenwood standing in front of MARTA HQ with blurred MARTA sign visible in background.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns

MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

July 18 - WABE

Rendering of proposed protected bikeway in Santa Clara, California.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant

A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.

July 17 - San José Spotlight