Page 47 - Low Carbon Development in China and India
P. 47
carbon-intensity reduction target of 17 per cent and intends to achieve
it by 2015. Similarly, India’s Twelfth Five Year Plan recognized that
“India needs to adopt a low carbon strategy for inclusive growth in
order to improve the sustainability of its growth process, while carbon
mitigation will be an important co-benefit. Any such strategy must
ensure that the focus is not just on low carbon development, but on
increasing productivity that effectively lowers the use of fossil fuels.”
1.4 Emissions Profile: Global, India, and China
According to the following well-known Kaya equation, reducing the
energy consumption intensity (energy consumption per GDP) and the
CO2 emission intensity (CO2 emission per energy consumption), given
the precondition that population and GDP per capita keep growing in
the future, are the basic approaches to control total emissions. To realize
the former target, we need to improve energy efficiency, enhance value
addition of industries, and upgrade the economic structure; and for the
latter, we need to adjust energy structure and increase carbon sinks.
(Kaya equation)
Figure 1.4 gives the energy intensity for the given economic structure
for the regions including US, Japan, China, India, and the world during
1990–2010. A lower energy consumption intensity ratio or energy
intensity ratio depicts a higher share of low-energy intensive economic
activities. As can be seen in the figure, the energy intensity for China
has been continuously on a decline over the last two decades. The
energy intensity of the Indian economy has been historically low and
it has also experienced a decline in the last two decades. For the year
2010, India’s energy intensity was 0.31 kgoe per USD; for China, it was
0.41 kgoe per USD; and for the world, it was 0.19 kgoe per USD 1,000.
This indicates that the share of energy intensive sectors like industries
and manufacturing is high for China, as compared to India and other
countries of the world.
In 2010, China’s absolute value of CO2 emission per GDP (2005
price) was still 4.6 times that of the US, 7.4 times that of the countries
of the EU27, and 7.5 times that of Japan. Since 1970, China’s carbon
intensity has been gradually decreasing, dropping 70 per cent, from
6.31 kg of CO2 per dollar (2005 price) in 1971 to 1.88 kg of CO2 per
dollar in 2010. This is one of the best achievements in reducing carbon
12 Low Carbon Development in China and India
it by 2015. Similarly, India’s Twelfth Five Year Plan recognized that
“India needs to adopt a low carbon strategy for inclusive growth in
order to improve the sustainability of its growth process, while carbon
mitigation will be an important co-benefit. Any such strategy must
ensure that the focus is not just on low carbon development, but on
increasing productivity that effectively lowers the use of fossil fuels.”
1.4 Emissions Profile: Global, India, and China
According to the following well-known Kaya equation, reducing the
energy consumption intensity (energy consumption per GDP) and the
CO2 emission intensity (CO2 emission per energy consumption), given
the precondition that population and GDP per capita keep growing in
the future, are the basic approaches to control total emissions. To realize
the former target, we need to improve energy efficiency, enhance value
addition of industries, and upgrade the economic structure; and for the
latter, we need to adjust energy structure and increase carbon sinks.
(Kaya equation)
Figure 1.4 gives the energy intensity for the given economic structure
for the regions including US, Japan, China, India, and the world during
1990–2010. A lower energy consumption intensity ratio or energy
intensity ratio depicts a higher share of low-energy intensive economic
activities. As can be seen in the figure, the energy intensity for China
has been continuously on a decline over the last two decades. The
energy intensity of the Indian economy has been historically low and
it has also experienced a decline in the last two decades. For the year
2010, India’s energy intensity was 0.31 kgoe per USD; for China, it was
0.41 kgoe per USD; and for the world, it was 0.19 kgoe per USD 1,000.
This indicates that the share of energy intensive sectors like industries
and manufacturing is high for China, as compared to India and other
countries of the world.
In 2010, China’s absolute value of CO2 emission per GDP (2005
price) was still 4.6 times that of the US, 7.4 times that of the countries
of the EU27, and 7.5 times that of Japan. Since 1970, China’s carbon
intensity has been gradually decreasing, dropping 70 per cent, from
6.31 kg of CO2 per dollar (2005 price) in 1971 to 1.88 kg of CO2 per
dollar in 2010. This is one of the best achievements in reducing carbon
12 Low Carbon Development in China and India
