China's goal of achieving carbon neutrality before 2060: experts explain how

Abstract

Abstract ‘We aim to have CO2 emissions peak before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060,’ President Xi Jinping so declared at the General Debate of the 75th United Nations General Assembly on 22 September 2020. More than 130 countries globally have proposed their own carbon neutrality goals by 2050 or 2060. Thus, carbon neutrality is a collective effort of human societies to cope with the climate crisis. If all countries could follow their own plans and reach carbon neutrality in a few decades, we may have a chance to control global warming within 1.5 or 2oC, confining climate change to a relatively safe zone. As a developing country with a large population, high coal consumption and large manufacturing industries, can China achieve the huge task of societal transformation that will enable carbon peaking and carbon neutrality within the next four decades? How will China transform traditional power generation and manufacturing industries, as well as create new technologies for carbon capture and storage? In this panel discussion chaired by Prof. Xinhe Bao, a scientist of energy and chemistry, top experts gathered to discuss the challenges and potential solutions, outlining the coming ‘green industrial revolution’. Huiming Cheng Professor, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Zhengtang Guo Professor, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences Yaling He Professor, School of Energy and Power Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University Zheng Li Professor, Institute of Climate Change and Sustainable Development, Tsinghua University Minggao Ouyang Professor, School of Vehicle and Mobility, Tsinghua University Zhengrong Shi Professor, College of Energy and Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai University of Electric Power Zaiku Xie Professor, China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (SINOPEC) Xinhe Bao (Chair) Professor, University of Science and Technology of China, and Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences