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China pollution

China seeks ways to capitalise on the rapid growth and biodegradability of bamboo and its potential as a substitute for petroleum-based products. Photo: Shutterstock Images

All-bamboo plastic a step closer to reality with new processing recipe: study

Chinese researchers say technique to ‘remodel’ the tall grass into a plastic substitute could soon produce eco-friendly utensils, hats, phone cases and more.

Chinese researchers say technique to ‘remodel’ the tall grass into plastic substitute could produce eco-friendly utensils, hats, phone cases

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Opinion | China’s refusal to say no to coal could nix renewable energy gains

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Opinion | What China watchers should know about where the country is headed

Beijing urged to quell ‘fluctuations and volatility’ stifling renewable energy

Power capacity and infrastructure are vital to China’s green transition and hi-tech ambitions, but ‘power abandonment’ is a critical setback.

Nationwide solar-generation-capacity installation surged in China by 52.2 per cent in the first five months of 2024, year on year. Photo: Reuters

Singapore study links air pollution to 135 million premature deaths

The study is one of the most expansive to date, using 40 years of data to give a big-picture view of the effects of air quality on health.

China targets wasted production, taking aim at pollution and overcapacity

Four industrial sectors have been singled out – steel, petrochemicals, non-ferrous metals, and building materials – with new capacity strictly prohibited or restricted in certain subsectors.

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China’s new oil rig in South China Sea helps it drill deep for energy security

New deep-sea mobile operation can reportedly drill to a depth of 9,085 metres, a record for China as Beijing looks to rely less on imported oil and gas amid rising geopolitical uncertainties.

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China’s new oil rig, the Enping 21-4 A1H wellhead platform, can produce 700 tonnes of oil per day, according to state media. Photo: CCTV

Editorial | Link between clear air and fewer suicides is another reason to act

A study lends support to the argument that there is more to environmental protection than just physical health and economic benefits.

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PET peeve: should Hong Kong’s recycling industry head for the bins?

Hong Kong’s recycling pace lags that in Europe and the US, but government intervention could help transform the landscape as growing landfills contaminate the soil.

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China will miss its climate goals unless it reins in coal power: report

China is at risk of missing its climate targets and suffering major economic losses unless it takes decisive actions to put a halt to runaway coal power plant expansion and reform outdated power grid management, says Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.

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The Wujing Power Station in Shanghai. Last year, the Chinese energy sector’s carbon dioxide emissions increased 5.2 per cent, highlighting a failure to rein in energy-intensive growth, the report said. Photo: Bloomberg

Chinese team tests lung treatment that may be first to reverse COPD damage

Paper follows statement by Zuo Wei that ‘stem cell and progenitor cell-based regenerative medicine may be the biggest, if not the only, hope to cure COPD’.

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In a Chinese study, 17 patients with varying stages of COPD who received the team’s therapy had no serious adverse side effects and the team did not observe signs of tumour formation in the patients six months after transplant. Photo: Shutterstock

An extra 3 billion people to ‘lack clean water by 2050’, with China in risk zone

Southern China will be among areas at risk as high nitrogen levels continue to deplete clean water supplies, researchers in Germany and Netherlands say in paper for Nature Communications.

The View | Is it time for ‘developing’ China to start funding UN climate aid?

As a developing country, China does not have to give directly to UN climate funds, such as the loss and damage fund. This has fuelled a debate over outdated categories.

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Opinion | China tech: Wuxi model shows local governments how to drive growth

Wuxi’s evolution from an industrial hub to an epicentre of technological innovation offers other local governments a prime example of how to employ a unique blend of public and private sector integration to promote regional economic development.

Barges traverse the Grand Canal in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, on December 9, 2023. Wuxi’s approach to drawing and promoting hi-tech industries in its evolution from an industrial hub to one of innovation can be an example for other municipal governments in China. Photo: Xinhua

Opinion | Climate action: how China is accelerating the drive towards a net zero world

Chinese firms dominate green industries from renewable energy to electric vehicles, China’s Belt and Road Initiative promotes green projects and even its e-commerce push brings energy savings.

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BYD electric cars are lined up waiting to be shipped from China’s Suzhou Port on September 11. Chinese brands now account for about half of EVs sold globally. Photo: AFP

China bans new steel plants in ‘blue skies’ plan to cut pollution

The main goal of a new plan, published by the State Council, is to reduce the most harmful small particles in the air by 10 per cent by 2025.

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What India can learn from China about cleaning up its ‘constant’ filthy air

In the 30 days through November 9, levels of hazardous microparticles known as PM2.5 averaged 14 times higher in New Delhi than in Beijing, according to air-quality tracker IQAir.

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China coal reserves found lacking after past crises hit industries, livelihoods

A new national backup system for coal production will seek to stabilise prices and ensure sufficient supplies as energy security is increasingly prioritised across the country.

China says the output of coal mines must be increased to address power concerns. Photo: AFP

China bamboo-zled? Why the plant hasn’t taken root as plastic alternative

China’s bamboo forests span far and wide, presenting a more sustainable raw material for products in lieu of high-emitting plastics, but several confounding factors stand in the way of universal adoption.

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China targets miners and watchdogs in snap eco compliance audit

Authorities turned blind eye to environmental violations at Qaidam Basin in Qinghai province, inspectors say.

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China’s power sector could reach peak emissions by 2025: climate report

Record clean energy installations could help China’s power sector to reach peak emissions in the next two years, but continued investment in coal-based capacity and a lack of firm emissions targets could undermine optimism about the country’s green transition, according to climate researchers.

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China is expected to generate 440 TWh of clean electricity from solar, wind, hydro and nuclear sources in 2023, exceeding the country’s 10-year average electricity demand growth of 367 TWh for the first time. Photo: AFP

Greenpeace accuses Chinese oil and gas firms of ‘greenwashing’ LNG purchases

Big oil and gas companies in China and elsewhere are using low-quality carbon offsets to ‘greenwash’ their imports of natural gas while failing to make strong emissions cutting commitments, Greenpeace says.

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Firms like PetroChina have signed long-term contracts with Shell to buy ‘carbon neutral’ LNG, which uses ‘forest offsets’ to balance out carbon emissions. Photo: Reuters

Shanghai developer says US$1.37 billion suit will prove claim of polluted land

In what could be the largest lawsuit by value in the country’s real estate sector, Lujiazui Corp sued Suzhou Steel Group and four government and research organisations, saying 14 sites in Suzhou have worse pollution than was disclosed.

China’s derailed carbon reduction goals to get back on track in 2024: report

China is expected to add 290GW in renewable energy capacity in 2023, nearly double what it added last year, according to a new report

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Explainer | In carbon neutrality quest, China hopes hydrogen will vaporise emissions

To achieve its stated objectives of carbon peak by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060, China is eyeing the widespread adoption of hydrogen fuel as a clean energy source. Its potential is on the rise – but so is demand.

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China has looked to hydrogen as another clean energy source in its quest to meet national carbon-neutrality goals. Photo: VCG

China wind farm sets high-altitude records at breathtaking heights in Himalayas

Visiting the Zhegu Wind Farm in Tibet could literally take your breath away at well over three miles above sea level, and Beijing sees it as an ideal place for a power play in its energy-security push.

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China has expanded its highest-altitude wind farm, in the Tibet autonomous region, thousands of metres above sea level. Photo: China Three Gorges Corporation

Not just for pandas: China bets on bamboo in green transition from plastics

As the world’s top producer of plastic waste, China is transforming its bamboo industry using advanced technology to create biodegradable products.

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Chinese officials named and shamed as misuse of farmland gets public grilling

A sprawling illegal waste dump, festering for eight years despite repeated complaints from locals, has become a focal point in a government push to stop the misuse of agricultural land.

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China pollution
Latest news and analysis about the degradation of the air quality, water, marine environment and soil in China.
last updated:
9 September, 2024
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