Are China's climate commitments in a post‐Paris agreement sufficiently ambitious?

ZhongXiang Zhang

doi:10.1002/wcc.443

Abstract

In international climate change negotiations, China's role is an issue of perennial concern. In particular, the lack of quantitative, absolute emissions commitments from China has often been the focus of this concern. In line with changing domestic and international contexts, China is recalibrating its stance and strategy. Its participation in international climate change negotiations has evolved from playing a peripheral role to gradually moving to the center. This article examines China's stance and role in international climate change negotiations from a historical perspective. In so doing, the article discusses the evolution of international climate negotiations and China's stance in the lead‐up to and at the Paris conference. With Paris behind us, the focus is now turning to the implementation of the Paris Agreement. The article discusses post‐Paris focuses, generally in the international context and in particular in China's context. They both affect the outcomes of post Paris subsequent negotiations and hold the key to actually achieving desired outcomes. WIREs Clim Change 2017, 8:e443. doi: 10.1002/wcc.443This article is categorized under: Policy and Governance > International Policy Framework

Highlights

There is increasingly scientific evidence confirming man-made climate change and its resulting negative effects
The Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the most comprehensive assessment of the science relating to climate change, reported with 95% certainty that the major cause of global warming was increasing concentrations of greenhouse gas (GHGs) produced by human activity (IPCC, 2014)
China has been facing intense pressure at and outside of international climate negotiations to be more ambitious in combating global climate change given that it is the world’s largest energy consumer and carbon emitter and that its energy use and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions continue to rise rapidly as it swiftly moves toward becoming the largest economy in one or two decades

Summary

Introduction

There is increasingly scientific evidence confirming man-made climate change and its resulting negative effects. Continued GHG emissions will cause further warming and have the potential to seriously damage the natural environment and affect the global economy, making it the most pressing long-term global threat to future prosperity and security Along with these advances in climate change science and impacts, governments around the world have been intensifying their efforts to reach an agreement for the post-2020 era establishing absolute, quantitative commitments for all the major economies. As the key contributions of the article, these discussion pays special attention to whether China’s climate commitments are sufficiently ambitious They indicate whether China will achieve goals set in its intended nationally determined contributions, and affect the outcomes of post Paris subsequent climate change negotiations

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