Achieving a low-carbon society

Climate change is perhaps the central challenge that faces humanity. If the concept of green growth is to be anything more than a mere rebranding of the concept of sustainability, then it must elucidate the relationship between economic activity and pollution and provide a more detailed economic account of it. The articles in this Special Issue focus on ways in which GHG emissions may be reduced while satisfying the increasing demand for energy: from global, technological or economic solutions, to sub-national, financial or regulatory ones. Although the wide disparity in income between the least and most wealthy makes it difficult to reach a consensus on the best way to achieve a low-carbon society, the scale and potential effects of climate change make it imperative that one is reached.     

我国城市居民直接能耗的碳排放类型及影响因素

针对我国287个地级以上城市,在测算了近9年居民直接能耗导致的CO₂排放量的基础上,进行聚类、对比,并分析城市居民直接能耗的碳排放影响因素,得到以下结论:全国分为6类城市居民直接能耗碳排放类型;高碳排放型城市的地均碳排放强度、人均工资碳排放强度及居民直接能耗CO₂排放总量等方面均比低碳排放型城市高,人均地方生产总值碳排放强度低于低碳排放型城市,并多为经济发达城市和资源丰富城市,其碳排放构成上分别以电、交通能耗碳排放和气碳排放为主导,高碳排放型城市居民直接能耗CO₂排放量占全国地级以上城市的86.20%。我国大部分地级城市居民直接能耗的碳排放属于相对低碳排放型,其人均CO₂排放量低于全国平均水平。城市所在地的降温度日数(CDD)、采暖期、采暖强度、人均能源供给量、居民的人均工资、城市人均地方生产总值是影响城市居民直接能耗CO₂排放量的主要因素。     

杭州生态城市建设途径研究

文章论述了城市建设首先要遵循可持续发展的原则作为城市可持续发展必然结果的生态城市,就是要在城市社会自然复合生态系统中,通过调节自然环境与社会环境的关系,实现社会、经济及自然的可持续发展、文章以杭州市区为例,剖析了建设生态城市的基本途径。     

Bargaining for nature: treating the environment in China’s urban planning practice

ABSTRACT

In much of the contemporary academic inquiry and political discourse on Chinese cities, urban entrepreneurialism and environmentalism often appear to be analyzed disjointedly and unreflectively. They are portrayed as two conflicting interests. Commentators also view urban planners as a homogenous group of professionals and/or state agents being forced to give up environmental goals to pursue economic value of space. Using the case of Tianjin Eco-City planning, this article interrogates the bargaining process between the “ecological value” and “commodity narrative”. It offers three major arguments. First, even though the discourse of environmental sustainability has been used to legitimize economic transformation, ecological demands are creating new pressures on entrepreneurial urban governance. Second, rather than treating Chinese planners as a fully constituted, internally coherent, organizationally-fixed, and operationally-consistent group, they should be viewed as hybrid, and diverse entities that represent divergent and sometimes contentious state interests. Third, planners, though still under tremendous pressure from landed interests, can become active players to positively influence urban transformation toward more environmental care.     

辽宁省低碳经济发展水平评价

构建包含经济系统、能源系统、碳排放系统、技术投入系统和环境系统5个准则层及23个指标的低碳经济发展水平评价体系,基于可变模糊识别模型,分析评价辽宁省低碳经济发展水平。结果显示:辽宁省低碳经济发展水平由2004年的2.87提升到2014年的3.01,由中碳偏高水平提升到中碳发展水平。沈阳、大连、丹东、锦州、营口和葫芦岛的低碳经济发展水平较高;鞍山、抚顺、本溪、盘锦、辽阳及铁岭的低碳经济发展水平较低。在此基础上,运用SBM模型测算辽宁省各市的碳排放效率,其结果与低碳经济发展水平评价值有较大关联。     

雄安新区：如何建成生态与创新之都

建设雄安新区,是千年大计、国家大事。为落实中央决策,我们突出强调将雄安建设成为生态与创新之都。来自地理学及人居环境科学领域的16位专家,以笔谈方式,对此开展了深入讨论。认为雄安新区的发展,应该坚持和秉承以下观念。一是宜居安全观,需要优化调控区域资源环境承载力,突出安全第一,切实防范洪涝灾害、环境污染等风险,以创建宜居宜业宜游的城市为目标,走全面宜居城市之路。二是生态城市观,应积极采用低碳生态技术,有机组织城市区域生态系统与空间布局,建设绿色基础设施系统,保证城市生态系统良性循环,走系统化的生态城市之路。三是创新核心观,应该以科技文化为灵魂,推进科技创新、文化创新与管理创新等全面创新,突出科技创新核心,建设新一代可持续发展的科技创新之都。四是区域统筹观,应从流域视角、区域一体化视角,统筹新区建设,注重区域协作,共享共生,互动互补,带动区域转型新型发展,走区域深度协同发展之路。五是文化城市观,重视历史文化保护与城市文化艺术发展,倡导文化包容与和谐,探索中华人文生态特色新型城市风貌,走文化特色城市发展之路。六是综合品质观,强调城市生态经济社会全面高水平发展,突出全面高质量与高标准发展理念,建立国际领先的质量标准体系与规范体系,发展智慧城市,全面加强综合质量监测评价与督察,结合文化品质追求,配套先进的社会公共设施与保障系统,走综合高品质发展之路。七是典型示范观,努力将雄安新区打造成生态创新的城市示范区和新型城市化的样板城市,促进京津冀建设生态与创新型世界城市群。     

Combining low-carbon economic development and oil exploration in Brazil? An energy–economy assessment

Brazil's nationally determined contribution (NDC) pledged under the Paris Agreement has marked a new stage in its climate policy towards strengthening low-carbon economic development beyond the recent drastic cuts in emissions from deforestation. Brazil especially means to limit oil consumption driven by future economic growth and to increase energy efficiency and biofuel use in the transport sector. On the other hand, Brazil still aspires to become a major petroleum province given its huge reserves of ‘pre-salt’ oil. This article aims to clarify under what conditions low-carbon economic development and oil exploration can possibly be combined in Brazil and what would be the energy system, environmental and macroeconomic implications of enabling policies for doing so. To address these questions, an energy–economy computable general equilibrium (CGE) model of the Brazilian economy is used to simulate alternative scenarios up to 2030. The results first show that implementing the most recent energy plans, which take into account the new economic reality in Brazil, should lead to over 20% lower domestic CO₂ emissions in 2030 than the indicative NDC target, and to the export of the bulk of newfound crude oil. Second, with the same level of oil production, deeper domestic decarbonization, triggered by additional carbon pricing and sustainable efficiency measures, appears achievable with very small gross domestic product (GDP) loss and maximum oil exports, while being aligned with a 2°C emission pathway. However, (i) extra oil exports may induce net additional emissions outside Brazil and be seen as a perverse incentive and (ii) the economic growth strategy based on high oil exports may hinder the necessary diversification of the Brazilian economy.

Key policy insights

• Low-carbon development goals will strongly interact with oil policy in Brazil.

• The 2030 NDC target should be easy to achieve considering the new economic reality in Brazil.

• Deeper domestic decarbonization is achievable with very limited GDP loss and significant oil exports, while being aligned with a 2°C emission pathway.

• A broad strategic vision is needed to reconcile climate policy, energy policy and other economic development objectives.

     

新疆碳排放影响因素分析与政策建议

气候变化和二氧化碳减排问题已引起全世界的关注.本文运用岭回归分析1995-2008 年新疆碳排放与人口、经济、技术间的关系,并进一步探讨了产业结构和主导产业对碳排放的影响,以寻找减排的技术路线和对策,推动区域低碳经济的发展.结果表明：①不合理的经济结构和人口增长对碳排放有显著的推动作用,技术进步虽在一定程度上缓解了碳排放,但影响甚微;②新疆过分依赖自然资源的经济增长方式和以第二产业为主的经济结构是导致温室气体排放量增加的主要原因;③研究期间,新疆的主导产业均为以石油天然气开采、石油化工、煤化工为主的重工业,但其在工业总产值的比重却有较大提升,导致对能源的消耗急剧增加.未来在全球化背景下,新疆应转变经济增长模式,加大生态保护力度,更多地依靠科技创新、技术进步和制度的改进,大力发展低碳产业.     

智慧低碳城镇研究进展

智慧低碳城镇是城市健康可持续发展研究的热点和前沿。本文利用文献计量方法和通过对相关文献资料的回顾,梳理总结了智慧低碳城镇的研究概况、含义、测度方法和指标体系、应用实践、基本模式和主要政策。结果表明：智慧低碳城镇研究尚处于初期起步阶段,虽然众多应用实践已进入规划、试点和示范阶段,政策支持也不断充足完善,但迄今尚无确切统一的定义,缺乏通用性和权威性的指标体系,发展机制和模式研究较少。因此,未来应在明晰基本含义的基础上,构建适用的测度评价体系,并注重相应的动力机制、模式路径和模拟优化调控研究,为城市的健康可持续发展提供科学依据。     

道路交通节能减排途径与潜力分析

交通运输行业是仅次于制造业的第二大油品消耗行业,也是实现低碳生活发展路径的重点行业。基于交通运输部门碳排放量现状分析,本文提出了优先发展公共交通、鼓励发展小排量汽车、降低机动车单耗、控制排放物标准等四种挖潜减排途径,并利用排放量估算和情景分析相结合的方法,对我国道路交通减排潜力进行了预测。按照高中低度三种减排情景发展,测算出2015年及2020年减排量,为实现至2020年我国碳排放较2005年下降40%~45%的目标提供科学基础。研究认为:2010-2020年是中国交通运输行业高速发展阶段,要满足能源安全和温室气体减排要求,我国需要实施更严格的产业和环境政策,若强化低碳情景模式,则2015年、2020年的碳排减少量分别约为2183万t、7148万t,达到我国道路交通部门的最大减排潜力。