98 Time September 23, 2019
China is the world’s most populous country and the
largest emitter of carbon. If it can meet its vast potential
for emission reduction, it will play an enormous role in
tackling global climate change. The signs have been good.
After suffering severe smog in 2011, the product of years of
rising coal consumption, the Chinese government initiated
a massive national action plan: halting the growth of
coal consumption, improving air quality and helping the
country limit emissions overall.
However, the economic slowdown and worsening trade
war are risking a relapse. Some smog-stricken regions in
China were found to have relaxed
tight controls on polluting industries
such as steel and cement in the
second half of 2018, contributing to
a rebound of smog last winter. The
carbon market, the government’s
primary climate-action plan, has
been significantly downsized
while coal consumption picked up
again last year.
So what can China do now to stem
emissions and remain a leader in the
fight against climate change, while
also maintaining socioeconomic
development? Tap into the power of
the market, from the bottom up.
as the world’s manufacturing
hub, China is in a unique position
to change the course of global
emissions. In most industrial sectors,
75% of greenhouse- gas emissions are
produced from the supply chains.
In a globalized world, this means
China’s emissions are generated to
meet more than just its own rising
demand. Research conducted by the Carbon Trust found
that China is the world’s largest emitter in the apparel
sector, but 72% of those emissions are essentially the
responsibility of companies overseas where the products
are exported and sold.
Responsibility for this division between manufacturing
and products comes down to the private sector. In
2018, we at the Institute of Public and Environmental
Affairs (IPE) examined the climate actions of 118 IT and
textile- industry brands sourcing from
China to rank them by how green their
supply-chain practices are. Apple and
Nike tied for first place, and Chinese
brands Lenovo and Huawei reached the
top 30, but most brands did not take
supply-chain carbon footprints into
consideration. Barely any set supply-
chain emission- reduction targets.
Consequently, most of the top global
brands may not be able to meet their
climate commitments.
Thankfully, things are already
changing. As China has expanded
environmental transparency, some
70 multinational and local brands
have applied the monitoring data
compiled by IPE to motivate more than
8,000 suppliers to address regulatory
violations. The country’s commitment
to environmental transparency can
incentivize companies to mitigate
supply- chain emissions. Open carbon
data not only enables businesses to set
effective targets but also permits the
public and investors to identify which
are using best practices and which are
racking up regulatory violations. To
hold companies accountable, the state
must also instigate high penalties for
failing to disclose or falsifying this
information.
But those leading brands
demonstrating responsible oversight
of their supply chains show that the
private sector can make significant
contributions, even without those
systems in place. As climate change
worsens, government and businesses
will need to work in tandem to break
the global community out of its
“business as usual” mind-set.Ma is an environmentalist and director of
the Institute of Public and Environmental
Affairs, a Beijing-based NGOIf China wants to lead,
it must hold businesses
accountable for emissions