A wind turbine system generates energy in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. [Photo/Xinhua] China registered a higher rate of decarbonization than any of the world's major economies for the second year running, according to a new report published by London-based consultancy PwC. China reduced its carbon intensity by 5.2 percent in 2017, PwC, also known as PricewaterhouseCoopers, found in its annual Low Carbon Economy Index of G20 members. Carbon intensity rates are measured by comparing greenhouse gas emissions with a nation's energy demand and gross domestic product. While emissions levels in China actually rose by 1.4 percent last year, this increase was low in comparison to a high GDP growth rate of 6.9 percent and an increase in energy demand. The United Kingdom also performed well in the index, registering an average drop in carbon intensity of 3.7 percent over the past 10 years, the best of all nations studied. In 2017, UK carbon intensity dropped by 4.7 percent, the fourth-best in the G20 behind China, Mexico and Argentina. Overall, PwC found that global emissions are now on the rise again - by 1.1 percent - after having plateaued for the past three years. Global energy demand rose by 2.1 percent last year, more than twice the rate in 2016, and most of the increased energy demand was met with fossil fuels, according to the report. The gap between the current decarbonization rate and that needed to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius is widening, the report said. There seems to be almost zero chance of limiting warming to well below 2 degrees, the main goal of the Paris Agreement. The PwC study coincided with the release of a report by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that said the world has only 12 years to limit a climate change catastrophe. In China last year, PwC found that renewable power generation rose by 25 million metric tons of oil equivalent, which is an energy usage measurement. This was driven by a 71 percent increase in solar energy and a 20 percent increase in wind energy. Coal use in China increased by 1 percent last year, following several years of reductions. PwC attributed the rise to the opening of coal-fired power generation plants. Despite this growth, political signals do not suggest that coal consumption will grow long term in China again as pollution control is at the top of the political agenda, the report stated. China also saw the highest percentage increase in the use of natural gas - 15 percent. This is largely associated with residential heating and small industrial boilers switching from coal to gas. Despite growth of fossil fuels, China has positioned itself as a global engine for renewable deployment, the report said. It has made significant strides toward meeting its pledge under the Paris Agreement to generate 20 percent of its energy in 2030 from low-carbon sources. christian silicone wristbandscustom bracelets canadacustom silicone wristbandscolor filled wristbandcreate your own wristband
A file photo of the People's Liberation Army Navy honor guard. [Photo/VCG] Emerging plan may feature nation's second aircraft carrier, new destroyer China will host a multinational naval activity on April 23 in Qingdao, Shandong province, to honor the 70th birthday of the People's Liberation Army Navy, according to a spokesman for the Ministry of National Defense. Senior Colonel Ren Guoqiang, deputy head of the ministry's information office, told reporters at a news conference on Thursday afternoon that the activity has been approved by the Central Military Commission, and detailed information about it will be published later. The PLA Navy said in a statement on Thursday that it welcomes reporters to cover the activity and that a media center in Qingdao will start receiving journalists on April 20. Sources close to the Navy told China Daily that the activity is highly likely to comprise a massive sea parade of major ships, submarines and aircraft from the Navy, along with vessels from other countries, noting it is also likely to be even larger and more spectacular than the sea parade in the South China Sea on April 12, 2018, that involved more than 10,000 Navy personnel, 48 ships and submarines and 76 naval aircraft. Wu Peixin, a defense industry observer in Beijing, said the April 23 activity will be a good occasion for the Navy to showcase the latest hardware delivered during the past year. I am looking forward to seeing the participation of the second aircraft carrier, the Type 055 destroyer and the latest aircraft, he said. However, whether the second aircraft carrier will be ready for this parade - which is likely to be its public debut - depends on its sea trial schedule. China's second aircraft carrier - the first to be designed domestically - is reported to have begun its fifth sea trial earlier this week. Observers have speculated that the new carrier will be commissioned before April 23 so it can appear in the unprecedented demonstration of the country's naval prowess. The Chinese military said the colossal vessel displaces more than 50,000 metric tons and will have stronger fighting capability than the CNS Liaoning, the Navy's first carrier, which was refitted from an unfinished Soviet Union vessel. Meanwhile, if the Type 055 guided-missile destroyers, widely believed to be the mightiest of its kind in the world, can take part in the coming parade, they will be further testament to the PLA Navy's growing strength. The 10,000-ton destroyer, usually designated as a cruiser by foreign observers, is equipped with what are believed to be the most advanced radars and missiles in the world and has more than 100 vertical launch cells capable of firing various kinds of projectiles. At least four Type 055 ships have been built, while the first of them is said to be very close to being commissioned. An insider in China's military shipbuilding industry who asked not to be named said he hoped the electromagnetic railgun being tested by the Navy could be displayed in the coming parade. If it can show up in the parade, it will tell the world that we are the first to have deployed this state-of-the-art weapon, which will have the power to reshape the future of naval warfare, he said.
