头条英文播报｜Official: Nation a key climate contributor

A watchtower at the Palace Museum stands under a blue sky in Beijing on Jan 22, 2018. [Photo/VCG]

China has made significant contributions to global climate action with its dramatic reductions of greenhouse gas emissions and efforts to reduce the cost of renewable energy.

As a developing country, however, it will not help rich countries close the gap in the level of support they had pledged to the Third World, a senior environmental official said.

Li Gao, director-general for climate change at the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, made the comment ahead of the United Nations climate change conference, slated for Dec 2 to 13 in Madrid, Spain.

Last year, China managed to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP by 45.8 percent from 2005 levels, achieving its goal of reducing carbon intensity by 40 to 45 percent ahead of the 2020 deadline, together with a reduced carbon dioxide equivalent of 5.2 billion metric tons, he said in a recent interview with China Daily.

"This is a huge contribution to the world in tackling climate change," he said.

China has also made a marked contribution to the world by lowering the cost of new energy as it works to decarbonize energy consumption, he added.

With 34 percent of the world's total installed capacity of renewable energy, China is responsible for 40 percent of the global growth in the sector. By the end of last year, the share of nonfossil fuels in the country's primary energy consumption had increased to 14.3 percent.

"China has outpaced all other countries with its investment in renewable energy in the past seven years or so," Li said.

He said the development of the country's renewable energy industry could be of much greater significance than what many countries have realized.

"Thanks to the development of the sector, China has managed to bring down the cost of renewable energy worldwide, which has created favorable conditions for its further application. ... The applications will also further fuel the development of relevant technologies," he said.

Despite the contributions, however, Li dismissed the call of some foreign politicians, who say China should contribute as a developed nation, not a developing one, to global climate action. That call had come on the backdrop of rich countries' failure to fulfill their financial support commitments to poor countries.

Developed countries had promised to provide $100 billion annually by 2020 for developing countries, a figure that was included in the Paris agreement on climate change.

"Some statistics show that financial support from developed nations has reached about $60 billion a year," Li said. "The developing countries, however, have generally failed to feel the support."

The gap is partly the result of some developed powers labeling other financial support they provide as climate-related and calculate that support as such, he said.

He said that as a developing country, China will not help fill the gap in developed countries' commitments, although it will continue to make proactive efforts to contribute to global climate action.

"The per capita GDP in China has yet to reach the global average level. ... Despite advancement in various aspects, the country still has a long way to go in its development," he said, adding that national conditions in China as a developing country can be expected to continue for an extended period.

"China is willing to fulfill its obligation in tackling climate change with proactive efforts consistent with its capabilities and development stage," he said. "But we are not going to shoulder responsibilities that should be taken up by the developed powers."

记者：侯黎强

播报：Ian Goodrum.

原文链接：

https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201911/25/WS5ddadd7fa310cf3e35579907.html

【阅读背景】

基础四国再发声明为气候大会预热

中国环境报记者 张倩 当前，关注环境与气候变化、追寻绿色可持续发展已成为共识。然而，一些国家采取了不同形式的单边主义，给气候多边进程健康发展带来威胁。单边主义和保护主义既破坏了自由开放的国际贸易体系和全球经济增长前景，又会损害应对气候变化的全球集体努力，特别是会对发展中国家应对气候变化的努力造成很大负面影响。

　　因此，在第二十九次“基础四国”气候变化部长级会议上，基础四国再发声明，坚定立场，深化共识，为即将到来的联合国气候变化大会预热。本报记者近日就相关议题专访了生态环境部应对气候变化司司长李高。

　　中国环境报：相对前几次的部长级会议联合声明，这次声明有哪些新的重心和期望？

　　李高：针对当前气候多边进程形势，本次的基础四国部长级会议联合声明传递了以下主张和期望。

　　首先，要坚定支持多边主义，反对一切形式的单边主义，包括损害自由开放的国际贸易的单边做法。其次，要推动各方全面准确理解《巴黎协定》，明确《巴黎协定》设定的全球温控目标是2摄氏度，努力实现1.5摄氏度。在可持续发展框架下讨论1.5摄氏度目标和力度问题。第三，要坚定维护“共同但有区别的责任”原则和国家自主决定贡献的“自下而上”制度安排。不能不加区别地要求各方按照同一标准提高力度。第四，要坚持在可持续发展框架下应对气候变化，实现经济增长和应对气候变化的双赢。第五，国际社会必须聚焦实施手段。要求发达国家强化资金、技术、能力建设等支持，要保持发达国家和发展中国家的行动力度与得到支持的匹配。第六，坚持平衡、重视、减缓和适应。要把适应问题放在全球气候治理的突出位置，加大对发展中国家适应行动的支持。

　　总体而言，四国将共同捍卫多边主义，维护《联合国气候变化框架公约》主渠道地位，按照《联合国气候变化框架公约》《巴黎协定》目标、原则和条款推动进程，持续推动气候行动和国际合作。

　　中国环境报：声明强调，行动力度和支持力度是不可分割的两个方面，发达国家提供支持的力度应与发展中国家的行动力度相匹配。请问，当前双方力度如何？两方应如何共同发力达到平衡？

　　李高：谈及力度首先要清楚其含义，力度包括行动力度和支持力度。行动力度包括减缓力度和适应力度。《巴黎协定》进入实施阶段，必须聚焦实施手段，要保证发达国家提供的支持力度与发展中国家的行动力度相匹配。同时，要把适应问题放在全球气候治理的突出位置，对适应同等重视、同样支持。当前，发展中国家普遍抱持积极应对气候变化的意愿，但受制于发展阶段，并面临资金、技术、能力不足等限制。当务之急，是发达国家要切实兑现为发展中国家应对气候变化行动提供资金、技术、能力建设支持的承诺。双方相向而行，才能筑牢全球合作应对气候变化的互信基础。

　　中国环境报：2020年即将到来，基础四国在克服挑战、完成自主贡献目标方面做得如何？接下来，四国希望通过哪些方面继续加强气候合作？

　　李高：基础四国成员都是发展中国家，四国人口占全世界人口的近40%，气候条件复杂，生态环境脆弱，经济发展和提升人民生活水平任务繁重，目前仍处在工业化、城市化发展的过程中，面临着很多困难和挑战。

　　根据《联合国气候变化框架公约》确立的公平、共同但有区别的责任和各自能力原则，四国已肩负起与自身国情、发展阶段和能力相符的责任。在可持续发展框架下、在资金和技术支持下采取强有力的气候行动，并取得显著成效，为应对气候变化的全球努力做出重大贡献。

　　2018年，中国单位国内生产总值二氧化碳排放量比2005年累计下降45.8%，非化石能源占一次能源消费比重达到14.3%，多项到2020年应对气候变化目标完成情况良好。南非最近实施了碳税，并在最新电力规划中宣布了大规模可再生能源计划。印度2014年国内生产总值的排放强度比2005年下降了21%，已实现2020年前自愿目标。巴西2015年已实现了其国家适当减缓行动设置的照常情景下减排58%的目标，超额实现在2020年完成36%-39%的减排目标。

　　向发展中国家提供应对气候变化方面的支持是发达国家的法律义务，南南合作作为发展中国家间相互支持的努力是前者的补充。四国将进一步分享各自所开展的南南合作工作，并努力探索联合开展南南合作的方式，为发展中国家提供力所能及的支持。

　　中国环境报：在参与全球气候变化治理的进程中，各缔约方应体现公平、共同但有区别的责任和各自能力原则。请问，目前发达国家在这方面表现得如何？

阅读背景来源：

https://cenews.com.cn/public/201911/t20191122_918166.html