Tag: Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management

Using Green Development Interventions to Address Climate Change

The Huangshan Municipality in the PRC implements measures to mitigate the risks of climate change. Photo credit: Mingyuan Fan.

A comprehensive assessment of climate impacts helped tailor appropriate and impactful interventions in Huangshan city.

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Overview

An Asian Development Bank-funded project is helping the Huangshan municipality in the PRC tackle climate change impacts through ecological protection and green development measures, such as monitoring forest health, constructing wetlands, improving wastewater treatments, and promoting green agricultural practices.

The project uses climate risk modelling techniques to assess local conditions, thoroughly evaluates climate-related risks, and incorporates them into the project’s engineering design and technical road map. This localization of approaches is expected to activate appropriate and impactful measures that will engage stakeholders and make the project more effective and productive.

Project information

52026-001: Anhui Huangshan Xin’an River Ecological Protection and Green Development Project

Project snapshot

      • Approval date: 11 December 2019
      • Closing date: 30 December 2026
      • Total project cost: $214.38 million
      • Executing agency: Huangshan Municipal Government
      • Financing: Asian Development Bank, KfW Bankengruppe, Huangshan Municipal Government

Context

The PRC, a key emitter of greenhouse gas (GHG), is a signatory to the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change, under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. In 2010, the PRC set to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 40%–45% by 2020 compared to 2005 levels. This was achieved but GHG emissions are projected to increase until at least 2030 under current policies. In 2020, the country announced it would become carbon neutral by 2060. To attain this goal, it needs to tackle the threat of climate change and create low-carbon cities with sustainable and competitive economies.

Low-carbon development has become a key component of the country’s approach to sustainable development. In 2017, Huangshan was designated as a pilot city for low carbon policy by the PRC government to actively address climate risks and explore low-carbon and green development paths tailored to the local situation.

The Huangshan municipal government sought to integrate climate change risk control measures in its tourism industry—a pillar of the local economy—in line with the aim to peak carbon emissions by 2030 and then decrease them.

Challenges

Huangshan has a subtropical, humid monsoonal climate with a rising annual mean temperature and increased rainfall that is becoming less evenly distributed in a year. The highest-level climate-related risks identified were in the areas of urban flooding and extreme heat. The municipality faces the risk of water scarcity, wildfires, cyclones, and landslides. 

More consideration needs to be given to water conservation for Huangshan to become resilient to increased drought hazards and prevent long-term water scarcity. Extreme weather phenomena, such as flooding, drought, or high temperatures, can also reduce labor productivity and damage production chains, slowing local economic growth. Other impacts include a reduction in both agricultural yields and availability of freshwater, associated public health consequences for the local population, and damage to species like the Huangshan pine tree. Climate change could also play a part in changes to the geographical distribution of species. For example, there are signs that warmer weather might lead to nematodes moving northwards (these worms naturally occur in soil and control soil insect pests). This would cause the spread of the pine wilt disease, resulting in death of more of Huangshan’s pine forests.

Solutions

The Anhui Huangshan Xin’an River Ecological Protection and Green Development Project is implementing an ecological protection and green development model designed for small and medium-sized cities or development areas. Through climate risk modelling, the project design considered Huangshan’s historical climate data, climate change trends and risks, and projected impacts. Risks were integrated into the engineering process, and a technical road map for the project was developed to mainstream the strategy and recommendations for tackling climate change impacts. Suitable mitigation and adaptation activities were identified by evaluating climate vulnerability and the costs of each option. These measures are elaborated on in the ongoing detailed design and construction stages of the project (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation Measures under the Project

CO2 = carbon dioxide, GHG = greenhouse gas.
Source: Cities Development Initiative for Asia. 2020. Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation: Risk Management through Integrated Project Design. Manila.

Mitigation activities are at the forefront of project design and promote efforts to reduce, avoid, or sequester GHG emissions. These are aimed at decoupling development from fossil fuel–based consumption and creating a city with high green coverage, large water surface, and a comfortable living environment. 

Some key climate mitigation measures included in the Huangshan project are:

In January 2019, Huangshan was declared an epidemic region for Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, the parasite that causes the deadly pine wilt disease, which is fatal for trees within 40 days of infection. The local practice is to burn infected dead pine trees to control the spread of pests and disease, which consequently increases CO2 into the atmosphere. The Huangshan project includes strengthened monitoring and disease prevention measures, which should effectively control the disease.

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 2007 report on Methane Emission from Wetlands, natural wetlands contribute between 20% and 39% of the global emissions of methane. So instead, wetlands will be created with greener features. Two plots of land along the Xin’an River in She County—one with an area of 6,000 square meters (m2) and another with 4,000 m2—will be developed as constructed wetlands under the Huangshan project. 

The project includes the use of both aerobic and anaerobic wastewater treatment systems.   Aerobic wastewater treatment systems generate CO2 as a by-product while anaerobic systems produce a mixture of methane and CO2. Under the sewerage improvement component of the project, 27,662 cubic meters per day of urban wastewater will be collected and transported to treatment plants, while 2,339 cubic meters per day of rural wastewater will be collected and treated in rural wastewater treatment stations.

Nitrogen fertilizer is currently applied in tea farms at a rate of 277 kilogram of nitrogen per hectare (ha) per year, with only 20% efficiency, and a substantial proportion of the fertilizers is eventually emitted into the ambient air in the form of nitrous oxide. To address this, the project promoted green agricultural practices that use a recommended formula of fertilizers according to soil testing and soil amelioration that will lessen emissions.

Expected Results

When the project is completed in 2026, its climate mitigation and other green initiatives will improve environmental conditions upstream and reduce, avoid, or sequester GHG emissions.

Better forest health 

Strengthened forest monitoring and disease prevention measures would reduce pine tree infection in the Huangshan area by 80%, which will then reduce the release of CO2 into the atmosphere. This could save an estimated 18,428 pine trees annually. In 2018, 80% of the trees that died. The carbon sequestered would amount to 18,557 tons of CO2. The pine forest disease prevention program is expected to provide carbon sequestration of close to 0.5 million tons of CO2 over 25 years.

Improved wetlands with green features

The variation in the quantity of the GHG release is largely due to differences in the nature of the emitting vegetation, including soil microbiota, which interfere with the production and consumption of methane. Thus, the wetlands to be constructed under the Huangshan project along the Xin’an River in She County will have greener features that are set to improve anaerobic conditions and reduce the release of methane.

Improved wastewater quality

Through improved water systems, total daily GHG emissions are predicted to fall by 5,026.5 tons of CO2 equivalent.

Improved agricultural practices and productivity

Environment-friendly practices in green tea farming are expected to improve the productivity of croplands, reduce nonpoint source pollution, and increase biodiversity and carbon sequestration. In addition, the 10% reduction in chemical fertilizer usage in around 4,500 ha of tea farms would reduce GHG emissions by 23,333 tons CO2equivalent per year.

References

Asian Development Bank (ADB). 2021. Report and Recommendation of the President to the Board of Directors: Proposed Loan to the People’s Republic of China for the Anhui Huangshan Xin’an River Ecological Protection and Green Development Project . Manila.

S. Fraser et al. 2017. Methodology Report: Updated for Think Hazard! Version 2. World Bank Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery: Washington, DC.

H. J. Laanbroek. 2010. Methane Emission from Natural Wetlands: Interplay between Emergent Macrophytes and Soil Microbial Processes. A Mini-Review. Annals of Botany. 105 (1). pp.141–153.

Author
Mingyuan Fan

Mingyuan Fan

Principal Water Resources Specialist, East Asia Department, ADB

This blog is reproduced from Development Asia.

Protecting the Yellow River Basin in the PRC

Water resources throughout the PRC are affected by the management of the country’s river basins.

With the right policies, the Yellow River can help the PRC achieve its goals for ecological sustainability and economic growth.

As the second largest river system in the PRC, the Yellow River transports more than 1.5 billion tons of sediment per year from its headwaters on the Tibetan Plateau to its estuaries on the Yellow Sea. The dynamics between water, land, soil and climate make it a unique, ecologically diverse, and fragile basin.

One of the most pressing environmental and socio-economic challenges surrounding the river is water scarcity. Today, the basin accounts for only 2% of the country’s total water but 26.5% of the national gross domestic product (GDP). Feeding a population of 420 million, it is vital for socio-economic development. People in the river basin depend directly on these water resources as a basis for their livelihoods, including for food production, hydropower, industry, and domestic supply.

In recent years, the river’s flow has greatly diminished, affecting the lives of millions. Land use changes have significantly contributed to ecological deterioration and ecosystem alteration. It is estimated that human activities, such as destruction of natural vegetation, have augmented natural soil erosion by about 40% in the basin.

Water-related disasters are another major issue in the basin. The July 2021 floods in Henan province – which sits in the middle course of the Yellow River – were triggered by a record-breaking rainfall over 24 hours, almost the equivalent of the annual average. Temperature in the basin increased faster than the global average. Climate models indicated that extreme events such as droughts and severe floods could become more frequent in certain areas of this region, with the probability of increasing in the future. Exacerbated by climate change, extreme weather events may threaten agriculture and animal husbandry, putting at risk both rural and urban livelihoods.

The lack of basin-wide planning is a key barrier to protecting the river’s environment. Addressing the challenges in the Yellow River basin requires a planning and management approach that spans the whole ecosystem. The basin should be treated as an ecological corridor: a clearly defined geographical space that is managed over the long-term to maintain or restore the ecosystem.

As part of this, nature-related aspects need to be an integral component of financial planning and fiscal policy reforms. Such investments must address nature’s complexity and maintain and restore biodiversity.

The Yellow River basin is a natural treasure to be preserved, a home to millions of people, and the foundation for economic progress.

River basins, such as the Yellow River, can help achieve the country’s targets for ecological sustainability and economic growth. Healthy ecological corridors improve biodiversity while enhancing food security, climate resilience, and disease resistance. There are four policy actions that are critical to achieving this.

First, ensuring that nature-based solutions (such as using constructed wetlands for wastewater treatment or ecological embankments to mitigate flood risks) are built into policies, planning and financial mechanisms. These measures can improve natural capital protection, restore fragile ecosystems, and foster sustainable agriculture, simultaneously building resilient and equitable rural economies for the most vulnerable communities.

Second, applying the gross ecosystem product (GEP), an accounting mechanism developed in the People’s Republic of China for valuing and pricing ecosystem goods and services, can improve ecological and spatial planning and inform decision-making.

Click here to see what's GEP.

Third, using governance and financing as incentive mechanisms, including eco-compensation and water funds, can expand natural capital investments by generating ecological benefits and economies of scale.

Fourth, integrating environment, social, and governance criteria into lending and investment decisions can increase private sector participation and private capital injections into projects to protect natural resources. Based on these criteria, investors can observe and evaluate the performance of enterprises based not only on their financial performance but also on their contribution in promoting sustainable development and fulfilling social responsibility.

The Yellow River basin is a natural treasure to be preserved, a home to millions of people, and the foundation for economic progress. Conceived as a single watershed, it can offer ecosystem services to people and nature and generate multiple benefits. Even though physical boundaries and human engineering have split the river into an upper, middle and a lower course, it is important to protect the entire basin as a single ecological unit from source to sea. Effective strategies for adaptation to climate change are essential for the sustainable development of water resources in the Yellow River.

Author
Silvia Cardascia

Silvia Cardascia

Water Resources Specialist, East Asia Department, ADB

This blog is reproduced from Asian Development Blog.

Paving the Way for Urban Mobility Transformation in Xiangtan

Scaling Natural Capital Investments in the Yellow River Ecological Corridor

How ADB Plans to Help the PRC Tackle Flood Risks

RKSI attended an inception TA workshop recently to see how ADB plans to help the PRC mitigate water disaster threats.

Asia’s Eating Habits are Changing and the Environmental Impact Could be Huge

These charts illustrate the environmental impact of agriculture in Asia and the need to move toward sustainable and healthy diets that are also environmentally friendly and affordable.

The critical role of agriculture to Asia and the Pacific’s development can hardly be overstated. In the 1960s, food supply was a severe problem with most economies in the region struggling to feed their growing population. Many economies depended on food aid, while shortages and speculation prompted food crises in a few others.

The adoption of green revolution technologies in the 1960s increased agriculture productivity and not only allowed the region to meet increasing food demand, but also release labor to contribute towards vibrant manufacturing and services sectors.

In 2018, daily calorie intake per capita in the region, which is now home to more than half of the world’s population, had increased from 1245 kilo calories (kcal) in 1961 to 1914 kcal. Despite this progress, different forms of undernourishment such as stunting and wasting of children persists, even as obesity is rising in many parts of the region.

Today agriculture in the region faces a different kind of food supply challenge. Higher incomes and increasingly urban lifestyles have changed the needs and preferences of consumers. Instead of a diet heavy on traditional staples such as rice and wheat, consumers today prefer a more diverse diet. Per capita consumption of rice has leveled off; while that of fruit, vegetables, eggs, dairy products, as well as meat and seafood is increasing.

Although the consumption of cereals in developing countries in Asia increased between 1961 and 2018, its overall share in the diet decreased. The share for meat and animal products increased from 1% to 4%. This represents a more than six-fold increase in protein intake from animal meat from 1.5 grams to 10 grams per person per day. Still, this is well below the 34.6 grams average in advanced economies outside of the region.

In the PRC daily calorie intake more than doubled between 1961 to 2018, reaching 3205 kcal in 2018. Cereals only make up 46% of the diet, while the share of meat and animal products increased from a mere 3% in 1961 to 21% in 2018. This represents a 20-fold increase in per capita intake from 1.1 grams in 1961 to 19.7 grams in 2018.

To meet these changing food preferences, agriculture in the region will have to reorient from a traditional focus on the production of food staples to high-value crops such as fruit and vegetables, as well as livestock and aquaculture. This will mean a more resource-intensive production as well as rising greenhouse gases. As figure 3 shows, animal-based products have a much larger resource footprint, especially with regard to greenhouse gas emissions and water use.

To reduce the environmental impact of agriculture, it is important to move toward sustainable and healthy diets that are also socially acceptable and economically accessible for all. Some ways to achieve this are to promote mostly plant-based diets, reduce red meat consumption, promote fish obtained from sustainable stocks, and reduce food loss and waste throughout the supply chain.

This blog post is based on data from the recently published Asian Development Outlook Update 2021 Theme Chapter, Transforming Agriculture in Asia.

Author
Manisha Pradhananga

Manisha Pradhananga

Economist, Economic Research and Regional Cooperation Department, ADB

Daryll Naval

Daryll Naval

Research Associate, Economic Research and Regional Cooperation Department, ADB

This blog is reproduced from Asian Development Blog.

How to Meet Climate Targets with Carbon Capture and Storage

The Asia and Pacific region is responsible for about half of global carbon emissions. Photo credit: ADB.

With the PRC and Indonesia as centers of excellence, a regional program demonstrates how the technology can reduce carbon intensity.

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Overview

The PRC and Indonesia produce copious amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2), mainly because their power generation systems are hugely dependent on fossil fuels. The two countries’ carbon emissions are among the highest in the world, and both are keen on becoming carbon neutral as part of their commitments to the Paris Agreement.

Since the turn of the millennium, the PRC and Indonesia have been exploring ways to decarbonize their economies. But much still needs to be done in terms of coordinating oversight for research and development and scaling up deployment of CO2 capture and storage (CCS) technologies.

In 2019, ADB completed a technical assistance to support the PRC and Indonesia in improving their capacity for CCS research and development. Financed by the ADB-administered Carbon Capture and Storage Fund under the Clean Energy Financing Partnership Facility, the CCS program’s objective is to create a stronger strategic architecture and more coordinated research and development for accelerating and scaling up CCS development and deployment, as well as dissemination of best practices on CCS in Asia. The project under review initially concentrated on PRC and Indonesia and later on expanded its activities to Bangladesh, India, Mongolia, and Viet Nam.

Project information

48282-001: Promoting Carbon Capture and Storage in the People’s Republic of China and Indonesia

Project snapshot

      • Approval date: August 2014
      • Closing date: August 2019
      • Total project cost: $3.3 million. Total financing from the Carbon Capture and Storage Fund under ADB’s Clean Energy Financing Partnership Facility
      • Executing agency: Asian Development Bank
      • Financing: 
        • Global Carbon Capture
        • Storage Institute, United Kingdom

Challenges

The PRC is among the world’s largest consumers of coal, accounting for over half of global consumption. Its power generation sector uses more than half of that coal to provide about 80% of the country’s electricity and emits over 4 gigatons of CO2 (GtCO2) per year, 95% from coal-fired power generation. Continued economic growth is projected to drive energy consumption surges for the next several decades. With primary energy coming from coal and the expectation that this reliance on coal will persist for decades to come, PRC will likely continue as one of the world’s largest CO2 emitters for some time. Therefore, wide deployment of CCS in PRC over the long term will be necessary to significantly reduce national emissions. The PRC has announced it would become carbon neutral by 2060 at the United Nations General Assembly in September 2020.

Similarly, Indonesia has a heavily fossil fuels-based economy, consuming coal, oil, and gas produced domestically plus imported petroleum. As the world’s largest coal exporter and a substantial liquefied natural gas exporter, the country is confronted by increasing CO2 emissions from growing domestic consumption of indigenous coal and fossil fuels. It has significant requirements for the deployment of large-scale, low-carbon technology in the long term. Moreover, the government has been increasingly vocal about climate change and its impacts on the developing world.

Both the PRC and Indonesia have been considering the creation of legal and regulatory frameworks for advancing CCS.

Context

The Asia and Pacific region is responsible for about half of global CO2 emissions. Primary energy demand in the region is expected to increase by about 24% by 2030. Despite the rapid increase in renewable energy supply, trends suggest that this increase in demand will still translate into increased consumption of fossil fuels and CO2 emissions in the region. The PRC and India accounted for 27% and 7% of the global CO2 emissions in 2017.

While experiencing rapid growth and development, Asia and Pacific remains one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change. It faces the risk of losing its development gains to climate change impacts if mitigation and adaptation actions are not put in place.

CCS is identified as one of the technologies and practices that can help meet climate targets. The International Energy Agency’s Carbon Capture and Storage Roadmap highlighted the significant role that CCS will need to play in achieving an atmospheric CO2 concentration stabilization of 450 ppm (parts per million) by 2050. CCS will provide about 14% of the total CO2 emissions reductions out to 2050. Achieving this contribution of emissions reductions will require an ambitious CCS growth-path, with 100 projects needed globally by 2020 and over 3,000 by 2050. In both 2020 and 2050, major developing countries, including Indonesia and the PRC, will need to contribute to CCS deployment.

Solutions

ADB’s technical assistance, approved in 2014, initiated a support program for CCS research and development (R&D) with the institutes in PRC and Indonesia serving as centers of excellence.

The CCS program was administered by ADB to assist in the establishment of the research centers in the PRC and in Indonesia. They are expected to act as local knowledge hubs in this emerging technology. The CCS centers are to implement R&D programs on CCS technologies in the region and organize activities to develop the capacity to enable widespread deployment in both countries and in the region.

Other program activities included conferences, workshops, dialogues, study visits, and other initiatives to foster regional cooperation, establish new partnerships with other institutes in and outside the region, and strengthen leadership in CCS-related capacity development.

Results

The CSS program established three research centers to improve R&D activity on CCS in Guangdong and Shanghai in the PRC and Bandung as well as Jakarta in Indonesia.

Under the CCS program, the activities of these research centers help the host countries adopt CCS technology, create necessary regulations, and obtain financial access for developing projects. They are also expected to foster regional cooperation on these aspects and build capacity in the PRC and Indonesia.

The program also started exploring CCS as a tool to reduce greenhouse gas emission for hard-to-decarbonize industries in the steel, cement, and petrochemical sectors. It produced a background study to help prepare industries for decarbonization by utilizing and not just storing captured carbon. The paper also investigates the financing requirements and mechanisms, as well as policy drivers and recommendations, to advance readiness to shift to a low-carbon era.

The CCS program bridged the gap between policy, technology, and finance mechanisms, and supported the development of demonstration of CCS projects in Indonesia. It expanded activities beyond the PRC and Indonesia and explored possibilities of implementing carbon capture, utilization, and storage in Bangladesh, India, Mongolia, and Viet Nam, creating an opportunity for further engaging these countries.

Lessons

The CSS program offers the following lessons:

Local knowledge and capacity building are important.

Support to research centers should include capacity building to ensure that they are well-equipped to successfully carry out studies and demonstration projects that will pave the way for the deployment of large-scale technologies. More experts are needed to enhance local capacities in developing and implementing demonstration projects, especially in countries that have indicated continued high dependence on fossil fuels to sustain their economic growth.

Ensure government and other stakeholders’ participation. 

Government involvement was found to be critical for the sustainable operation of the research centers, especially in the implementation of large-scale demonstration projects. Future programs supporting these centers should involve government and important stakeholders in their operation right from the start. Coordination with national and local governments, in addition to financial, technical, and administrative requirements, is critical in demonstrating large-scale projects.

Partnerships can be beneficial. 

Partnership with organizations from various disciplines have enhanced information and knowledge sharing, which is important in advancing R&D and deployment of technologies.

References

Asian Development Bank (ADB). Regional: Promoting Carbon Capture and Storage in the People’s Republic of China and Indonesia

ADB. 2019. Background Study on CCUS Readiness in Power, Iron and Steel, Cement and Petroleum Sectors. Manila.

Author
Kee-Yung Nam

Kee-Yung Nam

Principal Energy Economist, Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department, ADB

This blog is reproduced from Development Asia.

A Holistic Ecosystem-Based Approach to Ecological Protection and Green Development: The Case of Huangshan in the PRC

Greening Development in the PRC: A Dynamic Partnership with ADB

These Policies Will Put the PRC on the Path to a Green Economic Recovery

The pandemic is an opportunity for the PRC to develop “greener” policies.

To rebuild greener and address climate challenges, the PRC should “green” its investments, financing tools and fiscal spending while at the same time developing a robust monitoring and evaluation framework.

Thanks to strict virus containment measures and an array of supportive monetary and fiscal policies, the PRC rebounded quickly from the shock of the pandemic. The country’s fiscal and monetary stimulus policies to mitigate the adverse impact of COVID-19 on the economy have amounted to $2.3 trillion, or 16.1% of gross domestic product (GDP) by the end of August 2021. The economy is now forecast to grow 8.1% in 2021 and 5.5% in 2022.

The government’s policy priorities must move from rescue to the recovery mode, from short-term stabilization measures to long-term economic recovery. In addition to rescue measures, the government announced recovery measures amounting to around $407 billion. However, the “green” share of the recovery spending – that which is likely to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, reduce air pollution and/or strengthen natural capital – only reached 12%, which was comparatively low compared to those of countries such as Canada (75%), Germany (47%), and France (38%).

The PRC already has ambitious long-term targets on environment and climate, such as peaking carbon emissions before 2030 and reaching carbon neutrality before 2060. Ensuring these targets are met requires policies that address climate challenges to ensure a green recovery from the COVID-19 shock.

At the same time, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development research shows that well-designed green stimulus measures can bring critical economic and environmental benefits. Also, thanks to falling technology costs, which enable more choices of green investments, green measures would support the economy and employment more strongly than in recovery from the 2008 Global Financial Crisis.

The PRC already has ambitious long-term targets on environment and climate.

Rebuilding greener requires the following policy actions:

Align public investment with long-term environmental goals. 

To boost public infrastructure development and to support economic recovery, the quota for new local government special bonds reached CNY3.75 trillion in 2020 and CNY3.65 trillion in 2021. This significant financial support to public infrastructure highlights the opportunity to allocate public resources toward sectors supporting the environment, such as renewable energy, biodiversity, and water management.

Leverage green finance. 

The PRC would need annual investment in energy transformation equivalent to 2%–2.5% of GDP from 2020 to 2050 to achieve a long-term low carbon transition pathway (2-degree transition pathway), according to a report by Tsinghua University’s Institute of Climate Change and Sustainable Development.

By the end of 2020, the sizes of outstanding green loans and green bonds were the world’s largest and second largest, respectively. Despite this rapid expansion of the green finance sector, a large financing gap remains. Thus, more capital needs to be mobilized to fund green infrastructure, which requires more private participation and broader funding base in addition to a well-designed and implemented public policy such as tax incentives, grants, legislation, and regulation.

Budget green.

The environmental impacts of the government’s budget choices are important to consider when designing policies. While public debt needs to be consolidated, public expenditure on social protection and green projects should be prioritized. The government can increase fiscal revenue by taxing emissions and polluting activities. International experience shows that green budgeting commonly involves tagging budget measures according to their climate and environment impacts. For example, 30% of the budget in France was allocated to green recovery measures in September 2020 based on this framework.

Monitor and evaluate the policies.

The government needs to identify and monitor the environmental impacts of its policies to ensure their alignment with climate and sustainability goals. Currently, such assessment is not fully in place yet, and there are only few databases to track and assess the environmental impact of government policies. Defining clear criteria and indicators for different policy areas and disclosing related results would be a good starting point.


The PRC has a historic opportunity to craft a “green” recovery from the pandemic if the right policies are put into place.

Author
Wen Qi

Wen Qi

Associate Economics Officer, PRC Resident Mission, ADB

This blog is reproduced from Asian Development Blog.

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