Compliance with the Chinese Character

Beijing was bathing in bright sun. Chinese people were waking up to the new reality of ‘socialist market and economic reforms’ started in late 1980s and I saw them upbeat in their pace.  An inspiring event was unfolding at Xidan Commercial area, a major shopping complex in Beijing. Mr. Xie Zhenhua, former Administrator of SEPA (and now China’s leading negotiator on Climate Change) and other high government officers stood at the huge entrance of the market. Why at all the high  ministerial level official was standing at the market place? Should not he be in the decorated hall with UNEP officials to discuss public awareness strategy?

16 September 1995. Beijing was bathing in bright sun. Chinese people were waking up to the new reality of ‘socialist market and economic reforms’ started in late 1980s and I saw them upbeat in their pace.  An inspiring event was unfolding at Xidan Commercial area, a major shopping complex in Beijing. Mr. Xie Zhenhua, former Administrator of SEPA (and now China’s leading negotiator on Climate Change) and other high government officers stood at the huge entrance of the market. Why at all the high  ministerial level official was standing at the market place? Should not he be in the decorated hall with UNEP officials to discuss public awareness strategy?  The concept came from Mr. Xie. The message Mr. Xie was giving with the help of UNEP was simple: The Montreal Protocol represents a technology and market transformation. Hence the awareness has to start at the market place. “Do not buy products containing Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) – they destroy the Earth’s ozone shield.” I was doing propaganda through loud speaker standing beside Mr. Xie with curious onlookers. I must be the  first ever UN official addressing a public rally and speaking to the Chinese people to create environmental awareness Awareness raising with Chinese characters!

China has come a long way since that ‘grass root’ awareness raising campaign. Bottom up approach was quite evident in all the strategies that China later put in place to comply with the Montreal Protocol.

Come July 2007. A city of Changshu is just about a two hour drive from Shanghai. I could see along the highway the power of China’s economy. Over the last decade, China was celebrating the urban prosperity with opening of markets. Almost every week China celebrated the opening of a highway, an expressway, a massive factory, a power plant or two, several sky scraper buildings, and many more. What an unprecedented growth China was witnessing. But I was in the city of Changshu to celebrate not the opening but the closure of a business! Why an official from United Nations was in China to celebrate the closure?  And that too it was at the invitation of the Chinese Government?  Interestingly, Mr. Wen Wurui, Director General of FECO was celebrating the closure of the a manufacturing facility of CFCs  (Chlorofluorocarbons)  and Halons (bromochlorofluoromethanes). The closure represented the end of the largest manufacturing activities in the world at that time. It was taking place two and a half years ahead of the Montreal Protocol schedule. China, the largest producer of CFCs and halons since 1996, had shut down its business to close the ozone hole. Symbolically,  it also closed the reliance on the old inefficient technology and open up the new expressway leading to ozone-friendly and climate friendly world!

Celebration of accelerated closure of production of nearly 60,000 metric tons per year of ODS in China has sent a strong signal to the entire world. As CFCs are also powerful Green House Gases, China also contributed to mitigation of climate change.

These were the initial steps of the long march towards sustainable development with Chinese characters!

That was summer of 2008. Both OzonAction of UNEP and Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG) were determined to project Olympic Games as a key awareness raising tool for the Ozone Layer Protection. Mr Yu Xiaoxuan, Deputy Head, of BOCOG was enthusiastic. He decided to take the challenge head on. At that time we debated that avoiding CFCs could probably be not that difficult, because China had already taken steps to accelerate the phase-out of CFCs by more than two years. However, the challenge will be the phase out of HCFCs from the games-venues. In year 2007, the developing countries agreed to phase out HCFCs only in 2030 with small percent to be phased out in 2040. Hence phasing out of HCFCs in Olympics games nearly 22 years in advance, would be a formidable challenge.

BOCOG and MEP were very enthusiastic to demonstrate that China is also the “largest developing country which will become an example of environmental heritage for the Olympic event!”So, the Beijing Olympics summer games went HCFC free! Even for the athletics village air conditioning did not use HCFCs. And for the athletes’ dining hall, a lithium bromide absorption system with solar energy was installed in place of HCFCs.

China not only met but crossed environmental standards with Chinese characters!

Beijing in May 2010. It was media training event jointly organized by UNEP and MEP.  It was time to look in the past and chalk out the challenges of the future. In April 2010 China had adopted the comprehensive legislations on ODS. Mr. Wen Wurui Director General of FECO told the media with the pride that by phasing out CFCs, Halons and CTC, China contributed to phase out of nearly 50% of developing world’s production and consumption of these substances. In doing so, he added, China also eliminated nearly half a billion giga tons of carbon dioxide equivalent and contributed to mitigation of climate change. The Montreal protocol has helped china to improve the energy efficiency of its domestic refrigerators, its commercial refrigeration and large air conditioning machines. It also helped achieving scale of economy and eliminating inefficient small factories. It was one of the massive industrial rationalizations that were seen in action. It created the new job opportunties. It contributed to sustainable agriculture by eliminating use of Methyl Bromide in soli fumigation.

It was transformation and contribution to Green Economy. It was compliance and environmental governance with Chinese characters!!END