Chapter 1
China’s Growing Pains
—Reflecting On and Upgrading the Traditional Development Model

In recent years, as soon as heating systems start operation in winter in northern China, many cities become shrouded in haze, with visibility dropping below 100 meters at the worst times, forcing many people to don masks outdoors. Even more worryingly, the frequency of such smog-haze is increasing, as is the duration of such events. The smog in Beijing, the nation’s capital, draws particular attention.

Chen Jining, the current Minister of Environmental Protection, pinpointed the direct causes of air pollution in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region as the concentration of large numbers of high-polluting, energy-hungry industries, concentrated emissions from winter heating fuel coal and oil, and the rapid growth of motor vehicles. Such things would be difficult to improve. For China, in the process of rapid industrialization, the control of haze will be a long-term process.

It is obvious that the heavy haze enveloping northern China is inseparable from the local economic development model. According to statistics, Beijing, Tianjin and the neighboring provinces of Hebei, Shanxi, Shandong and Henan account for just 7.2 percent of China’s total land area, but they consume 33 percent of the country’s coal, and their unit area emissions are about four times the national average. The output of major products such as steel, coke and flat glass in the six provinces and municipalities accounts basically for 30 percent to 40 percent of the national total. In addition, coal-fired power accounts for 27 percent, crude oil processing for 26 percent, and motor vehicle ownership for 28 percent of the respective national totals.

China is not the only country to be hit by smog: In March 2015, many places in Europe too continued to experience heavy haze; London regained the reputation of “fog city,” the Eiffel Tower, that iconic Paris landmark, almost “disappeared.”... Continued smoggy weather also led to general anxiety among Europeans, and smog once again became a topic of global attention.