NGO introduces ambitious environmental plan at UN assembly

An international NGO from China has unveiled an ambitious action plan to promote green and low-carbon development making use of the Global Energy Interconnection, as delegates from 170 countries gather in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, for the United Nations Environment Assembly.

The GEI Action Plan for Promoting Global Environmental Protection was released Saturday by the Global Energy Interconnection Development and Cooperation Organization in the second global session of the UN Science-Policy-Business Forum on the Environment, which is a side event of the assembly.

With GEI as a resort, which is a combination of smart grid, ultra high voltage grid and clean energy, the action plan includes eight sub-plans, including grid interconnection, universal power access, energy efficiency and ecological restoration.

GEI also represents a modern energy system dominated by clean energy, centered on electricity and with a high level of connectivity, co-development and sharing.

Unreasonable development and utilization of energy is the key factor causing global environmental issues. GEI, however, could help address many of the problems, the document said.

It said GEI could well reduce emissions from fossil energy consumption and control temperature rise by shifting to clean energy and  saving a lot of water, land and forest resources.

“The development of GEI will bring fundamental change to global environmental governance,” said Liu Zhenya, chairman of GEIDCO, according to a media release from the NGO.

GEI could help promote global carbon emissions peak in about 2025, and drop to less than half of the emission level in 1990 by 2050, according to Liu.

He also said global emissions of sulfur dioxide, nitric oxide and inhalable particles are expected to drop by about 70 percent by 2050.

“We will also see dramatic cuts in the discharge of solid waste and marine pollutants linked with the production, allocation and use of fossil energy,” he said.