No soft options in pursuit of climate goals

No exceptions

The Ministry of Ecology and Environment's work report released on Feb 1 paid a lot more attention to carbon reduction than the previous one, mentioning it 67 times compared with eight.

Huang Runqiu, minister of ecology and environment, said in the report that the ministry will mobilize "proactive factors" to unite "all forces that can be united".

He said all-out efforts will be made to address climate challenges, including those that emerge as the country forges ahead on its "urgent and arduous task" to meet the climate targets.

This is despite the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the economy. "Due to the epidemic, there are still some uncertainties facing the country's socioeconomic development. Concern for environmental protection has abated in some areas," Huang said.

"With hazy understanding of the carbon peak and neutrality, some provincial regions' impulses are to launch projects with high energy consumption and emissions."

Despite the challenges, the country will accelerate the transition to green and low-carbon energy, Huang said.

Under a general task of aligning carbon reduction with cutting air pollutants, higher priority will be given to control of carbon dioxide emissions.

"Projects with high energy consumption and emissions will be severely restricted," he said.

In the meantime, efforts will be made to foster green, low-carbon technologies and industries to create new development impetus during the five-year plan.