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China to better use energy resources, says premier

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-10-18 14:25

Strong measures, including economic, legal and administrative measures when necessary, should be taken to restrict China's high energy consuming and heavily polluting enterprises, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has said.

Wen made the remarks in an interview with Bruce Alberts, editor-in-chief of the Science Magazine of the United States on September 30.

In the exclusive interview with Bruce Alberts at the Zhongnanhai leadership compound, Wen briefed Alberts on China's current situation on usage and conservation of energy. "China is a main energy consumer and, therefore, is also a big greenhouse gas emitter," Wen said.

"We have established a goal that our GDP growth every year must be accompanied by a four percent decrease in energy consumption and a two percent reduction in COD (chemical oxygen demand) and sulfur dioxide emissions every year," he said.

With regard to China's energy consumption and pollution, Wen said it is indispensable to adjust economic structure, transform the mode of development, to make economic development more dependent on progress of science and technology and the quality of the work force.

"We have only been industrializing for several decades, while developed countries have been on this road for over 200 years. But we will now begin to shoulder our due responsibilities, namely, the common but differentiated responsibilities set forth in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol," he said.

Now every year, China produces about 180 million tons of crude oil and imports about 170 million tons. China's coal production exceeds 2.5 billion tons a year. Wen said the consumption of nonrenewable fossil fuel at such a massive scale is not sustainable.