Renewable Energy Legislation in China:Politicaland Institutional Strategy for EffectiveImplementation

Over the past decade, the Chinese government has developed several plans regulations and policy measures related to the development of renewable energy technologies and has implemented a series of pilot projects. Chinese policymakers have spent several years studying how renewable energy policy models that have been used internationally could be implemented in China. Programs are currently underway to implement pilot renewable portfolio standards, or mandatory market shares (MMS) for renewable energy, in several provinces. This paper examines the primary institutions that are involved in promoting renewable policies in China, the structure of the policies that currently are being drafted, and the status of the complementary, national-level renewable energy law being drafted to provide a legal basis for ongoing local and national-level policies. It then examines the legal requirements for promoting renewable energy legislation under the Chinese law-making system. Finally, it provides recommendations for     

中国可再生能源政策演化、效果评估与未来展望

发展可再生能源已成为中国能源转型及减缓气候变化的关键途径。2006年《可再生能源法》实施至今,中国可再生发展取得举世瞩目成绩。然而可再生能源在中国整个能源结构中的占比仍然偏低,其未来可持续发展仍面临挑战,如可再生能源发展资金缺口持续扩大,可再生能源电力消纳仍然面临一定障碍。在未来新的发展背景下,有必要对中国可再生能源政策进行系统的评估和总结,进一步探讨未来可再生能源政策的优化方案。本文首先对中国2005—2019年可再生能源政策的发展历程及演化路径进行总结梳理,基于不同时期的发展特点及面临的主要矛盾将中国可再生能源政策历程划分为四个阶段;然后在综述相关研究基础上,对中国可再生能源政策的实施效果进行评估,包括政策有效性、政策成本、技术进步等。结果表明,中国过去十年的可再生能源政策对促进可再生能源快速发展是积极有效的,而促进可再生能源发展的政策成本仍然有进一步下降的空间;另外,虽然中国可再生能源发电成本下降显著,然而基于历史经验的技术进步率仍然不足以支撑实现中国2020年平价上网的目标,未来需要进一步推动可再生能源技术的进步和发电成本的下降。结合当前及未来中国可再生能源发展所处阶段的特点及面临挑战,我们提出进一步完善中国可再生能源政策以促进可再生能源持续稳定发展的政策建议,一是完善可再生能源绿色电力证书交易制度,增强可再生能源发展的内生激励并降低政策实施成本;二是建立储能技术市场机制,为减少弃电以及推动可再生能源消纳提供政策支持;三是推进碳金融体系建设,为可再生能源发展提供新的融资来源并降低发电成本。     

The EU sustainable energy policy indicators framework

The article deals with indicators framework to monitor implementation of the main EU (European Union) directives and other policy documents targeting sustainable energy development. The main EU directives which have impact on sustainable energy development are directives promoting energy efficiency and use of renewable energy sources, directives implementing greenhouse gas mitigation and atmospheric pollution reduction policies and other policy documents and strategies targeting energy sector. Promotion of use of renewable energy sources and energy efficiency improvements are among priorities of EU energy policy because the use of renewable energy sources and energy efficiency improvements has positive impact on energy security and climate change mitigation. The framework of indicators can be developed to establish the main targets set by EU energy and environmental policies allowing to connect indicators via chain of mutual impacts and to define policies and measures necessary to achieve established targets based on assessment of their impact on the targeted indicators representing sustainable energy development aims. The article discusses the application of indicators framework for EU sustainable energy policy analysis and presents the case study of this policy tool application for Baltic States. The article also discusses the use of biomass in Baltic States and future considerations in this field.     

我国发展循环经济的政策与法律体系探讨

建立和完善循环经济政策应遵循三个原则：服务于我国循环经济概念与内涵原则。服务于循环经济实践的原则。用足用好现有政策和补充缺位政策相结合的原则。我国发展循环经济的政策与法律体系应包括四大类：基本政策、核心政策和基础性政策。技术政策可以融入这四类政策之中。基本政策是统领循环经济所有政策的根本。是资源环境与社会经济发展相融合的综合性政策。基础性政策是指为循环经济重点领域实践创造良好制度环境的政策。大致包括宏观经济政策、基本经济制度、基础性激励政策和考核政策等。核心政策是直接推动循环经济重点实践领域的政策。在核心政策中。需要切实落实和用足用好的现有对循环经济发展较有利的政策有：生态工业政策（包括产业结构调整政策、清洁生产政策）。资源综合利用和环保产业税费优惠政策。能源节约和再生能源政策。环境友好型产品标志（标识）政策；需要完善的薄弱政策有：生态工业园建设政策。废弃物回收、再利用、资源化和无害化产业政策。生态农业政策。资源开发利用政策；需要新建立的缺位政策主要涉及消费领域、环境友好型和资源能源节约型城镇基础设施和建筑领域。     

Evaluation on the development degree of China’s seven pilot carbon markets

China is preparing to establish a nationwide carbon market in 2017, and in order to facilitate this goal, seven pilot carbon markets have been under study for the past few years. This paper summarizes the operation experience and challenges of the seven pilot carbon markets in China. It has been widely accepted that the essence of a carbon market is to solve environmental problems through market mechanisms, with environmental benefit being the fundamental purpose, market mechanism being the key measure, and policies and regulations being an important guarantee for an orderly carbon market. Therefore, this paper constructs an evaluation index system composed of 34 detailed sub-indexes in three dimensions, such as environmental constraint force, market resource allocation ability, and supporting policies and facility completeness. Through analyzing the operation data from 2013 to 2016, the weights of the sub-indexes are obtained. In addition, the study obtains experts’ opinions from over 10 carbon permits exchanges, consultancy firms and research institutions in China, and conducts a comprehensive evaluation on the development degree of the seven pilot carbon markets. Results show that the pilot carbon markets that include private SMEs as the covered entities for emissions control present relatively higher environmental constraint force. But too many covered entities could increase the difficulty of market performance management, while the pilots that include high energy-consuming state-owned enterprises as the entities for emissions control demonstrate a phenomenon of “high market compliance rate with low trading volume”. The resource allocation capability of China’s carbon market has not been effectively brought into play, and low degree of market participation has become an important constraint factor for market development. Due to the lack of laws and regulations at the national macro-level, the legally binding force of the pilot markets construction is obviously insufficient, and the supporting policies are lacking foresights. Generally, the development of China’s pilot carbon markets is still in such a fragmented state as in the aspects of environment, market and policy development, and the market operation has not yet achieved the purpose of solving environmental problems through market mechanisms. Accordingly, policy recommendations pointed out by this study are that tightening the allowance of free quota and progressively increasing the auction proportion, improving legal construction, increasing the services and products of carbon finance and standardizing the order of market transactions, enhancing capacity building of local governments and promoting the participation willingness and capability of emissions control entities, will be necessary.     

论中国可再生能源发展机制

中国可再生能源存在着成本高和市场狭小两大问题，要根本解决这两大问题必须制定新政策，形成新机制。中国的可再生能源政策的多目标性决定了新出台政策应该是一个政策体系，具体应包括目标机制、定价机制、交易机制、选择机制和补偿机制五种运行机制。     

Evaluating the low-carbon development of urban China

Facing the ever-increasing serious pollution from carbon emission and the pressing need for sustainable development, China initiated the strategy of low-carbon development in 2010. Since then, eight cities and five provinces have been selected as pilot areas to develop a low-carbon economy. Under such a circumstance, this study aimed to construct a indicator system and evaluating model so that the low-carbon development levels of the pilot cities can be quantified. Therefore, this study, based the on Driving Force–Pressure–State–Impact–Response model, established a regional low-carbon development indicator system. Second, the weight of each indicator was calculated by taking the entropy method. Third, the low-carbon development levels were measured and evaluated by taking the comprehensive approach of Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal Solution. Then, taking 10 cities from those 13 pilot areas as case studies, this study measured and compared the low-carbon development levels of those 10 cities before and after being pilot areas. The research findings showed that though the low-carbon development levels changed greatly, only five pilot cities’ growth rate is positive. The reasons for changes in the low-carbon development levels were analyzed. The urbanization level and energy consumption elasticity coefficient were the main factors affecting the low-carbon development levels. Additionally, the study traced the effective policies hidden behind the indicators, which provided policy insights to help decision makers prepare their low-carbon development strategies, including legislation efforts, economic instrument, renewable energy and energy-saving technology improvement and low-carbon transportation.     

Policy innovation for technology diffusion: a case-study of Japanese renewable energy public support programs

Due to local scarcity of fossil fuel reserves, deployment of renewable energy has been on the Japanese government energy policy agenda for decades. While a significant amount of government budget was being allocated to renewables Research and Development, in contrast very little attention was paid to public support for renewable energy deployment. Against this background, in 2003, the Japanese government enacted legislation based on the renewable portfolio standard (RPS) scheme, which requires electricity retailers to supply a certain amount of electricity from renewable sources to grid consumers. The RPS legislation had been expected to ensure market efficiency, as well as bringing a steady increase in renewable capacity. Later, in 2009, the feed-in tariff (FIT) scheme was introduced to let electricity utilities purchase electricity generated from renewable energy sources with regulated prices. This paper aims to use the choice of renewable policy as a case-study to understand barriers for policy transfer and innovation, mainly through comparative studies between RPS and FIT in Japan. The result of this study shows that, in Japan, most policy-makers face the ‘lock-in’ of existing technology, which frustrates the deployment of renewable energy. For this reason, there is reluctance to allow experimentation that could promote a shift to other energy sources. In order to achieve the rapid change towards green industry, innovation policy needs to be implemented through effective and efficient methods, such as a carbon tax for fossil fuels; enlargement of renewable energy deployment to sources such as wind, geothermal and solar; and conducting further studies toward public preference and willingness to pay for the new clean energy sources.     

The impact of the New Cooperative Medical Scheme in Sangzhi County,Hunan Province

In August 2011,the Sangzhi County government,Hunan Province,adopted a series of new health care policies as a national pilot of the New Cooperative Medical Scheme(referred to as 2011 NCMS).These policies were designed to further resolve illness-led poverty and the poor state of health care in the local area.The program had a positive impact and spread to other regions in Hunan Province.This paper will discuss the progress made as a result of the policies and several issues that challenge the scheme in practice.A total sample of 1212 individuals and 303 households were included in the analysis,and98 interviews were conducted with people related to the scheme.Our major findings indicate that the 201!NCMS has significantly reduced the out-of-pocket medical payment of rural residents,and also increased the township hospitals’patient flow.However,the medical scheme still faces many challenging issues during the implementation.With the increasing interest among the Chinese policy makers in strengthening and promoting the Sangzhi Model,the impacts of the scheme deserve greater attention in practice so as to further improve NCMS in rural China.     

The role of capital deepening in China’s energy transition

ABSTRACT

This paper provides a theoretical model to explain the causality between China’s energy transition and capital deepening found by the empirical study. We prove that in the equilibrium, China’s energy transition is endogenously determined by capital deepening due to the homogeneity of electricity and the monopolistic competition features of China’s electricity market. Price effect, which is the effect of change in relative factor price, will affect energy transition only if the policy intervenes electricity price in terms of the primary sources from which it is generated. We propose that investment can promote energy transition by stimulating capital deepening which is biased to clean energy development. In this regard, our paper provides a new way of thinking for other developing countries to design an effective energy transition policy.     

中国低碳城市试点的政策设计逻辑

政策试点是中国国家治理策略体系的重要组成部分,是中国政府遵循“由点到面”逻辑以试验手段制定政策的一种常规性工作方法。低碳城市试点是中国应对气候变化战略的重要组成部分,通过选择不同类型、不同发展阶段、不同资源禀赋的地区开展试点,探索经济增长与碳排放脱钩的模式。现有文献侧重低碳城市建设的内涵、建设模式与路径、温室气体的核算方法、政策手段、峰值研究与达峰路径、效果评估等,有力地支持了低碳城市建设决策,但对于低碳城市试点的政策设计鲜有涉及。本文从政策过程理论、央地关系两个视角,结合府际学习与竞争关系,建构了中国低碳城市政策“试点–扩散”机制与政府行为的分析框架。中国的低碳城市试点具有探索型开拓性、综合型专业性、授权型自主性的特点,结合三批低碳城市试点的文件要求和实践进展,从政策试点的选点、设计、执行、监督和评估五个方面对于中国低碳城市试点进行了系统的梳理分析。相较于经济领域的其他政策试点,低碳城市政策试点具有弱激励弱约束的政策环境。地方政府基于自身的学习能力和领导力,在政策创新方面表现出争先、自主、效仿和守成四种行为特征,并以杭州、深圳、镇江、成都四个表率城市做了实证。政策“试点-扩散”的过程从本质上讲是中国政策创新与扩散的过程,可能在现实中需要往复多次进行,中国已陆续开展的三批低碳城市试点工作就遵循这样的政策逻辑。试点的意义是试出问题、解决问题、积累经验。从前三批试点城市评估结果来看,试点城市在低碳发展目标设定、转型路径探索和低碳发展动力转换等方面与社会的预期仍有差距,为此本文提出了推进低碳城市建设的四点建议:一是激发城市低碳发展的内生动力;二是完善低碳城市试点的科学论证机制;三是建立激励与约束并举的长效机制;四是强化市场公平竞争的政策导向。     

Climate change adaptation and cross-sectoral policy coherence in southern Africa

To be effective, climate change adaptation needs to be mainstreamed across multiple sectors and greater policy coherence is essential. Using the cases of Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia, this paper investigates the extent of coherence in national policies across the water and agriculture sectors and to climate change adaptation goals outlined in national development plans. A two-pronged qualitative approach is applied using Qualitative Document Analysis of relevant policies and plans, combined with expert interviews from non-government actors in each country. Findings show that sector policies have differing degrees of coherence on climate change adaptation, currently being strongest in Zambia and weakest in Tanzania. We also identify that sectoral policies remain more coherent in addressing immediate-term disaster management issues of floods and droughts rather than longer-term strategies for climate adaptation. Coherence between sector and climate policies and strategies is strongest when the latter has been more recently developed. However to date, this has largely been achieved by repackaging of existing sectoral policy statements into climate policies drafted by external consultants to meet international reporting needs and not by the establishment of new connections between national sectoral planning processes. For more effective mainstreaming of climate change adaptation, governments need to actively embrace longer-term cross-sectoral planning through cross-Ministerial structures, such as initiated through Zambia’s Interim Climate Change Secretariat, to foster greater policy coherence and integrated adaptation planning.     

“十二五”以来中国应对气候变化政策和行动评述

基于广泛系统的文献梳理和总结,凝练了“十二五”以来中国应对气候变化政策和行动的现状、特点及成效,并提出针对性建议。主要结论包括:从外部环境看,国际形势对中国应对气候变化事业的推动作用呈现递减态势,之前“以外促内”的国内气候治理特点逐步转化为“内生动力为主”和“内外协调”;从政策制定和执行模式看,“集思广益”“上书模式”持续,“上下互动”“智库支持”的政策学习特点更加明显;从政策体系上看,已经形成相对成熟的符合中国国情的完整体系,推动气候治理能力显著提高;从政策总体特点看,呈现规划主导并引领、行政手段先行市场机制跟进、由点到面有序扩展、环境与气候协同治理、中央和地方互动博弈形成动态平衡、短期内政策成本较高等特点。“十二五”至今,中国应对气候变化政策行动效果明显,提前实现了2020年应对气候变化目标,并在污染治理、经济发展等方面产生广泛协同效应。“十三五”中期以来,中国应对气候变化组织管理机构进行了重大调整,从中央到地方气候政策和行动进入调整阶段。同时,更加强调气候政策和环境政策的协同。展望未来,中国应对气候变化政策和行动应该尽快走出调整期,充分利用新体制的优势,以碳总量控制目标为抓手,坚定推动以全国碳排放权交易为中心、多措互补的政策体系,注重适应行动以应对不断放大的气候风险,继续提高公众对应对气候变化政策的认知度、接受度和参与度,并不断加强技术研发和储备。     

Institutions,policies and soil degradation: theoretical examinations and case studies in Southeast China

Abstract

Southeast China is one of the severe soil degradation areas in China. This paper theoretically examines the impact of some important institutional arrangements and policies, like land management pattern, the rural off-farm employment, land property change and changes in prices of agricultural products, on soil degradation in this area. It further conducts some case studies to confirm the potential relationship between the institutions & policies and soil degradation, applying the surveyed and the second hand data. The paper at last makes some conclusions and proposes some suggestions on how to promote soil conservation by improving the ways of policy decision-making and the effects of policies on land use.     

中国能耗动态增长机理和节能内涵探讨

近年来,尽管我国政府围绕一些阶段性的能源效率改进指标(例如:降低我国单位国内生产总值的能源消耗)实施了一系列政策措施,并且就此已经取得了显著的成效,但这并未从根本上消除我国当前经济社会发展过程中存在的能源浪费和不合理使用现象,以及从长远来看我国经济社会发展趋向和依赖高能耗经济社会发展路径的隐患。究其原因,关键是对符合我国现实国情的节能内涵欠缺充分的认识,从而难以制定具有前瞻性和全局性的节能发展战略。在此背景下,本文在辨析节能基本概念的基础上,结合对我国当前能源消耗动态增长特征及其形成机理的剖析,进一步归纳出我国节能的本质内涵,指出"动态节能"是我国节能的本质内涵,而我国"动态节能"的根本目的在于减少我国实现现代化(例如城镇化和工业化等)整体过程中的"集总能源消耗"。本文开展的以上定性分析工作加深了对我国节能内涵的认识,为相关决策者制定更加全面的节能政策提供必要的决策参考依据。     

The Clean Development Mechanism and Sustainable Development in China's Electricity Sector

Abstract

The Clean Development Mechanism, a flexibility mechanism contained in the Kyoto Protocol, offers China an important tool to attract investment in clean energy technology and processes into its electricity sector. The Chinese electricity sector places centrally in the country's economy and environment, being a significant contributor to the acid rain and air pollution problems that plague many of China's cities and regions, and therefore a focus of many related energy and environmental policies. China's electricity sector has also been the subject of a number of economic analyses that have showed that it contains the highest potential for clean energy investment through the Clean Development Mechanism of any economic sector in China. This mechanism, through the active participation from investors in more industrialized countries, can help alleviate the environmental problems attributable to electricity generation in China through advancing such technology as wind electricity generation, clean coal technology, high efficient natural gas electricity generation, or utilization of coal mine methane. In this context, the Clean Development Mechanism also compliments a range of environmental and energy policies which are strategizing to encourage the sustainable development of China's economy.     

China’s climate socialization and renewable energy coalition building

ABSTRACT

Against the backdrop of a heavy carbon lock-in energy structure, China has made considerable progress in renewable energy (RE) development and become a world leader in this area within a decade. Although existing research suggests that rapid RE growth is mainly due to the convergence of economic growth, green industry competition, and energy security concerns under a unique state-led model, they oversimplify the difficulty inherent in RE policy shifting supported by formerly weak pro-RE actors in China’s historical trajectory of a low-carbon transition. By exploring the interaction between international and domestic actors by means of a socialization-based coalition-building framework, this paper aims at analyzing how the capacity building of the RE coalition gets enhanced via institutional anchoring and resource reallocation in the climate socialization process and how the strengthened RE coalition has spurred transformation in China’s RE policy and the challenges they are confronted with.     

中国试点碳市场监管机制研究与国际经验借鉴

2015年9月《中美元首气候变化联合声明》宣布中国将于2017年启动全国性碳排放交易体系以来,中国碳市场的筹建及7大试点的运行备受国内外媒体和学术界的关注。相关预测显示,中国碳市场届时将一举超过目前全球最大的欧盟碳排放交易体系EU ETS成为世界第一大碳交易市场,但由于7个试点运行时间较短、试点地区重视程度以及建设侧重点不统一等原因,目前中国碳市场存在着监管机构职责不清、监管体系不健全、监管政策不到位等一系列问题。本研究从监管机构、监管政策、技术支持平台、监管内容等方面梳理和分析了中国7个试点碳市场的监管体系,并将其与EU ETS、RGGI等国际上发展较为成熟的碳市场监管体系进行了对比分析后发现:1在监管手段方面,EU ETS与RGGI均侧重于依靠法律手段,而中国碳市场的监管手段则主要以地方性规范文件为主;2在监管机构职能方面,EU ETS的二级管理体系有效划分了监管范畴,保证了各级监管力度。RGGI的第三方独立监管模式则很好的保证了监管的公平性,充分发挥了碳市场事中监管作用,而中国碳市场则主要依赖于地方发改委来进行监管,存在职责划分不明晰等问题;3在监管重心方面,EU ETS侧重于对市场运行中的操作性风险和交易性风险进行防范,RGGI则更加关注交易风险的实时监控,而中国碳市场目前主要针对市场价格波动风险进行了防范。由此对中国即将建立的全国性碳市场监管机制设计提出了如下建议:1提高碳市场立法效力,完善监管政策体系;2平衡监管权力,成立专职监管机构;3加强过程监管,完善电子平台安全建设;4加大碳市场信息披露力度,鼓励公众及行业协会参与,形成外部监督机制。     

A test of environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) for carbon emission and potential of renewable energy to reduce green house gases (GHG) in Malaysia

This study investigates the presence of environmental kuznets curve (EKC) for green house gases (GHG) measured by CO₂ emission in Malaysia for the period 1970 to 2011. The study also examines the potential of the renewable source of energy to contain GHG. The long-run significant positive coefficient of GDP indicates that the GHG are increasing with economic growth while the insignificant coefficient on GDP square rejects the EKC transition. These results indicate a high GDP level for the EKC turning point for Malaysia. Therefore, it can be stated that only economic growth cannot reverse the environmental degradation in Malaysia. The government should have to come up with some policy measures to achieve CO₂ emission reduction targets that Malaysia has pledged to achieve in Paris Submit (2015). The renewable energy production is found to have significant negative effect on CO₂ emission. So government should focus on the renewable source of energy production and should frame a special policy for renewable energy production.     

Towards a sustainable energy future—exploring current barriers and potential solutions in Thailand

Renewable energy is considered an indispensable basis of sustainable energy systems as electricity generation from renewable sources results in low emissions of greenhouse gases compared to fossil fuel based electricity and contributes to sustainable development. However, effective strategies and conducive institutional settings are needed for advancement of such clean electricity systems. Although Thailand, as a nation, has a huge potential for renewable energy utilization, its total amount of electricity generation from renewables is relatively small and could be enlarged substantially. Lack of policy mechanisms, institutional development and financing exist as major barriers for Thailand in this regard. Investigation of the nation’s current energy strategy implementation shows that relevant energy and development policies are at different stages of implementation and institutional settings are continuously evolving. This paper argues that further significant efforts could be made towards advancement of renewable electricity and thus achievement of energy sustainability in Thailand. Resource planning, effective policy and institutions, focussed planning for energy sustainability and implementation of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) under the Kyoto Protocol could facilitate further advancement of renewables for the nation.