Op-Ed Contributors

Save energy for better future

By Wang Yiqing (China Daily)
Updated: 2011-03-17 08:01

Returning to the negative effects of some environmental protection measures, it cannot be denied that they are controversial. But the central authorities promoted "energy-saving and emission-reduction" measures to protect the environment, stimulate industrial restructuring, advance technological progress and facilitate sustainable development. There is nothing wrong with the measures. The fault lies with the local officials who assume that "energy saving and emission reduction" is the ultimate aim of their governance, because it can influence their political performance.

Toward the end of the 11th Five-Year Plan, local authorities felt they had to meet their energy-saving targets to maintain their good performance records, and some of them took the drastic measure of cutting even normal electricity supply to households and enterprises.

Though Su criticizes such last-minute efforts, he insists that the advantages of using "environmental indices to assess officials' performance" outweigh the disadvantages. After all, before the obligatory indicators were introduced, environmental protection work did not progress to such an extent.

To avoid unnecessary power cuts and disruptions in the heating system, Su says, the government should readjust the indices for saving energy and reducing emissions. "The government should treat regions according to the demands of their industrial and economic development, rather than forcing them to produce equal environmental protection results."

It's difficult for some regions, whose GDP largely depends on heavy industries, to follow universal environmental rules, because that would undermine economic development and employment.

Furthermore, areas such as the Inner Mongolia autonomous region that "export" energy make great contributions to other areas' development. So it would be unfair to thrust the same set of environmental rules on them.

Nevertheless, people have to realize that the little inconvenience they suffer today to protect the environment will bear sweeter fruits in the long run - for them and the generations to come.

(China Daily 03/17/2011 page9)