Pollution: renewable energy Flashcards
What is China’s role in electricity production?
- China is the world’s leading country in electricity production from renewable energy sources.
- It is also the largest producer of wind and solar energy, and the largest domestic and outbound investor in renewable energy.
What is China’s aim with regards to renewable energy?
The country aims to have 80% of its total energy come from non-fossil fuel sources by 2060.
What are the 3 main sources of renewable energy?
- hydro
- wind
- solar
What is China’s use of non-renewable energy?
- However, China does utilize biomass and geothermal sources.
- In fact, in 2005, China emerged as the world’s 3rd largest producer of ethanol-based bio-fuels, with the country producing 2m tons of biofuel each year.
What are differences in energy consumption in China?
the eastern coastal provinces tend to produce less renewable energy, and therefore consume less electricity that is generated by renewable energy.
Differences in energy consumption statistics
- A report by the National Energy Administration (NEA) in 2021 showed that renewables occupy about 80% of the electricity consumption mix in three west provinces – Sichuan, Yunnan and Qinghai.
- By contrast, renewables occupy less than 20% of electricity consumption in most eastern coastal provinces, like Shandong, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang.
China as a producer of solar energy
- In 2015, China became the world’s largest producer of photovoltaic power
- from 2005-2014, production of solar cells in China has expanded by 100-fold.
How many people in China does solar energy employ?
China has an estimated 2.7m people employed in the solar energy sector, making up more than half of the world’s 4.3m solar jobs.
How does China produce solar energy?
the Talatan Photovoltaic Park or ‘blue sea’ generates about 9.6b kilowatts of solar energy per year and has the largest solar power generation capacity in the world.
What has been the effects of the Talatan Photovoltaic Park?
- The area receives an average of 1,600 hours of sunshine per year, providing a unique advantage for the development of photovoltaic power generation.
- Its total area is equivalent to the total land area of Singapore.
- The power plant has created numerous job opportunities for locals and has reversed the desertification of grasslands in the area.
Where does China source its hydroelectric power?
China has 98,000 dams, with most of them being used as a source of hydroelectric power generation.
How much hydroelectricity does China produce?
China leads the world in development of hydropower, with roughly 28% of global hydropower capacity.
What constitute the world’s largest clean energy corridor?
Baihetan Dam, together with the Three Gorges Dam and the Gezhouba, Wudongde, Xiluodu and Xiangjiaba hydropower stations in the Jinsha river will constitute the world’s largest clean energy corridor.
How many wind turbines have been built in China?
92,000
What is China’s role in wind power installation?
- China is the largest wind power producer in the world.
- In 2021 China was responsible for 70% of all new wind installed capacity.
How many households can China’s wind farm produce for?
The wind farm can meet the annual electricity consumption demands of about 2.4m households.
Give an example of China’s wind power farm
The Three Gorges Yangjiang Shaba Offshore Wind Farm
- as of March 2022, produced 1b kilowatts of clean electricity
- reduced CO2 emissions by 840,000 metric tons, which is equivalent to planting 3,309 hectares of broadleaf forests.
What are some renewable energy target/policies?
- Renewable energy law
What is the renewable energy law?
- 2006
- a framework policy which lays out the general conditions for renewable energy to become a more important energy source in China
- It covers all modern forms of renewable energy (wind, solar, water, biomass, geothermal and ocean).
What is the golden sun initiative?
A program announced by the govt in 2009 designed to promote renewable energy generation and create a domestic market for its solar cell manufacturers
What were the aims of the golden sun initiative?
- the government said it would subsidise no less than 500 megawatts worth of installations to help encourage the development of solar energy.
- Since March 2010, close to 10 billion yuan worth of subsidies has been paid by the Chinese government under this program.
Was the golden sun initiative effective? (yes)
- encouraged many firms to invest in solar cell manufacturing
- after the Financial Crisis in 2008, it was vital in helping smaller firms continue developing solar energy
Was the golden sun initiative effective? (no)
- many were not convinced by the subsidies provided by the scheme given that production of solar energy is not particularly lucrative.
- Taking into account the no. of days electricity generation is not possible (e.g since the sun isn’t shining), maintenance, construction & material costs, the payback period for one solar energy project was 21 years.
- The Golden Sun initiative shortened this to 10.5 years, but for many this still did not appeal.
How did the govt attempt to increase the share of renewables in China’s energy mix?
- China’s Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Air Pollution issued in 2013
