World Bank: Emissions could stabilize in Asia

The World Bank said Monday that East Asia could stabilize its greenhouse gas emissions by 2025 while maintaining economic growth by investing in energy efficiency and low-carbon technologies.

Achieving the target would require the region's biggest energy guzzlers to invest an extra $80 billion a year to make power industry and transport sectors more efficient and develop renewable energy, the World Bank said.

If countries act, regional carbon emissions could stabilize by 2025 and begin to decline slightly, said the bank, which provides financial and technical aid to developing nations.

Achieving the target depends largely on China, which accounts for 80 percent of energy consumption and 85 percent of regional carbon emissions, it said.

The world's third-largest economy will need to reduce its carbon emissions as a percentage of economic growth by an even greater margin than currently planned, the bank said.

It called that a "daunting goal," given that China is still a developing country reliant on energy-intensive, heavy-polluting industries.

It also noted that major policy and institutional reforms as well as big lifestyle changes would be needed throughout the East Asia region to achieve the goal.

"Major investments in energy efficiency and a concerted switch to renewable sources of power... could simultaneously stabilize greenhouse gas emissions, [and] increase energy security while improving local environments," the bank's report said.

Source: Global Times