International Developments
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and 2017, PM2.5 concentrations decreased by about 33%, and sulfur dioxide
concentrations decreased by about 54%; these changes were significant. On the
other hand, changes in concentrations of nitrogen oxides were small, and ozone
concentrations increased (Huang et al., 2018). Because of the importance of
PM2.5 with respect to health, there were 47,240 fewer deaths in 2017 compared
to 2013 in the 74 key cities that were included in the study (Huang et al., 2018).
During this time period, there have been ongoing efforts to reduce emissions
by electrifying transportation, generating more electricity with wind and solar
energy, and using other aspects to increase clean energy supply. There has also
been some transition from coal to natural gas for the generation of electricity, and
electricity generation with wind and solar energy has advanced significantly.
These results may be compared to the predicted results based on the
APPCAP. For PM2.5, the simulated results predict a decrease of 30% by 2017
and 40% by 2020 for the Beijing- Tianjin- Hebei Region (Cai et al., 2017). These
values are in reasonable agreement with the measured values of Huang et al.
(2018) for 2017 for the 74 key cities. However, the simulated results show
decreases of 31% in 2017 and 44% in 2020 for nitrogen oxides, while the
measured values show a 9.7% reduction for 2017.
In the effort to improve air quality, there has been a residential transition
from solid fuels to gas for heat and cooking, which resulted in a decrease
of 0.36 million premature deaths per year from 2005 to 2015. It is estimated
that the integrated population- weighted exposure (IPWE) to PM2.5 has
decreased by 47% from 2005 to 2015 (Zhao et al., 2018). This IPWE includes
both ambient air pollution and household air pollution exposures.
Why have there been areas of uneven progress within China, particularly
with reference to nitrogen oxides and ozone? Part of this is because one of the
pathways to increase gas for cooking and heating is to produce synthetic natural gas (SNG) from coal. When SNG is used by residential households for
heating and cooking, this provides the greatest air quality and health benefits
when it replaces solid fuels such as coal (Qin et al., 2017; Qin et al., 2018). This
improves air quality, but it also increases greenhouse gas emissions.
In 2018, the Chinese government announced a new three- year effort to further reduce air pollution (Greenbaum, 2018). The efforts to electrify transportation are continuing in China with increasing sales of electric vehicles
including cars, buses, taxis, and electric bicycles. The electrification of transportation is one part of the effort to improve urban air quality.
China has been one of the major developers of solar photovoltaic technology to generate electricity using solar radiation. There is significant progress being made in China to install solar panels and generate electricity.
More than 100 GW had been installed as of 2018 (Yang et al., 2018). The
goal for 2030 is 400 GW, which will be about 14– 16% of the 2500– 2800 GW
of installed electric generating capacity in 2030. This solar- generated electricity has two benefits: Air quality is better and there are no greenhouse
gas emissions associated with solar photovoltaic operations. Solar panels
manufactured in China are also competitive in the global market.
121
1 2 1
and 2017, PM2.5 concentrations decreased by about 33%, and sulfur dioxide
concentrations decreased by about 54%; these changes were significant. On the
other hand, changes in concentrations of nitrogen oxides were small, and ozone
concentrations increased (Huang et al., 2018). Because of the importance of
PM2.5 with respect to health, there were 47,240 fewer deaths in 2017 compared
to 2013 in the 74 key cities that were included in the study (Huang et al., 2018).
During this time period, there have been ongoing efforts to reduce emissions
by electrifying transportation, generating more electricity with wind and solar
energy, and using other aspects to increase clean energy supply. There has also
been some transition from coal to natural gas for the generation of electricity, and
electricity generation with wind and solar energy has advanced significantly.
These results may be compared to the predicted results based on the
APPCAP. For PM2.5, the simulated results predict a decrease of 30% by 2017
and 40% by 2020 for the Beijing- Tianjin- Hebei Region (Cai et al., 2017). These
values are in reasonable agreement with the measured values of Huang et al.
(2018) for 2017 for the 74 key cities. However, the simulated results show
decreases of 31% in 2017 and 44% in 2020 for nitrogen oxides, while the
measured values show a 9.7% reduction for 2017.
In the effort to improve air quality, there has been a residential transition
from solid fuels to gas for heat and cooking, which resulted in a decrease
of 0.36 million premature deaths per year from 2005 to 2015. It is estimated
that the integrated population- weighted exposure (IPWE) to PM2.5 has
decreased by 47% from 2005 to 2015 (Zhao et al., 2018). This IPWE includes
both ambient air pollution and household air pollution exposures.
Why have there been areas of uneven progress within China, particularly
with reference to nitrogen oxides and ozone? Part of this is because one of the
pathways to increase gas for cooking and heating is to produce synthetic natural gas (SNG) from coal. When SNG is used by residential households for
heating and cooking, this provides the greatest air quality and health benefits
when it replaces solid fuels such as coal (Qin et al., 2017; Qin et al., 2018). This
improves air quality, but it also increases greenhouse gas emissions.
In 2018, the Chinese government announced a new three- year effort to further reduce air pollution (Greenbaum, 2018). The efforts to electrify transportation are continuing in China with increasing sales of electric vehicles
including cars, buses, taxis, and electric bicycles. The electrification of transportation is one part of the effort to improve urban air quality.
China has been one of the major developers of solar photovoltaic technology to generate electricity using solar radiation. There is significant progress being made in China to install solar panels and generate electricity.
More than 100 GW had been installed as of 2018 (Yang et al., 2018). The
goal for 2030 is 400 GW, which will be about 14– 16% of the 2500– 2800 GW
of installed electric generating capacity in 2030. This solar- generated electricity has two benefits: Air quality is better and there are no greenhouse
gas emissions associated with solar photovoltaic operations. Solar panels
manufactured in China are also competitive in the global market.