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S. Wu
promote the transformation towards green and intensive mode for socioeconomic
development.
1. Gradually establish the goals of green development in the Five-Year Plan
The “Five-Year” Plan is an important way for China to promote sustainable and
healthy socioeconomic development. With the main indicators for socioeconomic
development as its core content, it reflects the basic ideas and charts the course for the
development in the upcoming five years. Starting from the 10th Five-Year Plan, China
began to incorporate resource-related and environmental indicators into the planning
goals. The 10th Five-Year Plan proposed to “attach importance to issues concerning
population, resource and eco-environment” and included the reduction of the total
discharge of major pollutants as an indicator for planning goal. The 11th Five-Year
plan regarded energy conservation and emission reduction as the main indicators of
economic and social development. For the first time, the development goals were
divided into anticipated and obligatory categories. Regarding the resource and environment, there were six obligatory goals and two anticipated goals. The introduction
of obligatory indicators was an important innovation in national governance. In the
12th Five-Year Plan, the proportion of obligatory indicators relating to resource and
environment increased to 33.3%, compared with 27.2% in the 11th Five-Year Plan. It
clarified the incentive and constraint mechanism for green development. In the 13th
Five-Year Plan, the indicators were enriched to cover air quality and surface water
quality. The number of the resource-related and environmental indicators rose from
eight to ten, all obligatory. Therefore, green development constituted the key note in
all sectors and links of socioeconomic development during the 13th Fiver-Year Plan
period.
2. Gradually establish a target responsibility system in the performance
evaluation of Party and government officials to promote green development
The target responsibility system plays a pivotal role in the decision-making and implementation of the Five-Year Plan. In the process of implementing the 11th Five-Year
Plan, the State Council decomposed the main objectives and tasks in line with the
division of responsibilities and assigned them to each region. In addition, the obligatory indicators were incorporated into the criteria for comprehensive evaluation of
socioeconomic development and performance assessment of each region and department. In 2006, the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee issued
the Trial Measures for the Comprehensive Evaluation of Local Party and Government Leaders and Officials in Line with the Requirements of Scientific Outlook on
Development, including obligatory indicators for the performance evaluation of local
leaders. This was of great significance for mobilizing officials at all levels to better
realize the goals set in the 11th Five-Year Plan. In the field of ecology and environment, since the introduction of the target responsibility system for environmental
protection in 1996, particularly for energy conservation and emission reduction,
China has made remarkable achievements. In the 11th Five-Year Plan, the aggregate
emissions control has become the most important part of the central government’s
S. Wu
promote the transformation towards green and intensive mode for socioeconomic
development.
1. Gradually establish the goals of green development in the Five-Year Plan
The “Five-Year” Plan is an important way for China to promote sustainable and
healthy socioeconomic development. With the main indicators for socioeconomic
development as its core content, it reflects the basic ideas and charts the course for the
development in the upcoming five years. Starting from the 10th Five-Year Plan, China
began to incorporate resource-related and environmental indicators into the planning
goals. The 10th Five-Year Plan proposed to “attach importance to issues concerning
population, resource and eco-environment” and included the reduction of the total
discharge of major pollutants as an indicator for planning goal. The 11th Five-Year
plan regarded energy conservation and emission reduction as the main indicators of
economic and social development. For the first time, the development goals were
divided into anticipated and obligatory categories. Regarding the resource and environment, there were six obligatory goals and two anticipated goals. The introduction
of obligatory indicators was an important innovation in national governance. In the
12th Five-Year Plan, the proportion of obligatory indicators relating to resource and
environment increased to 33.3%, compared with 27.2% in the 11th Five-Year Plan. It
clarified the incentive and constraint mechanism for green development. In the 13th
Five-Year Plan, the indicators were enriched to cover air quality and surface water
quality. The number of the resource-related and environmental indicators rose from
eight to ten, all obligatory. Therefore, green development constituted the key note in
all sectors and links of socioeconomic development during the 13th Fiver-Year Plan
period.
2. Gradually establish a target responsibility system in the performance
evaluation of Party and government officials to promote green development
The target responsibility system plays a pivotal role in the decision-making and implementation of the Five-Year Plan. In the process of implementing the 11th Five-Year
Plan, the State Council decomposed the main objectives and tasks in line with the
division of responsibilities and assigned them to each region. In addition, the obligatory indicators were incorporated into the criteria for comprehensive evaluation of
socioeconomic development and performance assessment of each region and department. In 2006, the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee issued
the Trial Measures for the Comprehensive Evaluation of Local Party and Government Leaders and Officials in Line with the Requirements of Scientific Outlook on
Development, including obligatory indicators for the performance evaluation of local
leaders. This was of great significance for mobilizing officials at all levels to better
realize the goals set in the 11th Five-Year Plan. In the field of ecology and environment, since the introduction of the target responsibility system for environmental
protection in 1996, particularly for energy conservation and emission reduction,
China has made remarkable achievements. In the 11th Five-Year Plan, the aggregate
emissions control has become the most important part of the central government’s