April 1, 2017

It’s only fitting that the largest emitter of greenhouse gases –China- should become the world’s leader in renewable energy. That is exactly what is happening, courtesy of the United States. On March 28, 2017, joined by his Environmental Protection Agency administrator and coal industry workers, President Trump signed an executive order rolling back previous U.S. climate change commitments.

The numbers speak by themselves. China has pledged to generate 20 percent of its energy from non-fossil sources by 2030 –no small thing considering that it currently consumes as much coal as the rest of the world combined- and that it will put in place a national market for greenhouse gas quotas, also known as a cap-and-trade program, by the end of 2017. Clearly the Chinese government intends to impose a cost on companies that generate carbon dioxide. And that’s not all. According to a report by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, in 2015 China invested $103 billion in domestic renewable energy and $23 billion overseas, $126 billion in all.

One obvious reason for China’s determination to break its coal addiction is its air pollution crisis, now exacerbated by changing weather patterns from climate change. Another is goodwill. With the exception of the U.S. and Canada, whose Prime Minister implied it intends to fully develop and market the oil in Alberta’s tar sands, the rest of the world is united in its commitment to the Paris Accord and will likely accept and support China’s new role as renewable energy leader -politically and economically.

But air pollution isn’t China’s only environmental problem. Though temporarily ameliorated by its South-North Water Project, the water crisis will gradually get worse as rainfall, glacier runoff, pollution and ground water gradually fail to meet the country’s future demand. This situation is of course not unique to China. India, Central Asia, the Middle East, South America, Mexico, the American Southwest, Spain and even France are all on the same boat. The question then is when will all of the above acknowledge their common predicament and decide to conquer drought?