China’s Long March To Safe Drinking Water

By Hongqiao Liu on March 2, 2015

China’s central government set ambitious goals to safeguard water quality in 2011, at the outset of the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015). Those goals targeted improvements from source-to-tap, earmarking a budget of nearly RMB 700 billion (U.S.$112 billion) to pay for upgrades to water treatment and piping systems. The funds were spread across multiple ministries and government bodies, including the State Council, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Water Resources, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, and the Ministry of Health. Separately, there was also a movement to lift and standardize varying provincial drinking water quality by introducing a new national standard. In 2007, a ‘National Drinking Water Quality Standard’ (GB 5749-2006) was introduced. This standard is in accordance with international standards, but since the bar was set far above the actual quality levels of China’s water, it only came into full effect in July 2012. The government expects cities across China to meet this national standard by 2015. 2015 has arrived, but how far is China’s government from realizing its water safety goals?

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Topics: 
Energy
Environment
Health
Keywords: 
Water
Health
Energy
Safety Standards
Food Safety
Organization: 
China Water Risk

Edward Wittenstein

on March 1, 2015

Edward (“Ted”) Wittenstein is a Lecturer in Global Affairs and Executive Director of the Johnson Center for the Study of American Diplomacy at Yale University. Prior to working and teaching at Yale, Ted held a variety of national security positions at the U.S. Department of Defense, Commission on the Intelligence Capabilities of the United States Regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the Department of State. He is a graduate of Yale College and Yale Law School.

China’s Elusive Shale Gas Boom

By Zhongmin Wang on March 1, 2015

China’s natural gas market is expected to see robust growth over the next decade. This is a function of several factors. First, as part of the country’s effort to effect an energy transition to cleaner fuels, natural gas is viewed as a viable bridge fuel. Second, China’s natural gas consumption is significantly below the global average, implying a potential for tremendous growth. Finally, several economic drivers seem to favor increasing consumption of gas, not least of which is China’s emphasis on urbanization in supporting future growth. This paper focuses specifically on China’s shale gas development and the prospects ahead should China decide to proceed toward its stated targets. It discusses China’s fundamental challenge in developing shale resources, summarizes the policies that the Chinese government has taken in this effort, and concludes with thoughts on how China might be able to overcome its challenges.

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Topics: 
Energy
Environment
Keywords: 
Shale Gas
Fracking
Energy
Clean Energy
Organization: 
Paulson Institute