【英语中国】中国宣布减少使用煤炭

China has announced measures to reduce its reliance on coal and set earlier targets to control the choking air pollution that is an increasing source of discontent for its citizens

The government is alarmed by public complaints online as well as the prospect of street protests over pollution. It also sees an economic opportunity in developing and potentially exporting cleaner energy technology. Coal use for heating and industry was a key factor in the “airpocolypse” – several days of thick black haze that blanketed Beijing and the north China plain last winter and brought the issue of air pollution to the fore.

Central to the scheme announced yesterday is a commitment to cut PM10 and PM2.5 – a measure of tiny particulates that are the most dangerous to human health.

The targets are built around a commitment by Hebei province, which surrounds Beijing, to cut coal usage by 40m tonnes in 2017 compared with 2012, after months of negotiations with provincial officials wary of killing their industrial base.

Nationwide, coal will fall to 65 per cent of primary energy use by 2017, from 66.8 per cent last year, according to the plan.

中国已宣布将采取措施降低对煤炭的依赖，并确立了一些早期目标、以控制令民众日益不满的严重空气污染。

中国政府对网上的公开抱怨感到震惊，也担心污染问题可能导致民众上街游行。中国政府也看到了开发更清洁的能源技术、以及出口该技术的可能性所带来的商机。取暖和工业用煤是导致“空气末日”——去年北京乃至整个华北平原被浓重的雾霾笼罩的那段日子、也是导致空气污染问题变得紧迫的原因——的一个关键因素。

中国政府昨日宣布的计划之核心在于，它承诺将降低PM10和PM2.5浓度。后者是衡量空气中对人类健康危害最大的细颗粒物的指标。

计划的关键在于，包围北京的河北省承诺使2017年的煤炭使用量比2012年降低4000万吨。这是与地方官员谈判数月之后得到的结果。地方官员担心，削减煤炭使用量将摧毁地方的工业基础。

根据该计划，到2017年，中国全国的煤炭使用量占一次能源使用量的比重将降至65%，去年为66.8%。

译者/阑天