\nMark L. Clifford weighs in on China\u2019s leadership in green building and energy efficiency
\nShanghai. Image: Patrick Foto\/Shutterstock
\nLast month, Shenzhen beat 80 cities in China and Europe to claim the top prize at The Euro-China Green & Smart City Awards. It\u2019s another proverbial feather on the cap for China, a country touted in recent months as an unlikely frontrunner in the effort to mitigate climate change.
\nViewing any one Chinese city as an out-and-out exemplar in sustainability may miss the point, however. \u201cI don\u2019t think that any city in China can be called green or sustainable,\u201d said Asia Business Council executive director Mark Clifford, the keynote speaker at this year\u2019s Property Report Congress in China. Although the Chinese government has heavily invested in building codes since the 1980s, such codes remain \u201cfairly lax\u201d and allow buildings in the country to use 80 percent more energy than their US counterparts.
\nMark Clifford speaking at Property Report Congress 2015
\nIf current trends were to hold, energy use by the Chinese building sector is on track to double by 2050, Clifford warned.
\nThe onus is particularly heavy on China, rated as the largest contributor to emissions from fossil fuel and cement production, according to a 2012 Belfer Center study. China\u2019s buildings sector is expected to use more energy than any comparable sector in other countries by 2030.
\nThat said, China has shown a propensity for atoning for its massive carbon footprint, if not missteps against the planet. \u201cRecent studies have shown that China could keep building energy use roughly flat through 2050 if it invests in high-efficiency technologies and best practices,\u201d said Clifford, lauding Beijing and Tianjin\u2019s adoption of building standards that are as much as 15 percent more stringent than national standards. \u201cThat\u2019s good news.\u201d
\nMore: Singapore ranks second in the world for green buildings
\nChina\u2019s gumption to reverse global warming can be attributed to equal parts self-preservation and political maneuvering. The pall of air pollution hangs heavily on dozens of cities in the mainland, particularly in the capital Beijing.
\n\u201cChinese leaders want to improve the quality of life in their nation\u2019s cities by reducing air pollution; win large shares of promising export markets for green technologies; and increase China\u2019s \u201csoft power\u201d in international relations,\u201d said Matthew E. Kahn, professor of economics and spatial statistics at the University of Southern California. \u201cTaking aggressive action to cut carbon emissions helps China in all three areas.
\nSmog in Beijing. Image: designbydx\/Shutterstock
\nMoneyed citizens are not unheard of to emigrate from China literally in search of breathing space \u2014 a need that real estate firms should take into account. \u201cEvery developer in Beijing or in Shanghai is competing more or less on an equal footing in the same smoggy environment throughout the city,\u201d Clifford said. \u201cThe question is how this will play out in the future. Will we really see domestic demand fall because more middle-class families move abroad? We have seen significant numbers of Chinese families moving abroad in part because of pollution \u2013 the impact on Vancouver is an obvious example.\u201d
\nIn the end, it is difficult to dismiss the strides China has made in the pursuit of green building. In a ranking released by USGBC Last week, China emerged as the number one country in terms of certified Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design LEED space. With 34.62 million gross square meters of certified LEED space, China bested such countries as Canada, India, Brazil, and South Korea in sustainable building design and construction.
\nWith big shifts on the global stage imminent, and the US preparing to renege on its own gains in the fight against climate change, China is truly a green revelation. <\/p>\n