China is attempting to lower its energy use by restricting air conditioning in public buildings this summer. China did not meet its national goal of curbing energy consumption in 2006 and has been strategizing new ways to save energy.
From Kerala Next:
Nanjing, capital of eastern Jiangsu province, is the latest city to set a limit on air conditioning use as pressure from the central government to save energy starts to take effect over fears of power failures this northern summer.An unnamed official with the city’s agriculture and forestry department said his colleagues had initially felt uncomfortable without the cool air, but had since gotten used to it.
“As government officials, we shall do our part in saving energy,” the official said, according to the report. [Full Text]
See also the CCTV report on China’s attempts to curb energy consumption in construction projects and other government buildings:
From CCTV:
Under heavy pressure to cut energy consumption, China is now turning the spotlight on to construction projects, the transportation sector and government buildings.
China’s top legislature on Sunday began deliberating a draft amendment to the Law on Conserving Energy, which details measures to avoid energy waste in the three areas to improve energy efficiency and cut pollution emissions.
Under a five-year plan to 2010, China pledged to cut energy
consumption per unit of gross domestic product (GDP) by 20 percent, or four percent each year. But, the consumption actually fell by just 1.23 percent last year.“Achieving the target is highly problematic. Energy consumption in some areas and industries just keeps rising,” Fu Zhihuan, chairman of the Financial and Economic Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC), told lawmakers in a report.
Fu said energy consumption in these three areas has been rising rapidly. He said they had not been given enough attention and were the “weak link” in China’s energy-saving campaign. [Full Text]
Photo from tuija via flickr.
