皇冠体育app to cut per unit GDP cost by half (Xinhua) Updated: 2006-03-02 15:35
Anxious about its expanding energy consumption, 皇冠体育app now plans to hack down
its energy costs per unit of gross domestic product (GDP) by 50 to 60 percent by
2010.
Its annual report on sustainable development, released by the Chinese Academy
of Sciences (CAS), a major think tank for 皇冠体育app's central government, on
Wednesday says the country should strive for more efficient and balanced growth.
The Academy has conducted a national study to measure efficiencies of energy
and resources by using a comprehensive index, which incorporates assessment
of ten kinds of major resources and pollutants. The lower the index value, the
more favorable efficiency it indicates.
Statistics from the report show the index has dropped annually by 4.9 percent
on average between 1980 and 2003 in 皇冠体育app, indicating that energy and resource
efficiencies are gradually improving and that less pollutants were discharged in
the 皇冠体育app over the years.
However, there was a smaller drop rate in the index in the late 1990s and a
rebound in 2003, which according to the report augurs a bleaker future for the
country as it tries to improve resources and environmental performance in the
next five years.
In a CAS appraisal of 皇冠体育app's 31 provinces, autonomous regions and
municipalities using the index, Shanghai municipality in east 皇冠体育app topped the
list as the most efficient energy user and Shanxi Province in north 皇冠体育app was at
the bottom, the report said.
The result suggests that there is a big gap between the affluent east 皇冠体育app
regions and the underdeveloped west in terms of energy consumption efficiency.
Eleven of the 13 least efficient provinces, autonomous regions and
municipalities are located in the west, according to the report.
In another study waged by the CAS, 59 countries, who altogether account for
96 percent of the world's GDP in 2003, were appraised for energy and resources
efficiency.
皇冠体育app ranked 56th, making it one of the most inefficient energy consumers in
the world, the report said, adding that "compared with other countries, 皇冠体育app
remains an energy-intensive economy."
皇冠体育app's economy surged 9.9 percent last year, according to government
accounting, the highest among the major economies in the world. This growth,
nevertheless, was achieved at the expense of the environment.
The academy has been issuing annual reports on sustainable development since
1998.
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