China’s Fight Against Climate Change and Environmental Degradation

Council on Foreign Relations ^ | May 19, 2021 | Lindsay Maizland

[Vendome]

Water insecurity. China is home to about 20 percent of the world’s population but only 7 percent of its freshwater sources. Overuse has led to severe shortages, and industry along China’s major water sources has polluted supplies. Construction of hydropower dams along major rivers has also damaged ecosystems. The government released a plan in 2015 for preventing water pollution that included placing controls on polluting industries. The quality of surface waters—bodies such as lakes, rivers, and streams—has since improved. However, groundwater continues to fall short of targets, with more than 80 percent categorized as “bad to very bad.” 

Desertification. More than one-quarter of China’s arable land is becoming desert due to the water crisis, negligent farming practices, overgrazing, and the effects of climate change. The government has responded by planting billions of trees, among other measures to increase vegetation. Desertified land is now shrinking on average by nearly one thousand square miles each year, according to government figures.

Soil pollution. The government estimated in 2014 that nearly one-fifth of arable land is contaminated. This has consequences for China’s food security: An estimated 12 million tons of the 664 million tons of grain produced annually are polluted by heavy metals.

[Vendome]

[Vaduz]

This has consequences for China’s food security.

It’s why they can buy land here
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

D.C. comrades turn lights off.

[Vendome]

Per square inch, only Ukraine comes close to what our soils produce

[antidemoncrat]

They have how many coal fired power plants that produce tons of CO2? Maybe they figure that all the trees they’ve planted will suck up all that CO2.

[Gay State Conservative]

I’ve done a lot of traveling in my day. The LA Basin...the Ruhr Valley (Europe’s industrial heartland)...NYC...and China. On the clearest day I ever encountered in China the air was 10 times worse there than anything I ever saw in those other places.