低碳经济 让城市生活更美好

所谓低碳经济，是指在可持续发展理念指导下，通过技术创新、制度创新、产业转型、新能源开发等多种手段，尽可能地减少煤炭石油等高碳能源消耗，减少温室气体排放，达到经济社会发展与生态环境保护双赢的一种经济发展形态。低碳经济和绿色经济是有区别的哟，绿色经济就是指以市场为导向,以传统产业经济为基础，以经济与环境的和谐为目的而发展起来的一种新的经济形式，是产业经济为适应人类环保与健康需要而产生并表现出来的一种发展状态。

Anchor: Just like Dalian, another northern port city, Yantai is also trying to shift away from high-polluting industries and push for green growth by promoting economic restructuring led by high-tech, low-emission, energy saving businesses.

Zhang Ru has more.

Anchor: Yantai is a coastal city in eastern Shandong province. With its rich natural resources and well-planned transportation network, Yantai was once one of the industrial bases in Shandong. But in recent years, Yantai began to rethink its development. Particularly after the 2008 international financial crisis, sluggish growth and a rise in energy prices undermined the growth of energy-thirsty industries. Yantai decided its future was in low carbon growth. A major industry restructuring thus began in the city. Technologically-innovative, energy-efficient and low-emission businesses like Dongfang Electronics found their opportunities.

Ding Zhenhua, the Board of Director of Dongfang Electronics says that his firm has provided the emergency electronic supply and security system to this year's World Expo in Shanghai. The firm was chosen because of its "Green Energy" and "High Efficiency" ideas. The electricity-saving system manufacturer now has their systems sold in all parts of China.

Ding Zhenhua says, sometimes, energy-intense businesses approach them for their systems in order to cut down energy consumption.

"Cutting down on energy consumption has in fact brought some stress to the local government. We could feel that energy intense businesses are more eager to install our electricity saving facilities, especially after the financial crisis".

Party secretary of Yantai municipality Sun Yongchun, points out that economic development will follow a different path after the financial crisis.

"For those industries which depend on resources accumulation and high consumption will bear more cost in future development. To solve the problem, we should speed up the elimination of out-dated production methods and accelerate socio-economic development from extension to intension economy."

It is with this thinking Yantai has strengthened its position as an integrated city with sufficient labor flowing, logistics, capital flowing and information sharing. It has sped up the development of high-tech, environmental friendly products, and tourism. Enterprises featuring machine manufacturing, electronic information and marine technology have been encouraged to undergo technical innovations to transform into energy-saving industries.

Now the city has over 50 new energy enterprises with more than 1.5 billion yuan annual production values. In 2009, the production value of the high-tech industries of Yantai was over RMB 377 billion yuan, making up 42% of the industrial production value.

Apart from those efforts, Yantai also tried methods to restrict the emission of carbon dioxide and punished the enterprises that do not follow energy-saving rules. The city also shut down many small-scale cement producing and textile factories.
 
Jiang Ming, the deputy director of the Economic and Information Technology Committee of Yantai says shutting down heavy polluting factories are necessary steps in the process of green economic transformation.

"If we shut down the small thermal generators but let big thermal generators take their places, their emissions will still be 20 times the city's general level. Energy-saving should always be supported by the upgrading and adjusting of industrial structure, otherwise, we will never achieve the goal."

Besides implementing 'Green Economy', Yantai also makes use of its geographic location and is developing its maritime economy, so as to adjust to the economic structure and pursuing sustainable development. In 2009, the production value of Yantai's marine industries has reached 110 billion yuan, providing a good fundamental base for future development.

Determined to build itself into a low-carbon city, Yantai has gone even further. Now the city is planning to make solar energy the energy supplier of vast areas of its residential homes, while replacing the old-fashioned energy thirsty cars, buses and taxis with liquefied petroleum gas powered ones.

Officials of Yantai firmly believe that in restructuring its economic growth towards the low-emission pattern, it is positioning itself better for future green growth.

For CRI, I am Zhang Ru