After setting record high carbon emissions last year, China—the world's largest emitter of carbon dioxide to begin with—has announced plans to invest $27 billion this year to promote energy conservation, emission reductions and renewable energy.
Some of those initiatives will also include the promotion of energy-saving products, solar and wind power and the development of renewable energy and hybrid cars, according to the country's finance ministry.
A report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) said Thursday that China's carbon emissions hit their highest ever recorded level in 2011, but that its CO2 emissions per unit of GDP, or its carbon intensity, fell by 15 percent between 2005 and 2011. Looking ahead, China is targeting a cut in greenhouse gas emissions of 40-45 percent by 2020, boosting its use of renewables to 15 percent of its overall energy in that same time frame.
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With the expiration date of the Kyoto protocol coming up at the end of this year, over 180 nations met last week in Bonn, Germany to work towards getting a new global climate pact signed by 2015.
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