Chemical industry development in the context of carbon neutrality

1. What is carbon neutral

1.1. Carbon neutrality has become a global trend, and most of the world's major economies have put forward carbon neutrality targets

Carbon emission is an issue of global concern. The IPCC report on Global Warming 1.5 ° C points out that climate change will be a major challenge to human society, and implementing carbon neutrality strategies is an important measure to actively respond to the challenge.

In simple terms, "carbon neutrality" is defined as the offset between the CO2 emissions caused by human activities and the CO2 removal caused by human activities over a certain period of time. Carbon neutrality is a system balance process, emphasizing the overall balance; At the same time, carbon neutrality is a dynamic equilibrium process, in which the total amount of emissions and the total amount of absorption remain in balance over a period of time.

From a global perspective, countries have reached a consensus on climate issues and jointly signed the Paris Agreement, establishing an institutional framework for post-2020 global climate governance. In December 2015, nearly 200 parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change reached the Paris Agreement at the Paris Climate Change Conference, which set the goal of "controlling the global temperature rise to less than two degrees Celsius" and strive to limit the temperature rise to less than 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Carbon neutrality has become a global trend, and major overseas economies have announced carbon neutrality targets one after another. According to the disclosure of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, as of September 2021, 164 countries have submitted their nationally determined contribution plans, most of which set 2050 as the target year for carbon neutrality, and promote their work in various ways such as legislation and promulgation of policies.

1.2. China is actively responding to the challenge of carbon reduction and has set the goal of carbon neutrality by 2060

After joining the WTO in 2001, China's CO2 emissions have experienced a period of high growth for 10 years, and China's carbon emissions in 2020 are the highest in the world. Before joining the WTO, China's carbon emissions were in a slow change stage, and the annual carbon emissions were roughly 3 billion tons. Ten years after China's accession to the WTO, the rapid development of China's economy, accompanied by the rapid growth of CO2 emissions, carbon emissions at this stage increased to about 9.5 billion tons/year. In 2020, China's carbon emissions accounted for about 31% of the global total, and the second largest United States accounted for 14%. In recent years, the state has intensified regulation and control in energy consumption, environmental protection and other aspects, and the growth trend of carbon emissions has been effectively controlled. Since 2013, China's carbon emissions have remained below 10 billion tons per year.

1.3. China's carbon peak carbon neutral "1+N" policy system promotes the realization of the dual carbon goal

A series of documents will build a carbon peak carbon neutral "1+N" policy system with clear goals, reasonable division of labor, strong measures and orderly connection. The "Opinions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and The State Council on Fully, Accurately and Comprehensively Implementing the New Development Concept to achieve carbon Peak Carbon Neutrality" (hereinafter referred to as the "Opinions"), as "1", plays a leading role in the "1+N" policy system of carbon peak carbon neutrality, and will jointly constitute the top-level design through the two stages of carbon peak and carbon neutrality before 2030. "N" includes carbon peaking implementation plans in energy, industry, transportation, urban and rural construction and other sub-sectors, as well as scientific and technological support, energy security, carbon sink capacity, financial and financial price policies, standard measurement systems, inspection and assessment and other security plans, the future carbon peaking implementation plans in various fields will be introduced one after another.

The "Opinions" put forward five main goals: building a green, low-carbon and circular development economic system, improving energy utilization efficiency, increasing the proportion of non-fossil energy consumption, reducing carbon dioxide emission levels, and improving the carbon sink capacity of the ecosystem. It is realized that carbon peaking and carbon neutrality is a multidimensional, three-dimensional and systematic project involving all aspects of economic and social development. The Opinions put forward 31 key tasks and clarified the road map and construction drawing of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality work.

The "Action Plan for achieving Carbon Peak before 2030" is the first policy document in "N", which focuses more on the goal of achieving carbon peak before 2030, and the relevant indicators and tasks are more detailed, concrete and concrete. The "Plan" focuses on ten actions to reach the peak of carbon, and makes deployment in ten aspects, such as energy, energy conservation, industry, urban and rural construction, transportation, circular economy, scientific and technological innovation, carbon sink, national action, and pilot construction, and plans a series of action goals.