A "Green Lining" in China's Economic Stimulus Plan

By Deborah Seligsohn on greenhouse gases

It may be counter-intuitive, but a global economic slowdown could help the United States and China work together on climate change.

After years of very rapid growth, China’s energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions now look to be slowing sharply. One major factor: China’s energy efficiency and renewable energy policies—now in their third year—have begun to make a real impact at the provincial and local levels. We are already seen slowing growth in the cement industry and a decline in annual steel output. Electricity demand in October was down 4% over the same month a year ago, the first such decline in almost seven years. The global economic slowdown will accelerate these trends.

For several years, the Chinese government has been sponsoring a shift from energy-intensive to