Goals and Pathways for Environmental Improvement by 2035

In line with the objectives established by China’s leaders, this report examines how to ensure that there will “be a fundamental improvement in the environment by 2035, and the goal of building a Beautiful China will be basically attained.” It examines some of the main obstacles for achieving this goal and how they could be overcome, taking account of experience from developed countries and the most economically advanced regions of China.

The economic and social implications of the green transformation are also analyzed as well as how environmental governance and the Chinese legal system will need to be adapted to help achieve the 2035 goal.

Some of the key recommendations emerging from the report include:

• China’s future economic development should be guided by the need to protect and enhance the natural assets on which it depends, and well as people’s well-being.
• Achieving these objectives will require:
  • reducing the carbon-, material- and pollution-intensity of the economy so as not to exceed critical environmental thresholds (“planetary boundaries”) nor to endanger human health;
  • conserving, and ensuring the sustainable use of, natural resources;
  • enhancing the resilience of natural systems, including their ability to adapt to climate change; and
  • minimizing the exposure of people and the environment to toxic substances, including from chemicals and waste.
• China should seize the economic opportunities associated with the green transition while ensuring that those adversely affected receive appropriate support. This requires achieving a better balance between economic, environmental and social policy objectives and ensuring that financing mechanisms are available to support the economic, environmental and social dimensions of the green transition.

Task Force: - Topic: Environmental Governance Year: 2019 Phase: Phase VI (2017-2022) Concluded