Qin Dahe, head of the China Meteorological Administration, said
at the 12th conference of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) that
global warming will have an irreversible and sustained negative
impact on Chinese economic and social development.
Qin, also a CAS academician, pointed out that the nation has no
plans to draft any strategy or policy for fighting global warming
trends. Such a policy, he said, is desperately needed.
"We need to study comprehensively the effects of climate change
and take appropriate measures."
Qin appealed for increased investment in long-term research on
climate change.
A nationwide observation network on climate systems would be
useful, he said. The China Climate Observation System (CCOS) might
help gather more specific worldwide data. The existing climate
observation network is only for weather forecasting, while the CCOS
surveys physical, chemical and biological changes as well as human
activities that could result in climate change.
Greenhouse gas emissions, including carbon dioxide, have been
the primary cause of global warming in the past half-century. Over
the past 100 years, the average temperature in China has risen 0.4
to 0.5 degree Celsius.
A United Nations Environment Program report said that climate
change in 2003 cost the world at least US$60 billion in damage, 10
percent more than in the previous year.
Experts forecast that by 2030, the average temperature in China
will have increased 1.7 degrees Celsius. By 2050, it will have
increased by 2.2 degrees Celsius.
"It's very sensitive and complex for every country to respond to
multilateral negotiations on climate change," Qin said. "Thus, it
is vitally important to establish a uniform policy."
(Xinhua News Agency June 6, 2004)