Chinese Economic Development and the Environment

The authors are to be congratulated for a book that provides a comprehensive and vigorous analysis of many pressing environmental issues which China faces now and will face in the future. The book will be of interest to a broad audience, and is a must-read for and should be on the book shelf of anyone concerned about and attempting to understand environmental issues related to agriculture, water, industry, energy production and use, investment and development in China. Zhongxiang Zhang, The China Journal Over the past two decades, China has become an economic powerhouse. However, as the world s largest producer of CO2 emissions, the scale and seriousness of China s environmental problems are clearly evident. This pioneering book provides an economic analysis of the significant environmental and energy problems facing China in the 21st century. Chinese Economic Development and the Environment measures productivity, taking into account energy resources and environmental attributes that are central to sustaining economies. Applying an integrated model of energy production, transformation and consumption processes, the authors investigate the underlying driving forces behind trends in CO2 emissions in relation to the total primary energy supply. Exploring the history and development of China s economic, energy and environmental policy, this book will strongly appeal to postgraduate students in economics and environmental studies. It will also be beneficial for practitioners and policy-makers interested in understanding how successful market and environmental policies can contribute to efficiency by encouraging, rather than inhibiting, technological innovation.