Beijing 2008: Greening the Games?
Authors:
Chris Chan
Cynthia Koenig
Sumana Rajarethnam
April 24, 2006
Prepared for the International Economic Development Program, Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan.
Table of Contents
Executive Summary ………….…………………………………………………….... 2
Introduction …..…………...…………………………………………...……………. 2
1.1 What is sustainable development? ………………………………………… 3
1.2 Rationale for ‘greening’ the Olympics ...... ……………………………...... 4
1.3 Beijing’s Green Games …..…………...……………………..…………… 5
Section 2: China’s Plan ……………………………………………………………….. 6
2.1 An Overview of China’s Plan……………………………………………… 6
Air Quality
Water Environment
Ecological Conservation and Construction
Industrial Pollution
Solid Waste Management
2.2 A Quick Fix?...... 10
2.3 Post-Olympic Outlook………………………………………………………11
Section 3: The First Green Games……………………………………………………… 12
3.1 Background ………………………………………………………………… 12
3.2 Successes …………………………………………………………………… 12
3.3 Failures ……………………………………………………………………… 14
3.4 Recommendations ……………………………….…………………………. 16
Section 4: Discussion ………………………..…………………………………………. 18
4.1: Characteristics of the Chinese system that make problems
easier to solve………………………….…………………………………. 18
4.2: Characteristics of the Chinese system that make problems
more difficult to solve……………………………………………………. 18
4.3 Sustainable Development in China: is it really sustainable?…………………………………………………………………. 20
Section 5: Conclusion…………………………………………………………………. 21
Bibliography ………………………………………………………………………….. 22
Executive Summary
China has taken a bold step in partnering with Greenpeace, the International Olympic Committee and UNEP to participate in the ‘Green Olympics’- an environmentally friendly Olympics. In fact, China’s portrayal of its ability to ensure a green Olympics may have been a key component of their winning Olympic bid. However, China’s ability to realize this goal may be overly optimistic. The past two Olympic Games, Sydney, Australia in 2000, and Athens, Greece in 2004, both failed to meet the goals of their Green Olympics agreements. China stands to make history as the first Green Summer Olympic Games. In this report, we examine Beijing’s efforts thus far, and compare them to lessons learned from Sydney. China’s unique system of government has enabled it to plan effectively and set measurable targets. However, there are two main problems with China’s efforts. Firstly, it will be difficult to achieve credibility because of a lack of independent auditing. Secondly, while China appears on track to achieve the short-term goals of environmental protection, it is not clear whether they will transfer into long-term gains.
I: Introduction
Competition to host the Olympic Games has been fierce since the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Summer Games proved that that it can be an effective instrument for reaching economic and political goals, such as spurring economic growth, attracting government grants, creating a favorable image of the host city nationally and internationally, and increasing the legitimacy of the government hosting the games (Hiller 2000, Law 1994, Whitelegg 2000). Over the last twenty years, this increasing competition has resulted in small differences in what candidate cities offer in terms of infrastructure. As a result, symbolic differences between the candidates, such as character and commitment to Olympic ideals, become much more important (Haugen 2003). After an unsuccessful bid for the 2000 Summer Olympics, Beijing, China redoubled its’ efforts, and was elected as the host city for the 2008 Games. Haugen’s (2003) research suggests that Beijing was selected because it succeeded in presenting itself as an Olympic city. This paper examines one aspect that may have played a key role in Beijing’s successful bid – a commitment to environmental sustainability, and evaluates the potential for Beijing to carry out its proposed environmental improvements for the Olympic Games.
1.1 What is sustainable development?
In 1987, the Brundtland Report (also referred to as Our Common Future) highlighted the urgency of making progress toward economic development that could be sustained without depleting natural resources or harming the environment. Authored by World Commission on Environment and Development, the report introduced and defined the term ‘sustainable development’ as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (Our Common Future 1987:xx). This concept was widely accepted, as evidenced by the global support for Agenda 21. A blueprint on how to make development socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable in the 21st century, Agenda 21 is “a comprehensive plan of action to be taken globally, nationally and locally by organizations of the United Nations system, governments, and major groups in every area in which human impacts on the environment” (UN Department on Economic and Social Affairs 2005).
Following the establishment of Agenda 21 at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in 1992, the Chinese government developed their own Agenda 21. The ‘White Paper on China's Population, Environment and Development in the 21st Century,’ designed as a planning document to guide the country's social and economic development, marked sustainable development’s first appearance in China. Over the last decade, sustainable development has continued to be a buzzword, although the veracity of its’ implementation remains debatable. Research points to more instances where social and environmental concerns are ignored in order to promote the pro-growth policies that have propelled China’s economy at an average 8% clip for the past decade, than instances where the principles of sustainable development are upheld. At present, the challenges to the successful implementation of sustainable development in China include the conflict between rapid economic growth and increasing consumption of resources and ecological deterioration; social development lagging behind economic development; widening disparities between different regions in social and economic development; constraints posed by a large population and scarce resources; and inconsistencies between some existing laws, regulations and policies and actual needs for sustainable development (People’s Daily 2003).
1.2 Rationale for ‘greening’ the Olympics
The Sydney 2000 Olympics made history as the first attempt at a ‘green,’ or environmentally-friendly Olympic Games. In 2008, Beijing has the opportunity to make history as well, as the first successful Green (Summer) Games. While its’ predecessors, Sydney, Australia (2000) and Athens, Greece (2004) made some progress, both attempts to execute principles of environmental sustainability at the Olympics are widely regarded as failures. (These efforts will be discussed in more detail in section three.) Originally conceived by Greenpeace, the aim of the 'Green Games' was to create a global showcase for environmentally-conscious transportation, energy, waste disposal, refrigeration, and construction options (Greenpeace 2006). The concept of the Green Games eventually developed into a mandate from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and has been a component of every Olympic Games since 2000 (IOC 2006a).
The United Nations Environmental Programe (UNEP) has been working closely with the International Olympic Committee as well as the organizing committees of potential host cities since 1994. UNEP is represented on the IOC Sport and Environment Commission, which meets regularly to review environmental issues as they relate to the Olympic Games, and advises the IOC Executive Board on environmental issues (UNEP 2005).
1.3 Beijing’s Green Games
Throughout the Olympic Games host city selection process, Beijing portrayed itself as a way for the IOC to reach its environmental goals, a strategy that may have been key in winning the bid (Haugen 2003). For example, the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG) stated that “an enduring goal for the XXIX Olympic Gameswill be to popularize the notion that the environment is the third pillar of Olympism and that sport can be a powerful force in raising awareness about sustainable development at local and global levels” (CF 2001:59). Furthermore, BOCOG made an effort to depict itself as an environmental leader in China (Haugen 2003). According to Haugen (2003), just as the IOC presents itself as a forerunner of environmental protection internationally, the Beijing Organizing Committee presents itself as an agency that pushes for the integration of environmental protection in Chinese politics. Another important aspect of Beijing’s successful bid was the argument that hosting the Olympics will be the impetus for China as a whole to improve the state of its environment. For example, Beijing argued its poor air quality should not detract from its potential as a host city, but that that this problem represented a large potential for improvement that could be realized through the Olympics (Haugen 2003).
On July 13, 2001, Beijing was elected the host city for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (IOC 2006b). An agreement with UNEP formalizing Beijing’s commitment to the Green Games was signed on November 18, 2005 (UNEP 2005). The primary goals of Beijing’s Green Olympics are to “build an ecologically balanced city and create a pleasant environment for the 2008 Olympic Games; to minimize negative impact of Olympics on environment in line with the sustainable development ideas of protecting environment and resources, and ecological balance; and to implement education programs throughout the preparation and staging phases of the Olympics in order to raise the environmental awareness of the whole society and encourage the public to play an active role in the actions aimed at ecological environment improvement” (Beijing 2008 2003). The specific details of these plans and an update on progress to date will be discussed in more detail in the following sections.
II: China’s plan
2.1 Overview of China’s Plan
In its efforts to ‘green’ the Beijing Olympics, by 2007, Beijing will have spent US $12.2 billion on environmental improvements. To achieve the goal of a “Green Olympics,” the Beijing Olympic Action Plan states that priority will be given to environmental protection in the planning, design and construction of Olympic venues and facilities. Furthermore, it claims that strict ecological environmental standards and systematic supporting systems will be established, protection technologies will be used to promote environmental treatment and forestation, and awareness efforts will increase the public consciousness and efforts towards green consumption. Ultimately, Beijing hopes that these efforts will drastically improve the environmental quality of the city and “build it into an ecological city” (Beijing Olympic Action Plan, 2002). The major indicators that Beijing is using to measure environmental improvement are air quality, water environment, ecological conversation and construction (“greening and beautifying”), industrial pollution, and solid waste management.
Air Quality
There are numerous contributors to Beijing’s poor air quality, including regular sandstorms that sweep across the city, construction projects that throw up massive amounts of dust, car emissions from the over 2.6 million cars in the city (that number is expected to reach 3.5 by the time of the Olympics), coal burning factories, and the overall rising levels of consumption of a growing Chinese population and a society that is rapidly developing.
As part of longer term measures, over 4,000 old buses and 30,000 taxis have been taken out of service or replaced in recent years (Bezlova 2006). They have been replaced by new vehicles that meet stricter standards for pollution control. By 2008, Beijing aims to increase the number of buses and taxis operating on natural gas by 37 percent (Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Bid Committee, 2000). China has also instituted new vehicle-emissions regulations, expected to be fully implemented by 2010, which are on par with the European Union’s automotive standards. Many more homes and industries are using natural gas or processed coal that produce low levels of sulphur emissions.
City officials have begun a “blue sky day” count, and are aiming for 292 such days each year. Last year, that number was just 234, and many believe that is an overly optimistic official count. In the first few months of 2006, the Beijing local government recorded 20 days in January as being rated “polluted” or “seriously polluted,” the worst levels for the month in six years. In a report issued by the European Satellite Agency in September 2005, Beijing and the surrounding area in northeastern China were named as having the world’s highest levels of nitrogen dioxide, which can cause fatal damage to the lungs (Watts 2005). The gas is a key smog gas that originates from power plants, heavy industry and vehicle emissions.
Water Environment
The decline in water conditions across China can be tied to the country’s population growth, economic growth and increasing urbanization. By 2008, Beijing has the goal of water quality in the area reservoirs to keep meeting national standards, resume function as a drinking water source, that water quality continue to meet WHO guidelines, and the sewage treatment rate in urban areas and satellite towns to increase to 90 percent (Beijing 2008 Official Guidelines and Objectives).
Ecological Conservation and Construction
Beijing hopes to structure water consumption more efficiently to make more water available for ecological purposes. It has also stated reforestation and increased greening space as major concerns for government planners. By 2007, it hopes that urban green coverage rate should be raised to around 50 percent. In an August 2, 2003 press release, the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG) stated that its reforestation programs planted over two million trees and three million square meters of grassland in 2002 alone (Beijing 2008 Official Website, 2005). In 2004, Beijing continued its efforts to green and beautify urban areas; the forestation area in Beijing was increased by 404,800 mu (1 mu is equivalent to about 675 square meters), and the first city green belt was completed (Beijing 2008 Official Website, 2005).
Industrial Pollution
Beijing plans to relocate enterprises and take measures to prevent and control industrial pollution. It plans to decrease coal consumption, from 26 million tons in 2002 to 15 million tons in 2008, and replace it with natural gas (Xinhua, 2002). Since 2000, city leaders have exiled over 1,000 heavy industrial and power-generating plants to the outside of the city, and coal mines in the metropolitan area have been shut down. Experts estimate that dust stirred up by the large number of construction sites contributes 20-30 percent of the suspended particles in the air, with another 40 percent being caused by heavy traffic and the growing number of cars in the city. So in its desire to clean up the air before 2008, city leaders have declared all construction should cease by the end of 2006.
In the building of its Olympic venues, Beijing plans to adopt newer technologies in order to protect the environment and conserve resources. These include employing cleaner energies, environmentally-friendly building materials and energy-saving technologies including rainwater collection, gray water utilization, natural ventilation and natural lighting, in efforts.
Solid Waste Management
Beijing set 2005 as a goal to have properly treated all domestic refuse generated in urban areas and satellite towns. So far, the rate of safe treatment of waste in urban areas is 93 percent (Beijing 2008 Official Website, 2005). An additional goal for solid waste management is that 80 percent of industrial solid waste by reused or recycled and all hazardous wastes be safely treated and disposed. By 2008, Beijing hopes that noise in urban areas reaches the national standard, and that radiation and radioactivity comply with national standards as well.
2.2 A Quick Fix?
Beijing is so effective at pouring concrete that it is well ahead of schedule in its Olympic construction project – so far ahead that the International Olympic Committee has asked Beijing to slow down rather than finish construction too soon. The irony is that Beijing has not been as quick to reach its goals of environmental sustainability. In fact, one reason why they are hastily building is because of a moratorium on construction in the months leading up to the Olympics, due to the dust and pollution that these projects cause in Beijing.
The construction moratorium is an example of the many stringent measures that Beijing is taking to temporarily clear the city’s polluted air – one of the luxuries afforded by its authoritarian government regime. The strong central planning exercised by the Chinese government allows the leadership to make tough decisions and implement them quickly. The temporary ban on most automotive vehicles, the halting of industrial factories and power plants in the time surrounding the Olympics, the spraying of Beijing streets with water several times a day and the artificially-generated rainfall to wash suspended particles from the sky are all measures being taken that will at least in the short-run improve the city’s environmental appearance.
2.3 Post-Olympic Outlook
Even if Beijing is able to live up to its commitments by the time of the Olympics, the larger question at hand is, will the greening of Beijing last? After the Olympics, millions of cars will be back on the roads, the city’s factories and power plants will once again be emitting fumes, and thousands of construction projects will start up again as Beijing gets back to its normal life. The city’s rapid economic growth may very well be undermining the measures put in place to improve its environment. The growing Chinese middle class, with its consumerist identity, is putting serious environmental pressures on the country. Pollution levels can more than quadruple within 15 years unless China can find ways to slow the rise in energy consumption and automobile use, according to Zhang Lijun, Deputy Director of the Environmental Protection Agency (Watts 2005).
According to Wang Dawei, Beijing’s Environmental Protection Agency director, “in a developing nation, in a city of 13 million people, it is very difficult to make rapid progress. But we hope to build on the progress we make. The situation should ultimately improve.” (Daily Times, April 7, 2006). In order to bring about improvements, China will undoubtedly need to find a way to utilize its centralized power to both continue economic development and promote sustainable environmental development. Thus far, it appears that most of its efforts stop short at 2008.
III: Sydney’s attempt to ‘green’ the Olympics
3.1: Sydney 2000: Background
The Sydney Games was the first attempt to Green the Olympics. In the final analysis, the Sydney Games was considered to be a mixed bag in terms of its ‘green’ performance. However, it was important for two reasons. Firstly, it was the first attempt at ‘greening’ the Games, and many lessons were learnt. Secondly, given Australia’s commitment to the environment in general, there were several aspects of Sydney’s performance that was outstanding. In fact, Sydney performed better than Athens, which was considered to be an abject failure.