Prof. Zhu Dajian, Background, Pattern and Policy of China for Developing Circular Economy
- 1. ARTICLES Background, Pattern and Policy of China for Developing Circular Economy Zhu Dajian Research Institute of Governance for Sustainable Development under Tongji University, 200092 Shanghai, China Abstract: Circular economy has become one of China’s im- mental pollution. Circular economy was proposed against portant strategies to realize scientific development and build this situation and regarded as an important approach for ecological civilization at present. As in China circular economy China to change its development pattern and realize ‘decou- was put forward as a new economic pattern, the international pling’ development in the future (Zhu, 1998; Zhu, 2000). I community generally holds that this is an innovative move think China’s environment and development by 2020 can for China’s economy to realize leap-forward development be roughly divided into the following three patterns, with and hopes to learn more about the theory, policy and practice Pattern C being what China needs to strive to realize by de- relating to China’s circular economy. This article introduces veloping circular economy and suitable for China’s current and comments on the necessity to develop circular economy development level (Zhu, 2007). in China, implications and characteristics of China’s circular economy, and China’s main practices and policies to promote it 1.1 Pattern A at present. Pattern A is the strong materialized pattern of high re- Key words: circular economy, China, Pattern C source consumption and high environmental pollution. The so-called Pattern A adopts the view of American scholar 1 Why does China need to develop circular econ- Lester R. Brown in his book Plan B: Rescuing a Planet un- omy vigorously? der Stress and a Civilization in Trouble (Brown, 2003). The strong materialized pattern is expressed as simultaneous de- The period from 2000 to 2020 is a development stage in velopment of economy and environmental pressure. While which China will strive to build an overall well-off society GDP grows, environmental pressure also grows, which is and realize modernization first in the developed eastern the traditional economic growth pattern. China’s econom- region. China’s economic growth goal by 2020 is to qua- ic development basically followed Pattern A in the past. druple per-capita GDP over 2000, achieving US $3000, For example, it is said when China’s per capita GDP was four times more than that in 2000. According to China’s US $400–1000 (i.e. in the light industry stage), its pollut- 9–10% economic growth rate over many years, such a goal ant discharge level was already equal to that reached by is attainable. The problem now is that China’s economic developed countries when their per capita GDP was US growth over the past 30 years was achieved at the cost of $3000–10 000 (in the high processing industry stage). consuming large quantities of resources and discharging It is to break away from such a resource-consuming and large amounts of pollutants. For example, data show that environment-destroying development road that we pay China’s total GDP accounted for about 5.5% of the world’s attention to circular economy today. When participating total in 2006, but standard coal, steel and cement that China in researches for the state’s medium and long-term sci- consumed for this accounted for 15, 30 and 54% of the tech strategic plans, the author estimated with relevant world’s totals, respectively. If this trend continues in China’s experts: if China continues the current resource-utilizing future economic growth, the prospect would be ‘worsening’ method and pollutant-producing level, the influence of instead of getting better. the economic and social development on environment Hence the solution to this problem is to decouple the will probably be four to five times of that at present in economic growth from resource consumption and environ- the future when population continues to grow and econo- Corresponding author: Zhu Dajian (dajianzhu@263,net) Chinese Journal of Population, Resources and Environment 2008 Vol. 6 No.4
- 2. ARTICLES my quadruples by 2020. Apparently, this pattern not only tion and pollutant production will be stabilized after being means serious social instability and serious resource and decelerated. Such development should be acceptable for environment problems, but economic development itself both China and the world. For one thing, it accords with the will also not be sustainable. requirements of sustainability; for another, it accords with the requirements of ecological equity because it creates saf- 1.2 Pattern B er living environment for the world while providing rea- Pattern B is the dematerialized pattern which requires sonable room for 1.3–1.5 billion Chinese people to im- absolute decoupling of economy from environment. Pattern prove life. China will probably implement a more than B is opposite to Pattern A and Lester R. Brown advocates four times greener development strategy after 2020, it in his book as the future development pattern. Its target i.e. the total economic quantity will continue to dou- is that environmental pressure does not grow or even grow ble but resource consumption and pollutant production negatively when economy continues to grow positively, will be halved to realize the above-mentioned decoupling i.e. realizing absolute decoupling of the two. In the long of China’s economic development from environmental run, such a target is a must for both developed countries pressure. However, as Shanghai, Beijing, Guangdong and and developing countries and it is the highest connota- other developed coastal areas in the southeast lead other tion of ecological modernization or sustainable develop- areas in development levels in China, a much dematerial- ment. However, can this development target be used right ized strategy should be implemented for them firstly so away in China’s development in the next 15 years? The that modernization with a win-win meaning in both econ- author’s answer is negative. The author also estimated omy and environment can be basically realized by 2020. roughly that resource productivity must be increased by four or five times if environmental pressure is not to be 2 Connotations and main characteristics of increased apparently when China’s economy grows by China’s circular economy four times by 2020 and resource productivity must be increased by eight to ten times if environmental pres- Although the proposal of the idea of circular econ- sure is to be alleviated apparently (by half). This target omy in China (Zhu, 1998) was inspired in time by the is certainly encouraging, but, judging from China’s cur- Recycling Economic Law on Waste promulgated by rent technical ability and management level, it is very Germany in 1996 (Japan proposed the idea of the re- difficult to realize this high dematerialized pattern. If we cycling society in 2000 after China proposed the idea have to do it, it means that China’s economic target must of circular economy), the contents of China’s idea be adjusted. Obviously this will affect Chinese people’s liv- of circular economy include many theoretical study ing standard and quality from the other aspect. achievements made in the world in the fields of ecolog- ical economics and industrial ecology, etc. (Daly, 2001; 1.3 Pattern C Tao, 2003), since the 1990s. Therefore China’s idea of Pattern C is the pattern for increasing resource pro- circular economy has its own characteristics. The au- ductivity which is fit for China’s current stage. China thor believes at least the following characteristics are cannot continue to follow traditional Pattern A, because worth emphasizing. First, China’s circular economy is of the shortage of natural resources and restriction of an idea about the economic pattern in respect of nature environmental pressure; restricted by its current develop- rather than an idea about environmental management ment stage, it cannot adopt Pattern B for the high develop- in some other countries, because China hopes to re- ment stage immediately either. Hence the author proposes duce resource consumption and pollutant production a development pattern fit for China’s development stage in at sources and in the whole process by changing the the next 15 years, which is shortened to Pattern C (China). economic pattern. It also hopes to achieve win-win in In Pattern C, China’s economy will keep growing according both economy and environment by circular economy to the established targets and growth of resource consump- instead of ‘economy without recycle’ or ‘recycle with- Chinese Journal of Population, Resources and Environment 2008 Vol. 6 No.4
- 3. ARTICLES out economy’; therefore the department proposed for be established in the treatment link in cities and regions planning circular economy as a whole in China is the as by turning traditional landfill sites into composite State Development and Reform Commission which has waste-recycling parks with the vein industry as the main a comprehensive nature instead of environmental man- content. agement departments in some other countries. Second, China’s circular economy not only aims at garbage 2.2 Reuse of products economy or 3R economy for treating solid waste in It mainly refers to using products for as many times respect of objects but at all scarce resources involved and in as many ways as possible instead of using them in China’s economic development, including water, once in the past so as to extend their useful life. As land, energy, materials and corresponding waste; to shown in the following map, products are put into main- a certain extent, it is of more urgent significance for tenance centers or reclamation centers after use, but China to develop circular economy which deals with products do not need to be put into the reclamation cen- consumption of water, land, energy and other resources ters if they can be reused after simple maintenance. Only and control of related pollutants. Third, China’s circular if products are damaged seriously and cannot be restored economy comprises different space levels in respect and reused after simple maintenance they will be put of scale and includes circular economy of individual into the reclamation centers and then returned to product enterprises, industrial parks and regions, etc. Fourth, manufacturers, parts manufacturers or raw material sup- China’s circular economy stresses progressively in- pliers for corresponding resource recycle according to creased practice forms on the following three levels in their damages. The ultimate aim of recycle of products respect of pattern and emphasizes the need to develop is to realize minimum discharge of waste or even zero from low-level recycle of waste based on ecological ef- discharge of waste (so-called zero waste) filled in land in ficiency (to reduce consumption and pollution) to high- the end. level recycle of products and services based on ecologi- cal effects (to prevent consumption and pollution). 2.1 Recycle of waste Raw material It mainly refers to reclamation of waste from production Part suppliers manufacturers and consumption by technical and management means and Recycle of resources is the concrete embodiment of the principle of recycle of re- Recycle of parts sources in the 3R principle in circular economy and also an Product manufacturers important content of circular economy in Germany and Remanufacture Reuse of parts Japan. This practice reduces effectively the final quan- tity of waste to be treated and is a remarkable progress Reuse of whole Product products in comparison to the traditional treatment at terminals. dealers Recycle of waste is applicable to three scales, i.e. enter- Product prises, parks and regions. Specifically, a closed-loop pro- maintenance duction process should be built in individual enterprises Users to reduce production and discharge of waste in individual enterprises as much as possible. Next, different factories should be linked to form industrial symbiotic combina- maintenance tions to share resources and exchange by-products by centers Redamation building Eco-industrial Parks so that the principle of cir- Centers cular economy can be implemented in a larger scope. Fi- nally, the centralized resource-recycling industry should Fig. 1 China’s circular economy stresses multi-cycles of materials Chinese Journal of Population, Resources and Environment 2008 Vol. 6 No.4
- 4. ARTICLES 2.3 Cycle of services Qi, 2004; Wang, 2004; Wu, 2005). Apart from theoretical studies and practical promotion, the Chinese government It mainly refers to enterprises dealing in and managing mainly took systematic actions in the following four as- products manufactured by them as assets, promoting the pects in this stage. concept of developing from ‘selling products to provid- ing services’ and realizing recycle of assets by establishing 3.1 Drafting an economic law on China’s circular econ- a product service system (shortened to PPS). Its basic omy premise is ‘the value of products lies in the benefit and utility they bring for consumers’, i.e. the real value of Under the support of the NPC of China and the State products should be their ‘utilization value’ instead of their Development and Reform Commission, China is busy ‘exchange value’. designing an economic law on circular economy and the This is in fact the difference between the emphases of relevant draft may be passed officially at the NPC meet- linear economy and circular economy. Exchange value is ing in February 2008. The draft of the economic law on the central concept in linear economy while use value is the China’s circular economy emphasizes: first, China should central concept in circular economy. There may be three stick to the principle of giving priority to quantity reduc- kinds of economic types from products to service: pure tion in developing circular economy. Particula r attention products, product services and pure services. Reasonable should be paid to quantity reduction because China is in combination of products and services constitutes the so- the high-speed development stage of industrialization, called product-service system and profits of enterprises, energy and material is consumed too much, waste of satisfaction of consumers’ needs and lower social influ- resources is serious and the potential for quantity reduc- ence on environment can be realized by it. For example, tion at front ends are great; second, key points should consumers are no longer inclined to have their own be highlighted and special efforts should be made to put washing machines or cars through recycle of assets but an end to high energy consumption, heavy pollution and are inclined to use washhouses on streets and means of problems that affect the development of China’s circular public transport. economy and hard restrictions should be available to control high consumption and high discharge; third, the 3 China’s systems and policies to develop circu- roles of the government, enterprises, public and industri- lar economy al associations should be highlighted in major economic processes, i.e. all links in production and consumption, The development of China’s circular economy has main- so as to constitute synergy for pushing forward the de- ly undergone three stages since 1998. The first stage is the velopment of circular economy; fourth, basic systems period from 1998 to 2000 in which relatively academic favorable for development of circular economy should concept was introduced and theoretical studies were con- be established, including the system for planning circu- ducted. Researchers and scholars in institutions of higher lar economy at the national, provincial, municipal and learning and scientific research institutions played the county levels, the systems for controlling the total quan- role of ideological enlighteners in this stage. The second tities of resource consumption and pollutant discharge, stage is the period from 2001 to 2005 in which clean the system for extending mainly manufacturers’ product production in enterprises and Eco-industrial Parks were responsibilities and the appraising and examination emphasized in experimenting on circular economy. The system based on indexes of resource input, recycle national environmental protection department played an and pollutant discharge. Although the drafting of the important role in this stage (Xie, 2005). Circular econ- law on circular economy should solve the outstanding omy was advocated as a national strategy in 2006 and problems in development of China’s circular economy China entered the stage of promoting the development at present, the author thinks the nature of the law on of circular economy systematically at all levels (Li and circular economy as a general guideline and its stra- Chinese Journal of Population, Resources and Environment 2008 Vol. 6 No.4
- 5. ARTICLES tegic significance should be made clear in explaining 3.3 Making experiments on circular economy the connotations and characteristics of China’s circu- lar economy. It should also be stressed in particular China adopts the method of experimenting in experi- that this law is an economic law instead of an environ- mental units and expanding gradually in development of mental law, and its objects are mainly scarce resources circular economy and expects to form circular economy and pollutants, it covers all stages from exploitation, of a certain scale by 2010. Hence the State Development production, consumption to treatment of waste and its and Reform Commission started to experiment on circu- forms include recycle of waste, recycle of products lar economy in the first group of experimental units in and recycle of services. 2006 and these units are divided into four categories. The first is represented by enterprises in high-consumption 3.2 Setting goals for development of circular economy and high-discharge key industries; the second by Eco- industrial Parks; the third by waste-recycling enterprises China’s Eleventh Five Year National Economic and or the vein industry; the fourth by cities and regions with Social Development Plan passed in 2006 set national comprehensive nature, which include some resource- goals with binding significance for development of dependent cities in the central and western regions China’s circular economy in the next five years in and super-large cities with scarce resources. In the light of China’s main problems in resource consump- author ’s opinion, the focus of these experiments is tion and pollutant discharge at that time. It requires still mainly low-level recycle of waste with recycle of energy consumption per unit GDP to be lowered by resources in waste as the main contents and it is nec- 20%, the total discharge quantity of such main pol- essary to further study and develop high-level recycle lutants as chemical oxygen content and sulfur dioxide of products and services with more quantity reduc- to be lowered by 10% and the total area of farmland tion nature because this is the fundamental reason for not to be less than 1.8 billion mu (1 hectare is 15 mu). China to develop circular economy. To our pleasure, The so-called restrictive indexes are what the govern- the Comprehensive Work Plan for Energy Saving ment must realize and fulfill and they have legal force and Reduction of Discharge worked out by the State and should be put into the system of all regions and departments for appraising economic and social devel- Development and Reform Commission together with opment comprehensively and examining performance. other relevant departments has mentioned that China This shows that the government has regarded realiza- will experiment on circular economy in the second tion of circular economy as a public affair which it group of experimental units and recycle of waste and must do. However, looking from a more systematic old household electric appliances and remanufacture angle, I think it’s not enough to just list a few control of auto parts and machinery will be included so as to indexes in the comprehensive economic and social further develop the practice of circular economy. development plan to develop circular economy. China 3.4 Making appraising indexes for circular economy needs to make a more detailed and more scientific plan for circular economy and dematerialization in The State Development and Reform Commission, State line with economic growth. Its contents should include Environmental Protection Administration and National indexes for controlling the total consumption of water, Bureau of Statistics have compiled and published an index land, energy and materials, as well as the total dis- system for appraising circular economy in four aspects, i.e. charge of main pollutants so as to adjust the economic output of resources, consumption of resources, comprehen- growth speed and scale in the future and realize transi- sive utilization of resources and discharge of waste. Therein tion from the development pattern of economic growth the resource output index mainly refers to GDP produced by advancing the scale of resource consumption to the consumption of unrenewable resources (including coal, oil, development pattern of the scale of resource consump- iron ore, non-ferrous metal ore, rare earth ore, phosphorus tion controlling economic growth. ore, sulphur ore, limestone and gravel, etc.); the resource Chinese Journal of Population, Resources and Environment 2008 Vol. 6 No.4
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