Intro: Last year, China released its new Climate Change Adaptation Strategy for 2035. Below is an excerpt from this document, click here to read full version of this strategy.
Global warming is intensifying. Since the mid-20th century, the global average temperature has increased by 0.15℃ every 10 years. It is expected that global warming will continue, and the adverse impacts and risks of climate change will keep intensifying. Similarly, the PRC’s temperature has also risen significantly. From 1951 to 2020, the average temperature increased by 0.26℃ every 10 years—higher than the global average for the same period. Climate change has generated a serious adverse impact on China’s natural ecosystem, and it continues to seep into the economic and social system. Floods and droughts are intensifying, glaciers are retreating, the permafrost is thawing, glacial lakes are expanding, and water-resources security risks have grown significantly; The vegetation belt has shifted northward in a biological invasion that has worsened, and the terrestrial ecosystem is becoming increasingly unstable. Meanwhile, as sea levels rise above global averages, the frequency and intensity of extreme marine events are escalating, which pose a severe threat to marine and coastal ecosystems. Climate change has also caused changes in farming practices and crop layouts, as risks associated with meteorological hazards and pests and diseases have intensified. Health risks associated with extreme weather and climate events such as high temperature and heat waves are increasing, as are vectorborne diseases, probably leading to a variety of allergic and chronic diseases. Changes to the generation of energy, transportation and other major infrastructure projects tend to reduce safety, stability, reliability and durability. The operation of urban lifeline systems, the quality of living environment, and the safety of people’s lives and property have been critically threatened in some cases. Climate change has also transformed resource utilization modes, environmental capacity, and consumption demand, which could further affect the networks and operational safety of sensitive secondary and tertiary industry industrial chains, and even lead to systemic financial and economic risks.
In the PRC, where varieties of climate are complex, climate change and its adverse effects exhibit obvious regional differences. The warming degree of Northeast China is greater than the national average level. Though the increase of accumulated temperature is conducive to agricultural production, it also increases flood risks in summer, reduces wetland areas and heightens the vulnerability of permafrost. North China, where significant warming and drying is underway, faces prominent imbalances in supply and demand of water resources and serious urban heat-island effects. In East China, the intensity of typhoons and the frequency of urban rainstorms, waterlogging, and high-temperature heatwave events have been increasing. Moreover, the continued rise of sea levels threatens coastal cities. Central China is troubled by frequent drought and flood disasters, as well as shrinking lakes and wetlands, raising the risks of ecological degradation, and decreasing biodiversity. In South China, extreme weather and climate events such as heatwaves, rainstorms and floods, typhoons and storm surges occur frequently, and are exacerbated by salt tides and seawater intrusions. In Northwest China, the accelerated melting of glaciers increases the risks and frequency of meltwater floods, while rendering water resources and ecosystems more vulnerable. Southwest China is facing intensifying droughts in the winter and spring, increasing pressure to undertake soil and water conservation, manage stony desertification, and protect biodiversity. The climate of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau shows a warming and humidifying trend, with glaciers and permafrost melting and shrinking, lakes expanding, and river runoff increasing significantly, leading to increased risk of extreme events such as ice and snow avalanches. In addition, climate problems in major strategic locations such as the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region, the Yangtze Economic Belt, the Guangdong–Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Yellow River Basin are intertwined with problems such as over-population, resource shortages and environment degradation, which are obviously subject to ripple and amplification effects by climate change. Global warming is projected to continue, making extreme weather and climate events more frequent and intense, as climate change impacts and risks expand in breadth and scale. With the deepening of domestic and global economic integration, climate change will pose more and more risks to the PRC’s economic and social development, as well as the security of its people. As a major non-traditional security factor, the long-term adverse effects and abrupt extreme events brought about by climate change have become a significant risk in the process of realizing socialist modernization and building a beautiful China.
