A demonstrator dressed as a polar bear in Rome protests against global warming ahead of the UN climate change conference, which is being held in Paris from Nov. 30 to Dec. 11.

 

Human beings currently face enormous ecological pressure. Global warming, for example, has further exacerbated problems such as drought, desertification, rising sea levels, and natural disasters.  
 

Organized by the Editorial Office of the Academic Journal of Nanjing Tech University, the “2015 Chinese Humanities and Social Sciences Environmental Forum” was held in Nanjing from Nov. 21 to 22. Nearly 50 scholars from domestic universities and research institutions discussed environmental issues, focusing on the theme of “Energy, Environment and Society: From Village, Community to World.”

Fossil energy
Attending scholars said that complex reasons cause current environmental problems, one of which is that human activities are influencing the climate and environment in various ways.

Ren Xuejuan, a professor from the School of Atmospheric Sciences at Nanjing University, pointed out that natural reasons for climate change include external factors,  such as solar radiation, internal factors, such as volcanic activities, and interactions inside the climatic system. Human activities have changed the composition of the earth’s atmosphere. The direct discharge of waste gas, water and heat into the atmosphere has brought about the continuous deterioration of the climate and ecological environment,  Ren said.
 

“Along with the transformation of human production models and lifestyle since the industrial revolution as well as the large scale exploitation and utilization of fossil fuels, such as coal and oil, massive greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, have been discharged and are accumulating in the atmosphere, leading to a series of problems related to environmental pollution and ecological damage in human society,” said Ke Jian, a professor from the Research Institute of Environmental Law at Wuhan University.
 

Shen Lei, a research fellow from the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said that after more than two hundred years of industrialization, environmental and climate problems caused by the utilization of fossil energy are becoming increasingly severe.

Official figures show that China has a single energy consumption structure, which has mainly depended on fossil fuels such as coal and oil for a long time. “Environmental pollution resulting from pollutant discharge and climate change resulting from greenhouse gas emissions are two different concepts. However, they both can be attributed to the same source: China’s current energy structure,” Shen said.

Multiple energy supply
Scholars said that it is necessary to take a low-carbon path and push forward an energy revolution in a bid to resolve environmental problems and construct an ecological civilization.
 

“Exploiting and utilizing renewable energy to reduce dependence on traditional fossil energy is one of the key realms of combating climate change set in the international treaty on climate change,” Ke said, adding that in order to cope with the severe challenges of global climate change, developing renewable energy has become not only an important measure for all countries and regions to improve energy supply, consumption structure and achieve sustainable development, but also a significant strategic option for the international community to lower greenhouse gas emissions and confront climate change.

 “Energy substitution is an inevitable choice for China’s energy development,” Shen said, adding that it is necessary to replace fossil fuels with clean energy to deal with challenges, such as energy security, pollution and climate change that hinder the sustainable development of human society. The key to energy replacement is to reduce production costs through technological innovation.
 

In addition to technological innovation, the transformation of the energy structure needs improved legal system guarantees as well. Ke said China has issued and implemented a series of policies and regulations, including the Renewable Energy Law, to push forward the development of renewable energy. At present, it is necessary to review existing renewable energy legislation and make proper adjustments, amendments and supplements, centered on the Renewable Energy Law,  Ke said.