Academician Hao Jiming: Global Energy Internet is the fundamental solution to control air pollution

China Energy Storage Network: Building a global energy internet has extremely important strategic significance for changing the global energy order, maintaining global energy security, reshaping the global energy governance structure, and achieving sustainable development of human energy. It is also a fundamental solution to controlling air pollution and responding to climate change.

Looking back at the 12th Five-Year Plan, we have achieved leapfrog development in air pollution prevention and control. From the inclusion of PM2.5 in the national "Ambient Air Quality Standards" to the promulgation of the "Ten Measures for Air Pollution Control", the state's determination to control environmental pollution is reflected. Looking forward to the 13th Five-Year Plan, energy conservation and emission reduction and air pollution prevention and control have entered a critical period and deep waters. We must be down-to-earth, seek truth from facts, and use innovative thinking to deal with problems.

In 2015, Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed at the United Nations Development Summit to "explore the construction of a global energy internet and promote clean and green ways to meet global electricity demand." This can be regarded as an innovative measure for global environmental governance and sustainable development in terms of top-level design.

Coincides with air pollution prevention and control

Some people always ask, why is air pollution still so serious after so many years of control? China's air pollution is a byproduct of the past 30 years of development. To solve this problem, the national ambient air quality can be significantly improved, which may take a long time, 10 years or more.

In fact, China has made great progress in air pollution control in the past decade, which is reflected in the types of pollutants and pollution sources controlled, the total amount of pollutant emissions, and the ambient air quality. However, the reduction of pollutant emissions has entered a critical period and deep waters. After a period of reduction in sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, the easy reduction has been reduced. To further reduce sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, we must "bite the hard bone" and enter a critical period. To control PM2.5, we must not only reduce the emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, but also reduce the emissions of volatile organic compounds and ammonia. Compared with controlling sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, reducing these two pollutants is more difficult and the task is more arduous, so it is a deep water area.

From the perspective of time nodes, by 2020, which is the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan, the Pearl River Delta region hopes to meet the national ambient air quality standards, especially the PM2.5 standard; the Yangtze River Delta region hopes to reach the current level of the Pearl River Delta; the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region can reach the current level of the Yangtze River Delta, and each key region will take a step forward. By 2025, based on the existing goals, the air quality in the Pearl River Delta region will continue to improve, the Yangtze River Delta region will be able to basically meet the standards for environmental quality, especially the PM2.5 index, and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region will continue to improve. By 2030, the air quality of most cities above the prefecture level in the country will meet the standards. By 2050, China's atmospheric environmental quality will basically achieve the World Health Organization's guidance value on ambient air quality concentration.

Some people always say that I am too conservative and the public will not agree. But in fact, whether they agree or not, we must work hard to control air pollution and seek truth from facts. We must fight both a tough battle and a protracted war; we must address the root causes and the symptoms. It is difficult to eat a fat man in one bite.

I noticed that in the book "Global Energy Internet", there is also a clear timetable for its construction. That is, on the basis of reaching a consensus before 2020, the construction of large-scale clean energy bases will be started before 2030, intra-continental networking will be strengthened, and the interconnection of major national power grids in various continents will be promoted by 2040. By 2050, the global energy Internet will be basically completed.

In terms of timetable, this plan coincides with my country's air pollution prevention and control. In fact, the core role of building a global energy internet is to adjust the energy structure and develop clean energy to effectively solve the problems of my country's economic downturn and haze, and promote the coordinated development of the national economy, society and environment. From this point of view, adjusting the energy structure and air pollution prevention and control are closely related and cannot be rushed.

The fundamental solution lies in renewable energy

From a global perspective, air pollution has undergone a process of transformation from coal-burning pollution to motor vehicle pollution. The London smog incident in the 1950s was a typical example of coal-burning pollution, and now 63% of London's atmospheric PM2.5 comes from ground traffic sources.

At present, the main battlefield for China's air pollution control is still coal-burning pollution. The coal problem must be clean, efficient, centralized and sustainable. Many people have said that clean and efficient, I added the word "centralized", centralized to relatively large-scale coal-using methods, centralized to power plants, and gradually eliminated those scattered and backward coal-burning methods. This is the strategy for coal-burning. According to statistics, one ton of scattered coal even emits more pollutants than ten tons of coal used in power plants, so we must find a way to control it.

In addition, motor vehicle pollution in my country will become more and more important and more difficult. We are a country with a high growth rate and high frequency of motor vehicle use. Our motor vehicle pollution has three highs: first, the number of vehicles has increased rapidly, and this rate has been around 15% for more than ten years; second, it is highly concentrated, mainly in cities and even in the core areas of cities; third, it is used frequently. In Beijing, a car travels an average of 14,000 kilometers a year, and in Germany, it travels about 12,000 kilometers a year. To solve these three highs, we need to establish an integrated control system for vehicles and oil roads, our vehicles need to be continuously upgraded, and our oil quality needs to be continuously improved. In addition, our roads need to be more unobstructed and rely more on public transportation.

Of course, if we want to win these two battles, the most fundamental way out is renewable energy. The book "Global Energy Internet" has given a clear answer on how to develop, utilize, allocate and consume renewable energy more efficiently. Specifically, it is clean substitution and electric energy substitution, which is of great strategic significance to changing the global energy order, maintaining global energy security, reshaping the global energy governance structure, and achieving sustainable development of human energy. This is also a fundamental solution to controlling air pollution and responding to climate change.

At present, in terms of air pollution prevention and control, there is a broad consensus on the use of electricity as an alternative. Replacing coal with electricity and oil with electricity has obvious effects on controlling pollution from the burning of scattered coal and motor vehicle pollution. To achieve clean substitution, the concept of global energy Internet must be implemented as soon as possible and transformed into real projects.

Hao Jiming: Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Dean of the Institute of Environmental Science and Engineering of Tsinghua University, Member of the National Environmental Advisory Committee, Vice President of the Chinese Society of Environmental Sciences, Member of the Engineering and Environment Committee of the World Federation of Engineering Organizations