China made significant achievements in 2023 to curb pollution

China is diligently working to reduce pollution as during 2023 it achieved significant progress towards its "dual carbon" objective of reaching carbon neutrality by 2060 and peaking carbon emissions by 2030.

The Xinhua news agency compiled several important statistics about China's accomplishments in green development in the previous year.

According to the National Energy Administration (NEA), China's installed capacity for renewable energy increased by 20.8% in 2023, reaching 1.4 billion kilowatts at the end of October of the previous year. This represents 49.9% of the installed power-generating capacity in the country.

By November 2023 end, the installed solar power generation was around 560 million kilowatts, up 49.9% year on year, said the NEA.

According to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), the new energy vehicle (NEV) wholesale sales of China, a global leader in the NEV industry, totalled 8.88 million units in 2023, a notable expansion of 38 % year on year.

By September 2023, more than 64% of the global NEV sales were from China, according to the World New Energy Vehicle Congress.

On the other hand, China marked its first National Ecology Day on August 15, 2023. As per China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment, from 2013 to 2022, the country’s carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP declined by 34.4 % and its PM2.5 density fell by 57%.

From 2013 to 2022, its forest coverage has risen from 21.63% to 24.02%, the National Forestry and Grassland Administration of China reported.

The ecology ministry said in the first 11 months of 2023, the share of good air quality days stood at 85.8% in 339 cities, up by 3.3 percentage points in the same period of 2019.