California's Top Environment Official in China

Cal/EPA Secretary Linda Adams says she arrived in Beijing today to hazy skies, "the Sun actually darkened by dirty air."

"But I was told that today the air is actually considered moderately good," said Adams in a blog she is writing to document her six day visit to China.

Today Adams met with two of China's nongovernmental organizations, The Regulatory Assistance Project, RAP, and The Energy Foundation. She says both groups are supporting China's efforts to improve environmental protection and develop cleaner energy policies.

From left: Margret Kim, CalEPA's China Program Director, and Linda Adams, Cal/EPA's Secretary, meet with Dr. Fuqiang Yang, director of The Energy Foundation's Beijing office and David Moskovitz, director of The Regulatory Assistance Project. (Photo courtesy Cal/EPA)

"The RAP has been working in China for nine years, promoting policies that actually were developed by California," writes Adams. "In fact, our hosts called California a 'leader' on environmental issues, mentioning green buildings, renewable energy and transportation as successful program areas that can be copied here in China to both support the economy and promote a cleaner environment."

"I was encouraged to learn that RAP is working with China's energy regulators to develop long-term strategies to promote cleaner energy. In addition, regulators are looking at ways to expand the country's largest energy resource - efficiency and conservation," Adams writes.

She says The Energy Foundation is working with officials to integrate environmentally-friendly policies into everyday operations and governance in China.

On Friday, Adams will co-host the 2nd Annual Low Carbon Fuels Conference, a two-day event. Participants will discuss the progress towards developing a low carbon fuels standard in China, fashioned after Governor Schwarzenegger's low carbon fuel standard.

In January 2007, Governor Schwarzenegger issued an Executive Order establishing the world's first Low Carbon Fuel Standard for transportation fuels sold in California.

The Low Carbon Fuel Standard requires fuel providers to ensure that the mix of fuel they sell into the California market meets, on average, a declining standard for greenhouse gas emissions measured in CO2-equivalent gram per unit of fuel energy sold.

By 2020 the standard will reduce the carbon intensity of California's passenger vehicle fuels by at least 10 percent.

This is expected to replace 20 percent of California's on-road gasoline consumption with lower-carbon fuels, more than triple the size of the state's renewable fuels market, and place more than seven million alternative fuel or hybrid vehicles on California's roads.

Next Tuesday, Adams will participate in a Green Business Conference in Beijing.

Copyright Environment News Service (ENS) 2008. All rights reserved.