Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson is today focused on making new construction in China more energy efficient by working with leaders to upgrade building codes.
Paulson has worked on the front lines of environmental protection in China for years and has the ear of the top Chinese leadership, the Wall Street Journal reports.
China is constructing more than half of all the new buildings in the world, Paulson says, and buildings account for 40% of global greenhouse-gas emissions. As the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitter, China could help to significantly reduce worldwide emissions if it upgrades its building codes.
“There’s nothing else I could do in the U.S. and have that kind of impact,” Paulson told the Journal. Paulson, a former head of the Nature Conservancy, recently hosted leading multi-national business executives at a Beijing hotel along with leaders of State Grid Corp., a gigantic monopoly power distributor, and China State Construction Engineering Corp. to discuss ways to reduce China’s greenhouse gas impact.
Some 100 million rural workers in China are expected to move to cities before 2020, keeping demand for new construction strong.
(http://www.wsj.com/articles/hank-paulson-targets-climate-change-via-chinas-building-codes-1415776456)
Related Stories
Codes and Standards | Jan 3, 2022
Controversial California solar power incentive proposal would reduce subsidies
Plan intended to encourage customers to install power storage systems.
Codes and Standards | Jan 3, 2022
New York City bans new gas hookups
Applies to gas stoves, boilers, and heaters in new buildings and buildings that undergo gut renovations.
Codes and Standards | Jan 3, 2022
New engineering guide on fire safety for very tall buildings released
Topics include emergency egress, fire resistance, building envelope, suppression, detection, alarms, and smoke control.
Codes and Standards | Dec 22, 2021
Updated ASCE 7-22 standard includes first-ever criteria for tornado-resistant design
New document provides up-to-date, coordinated loading provisions for general structural design.
Codes and Standards | Dec 21, 2021
Outdated and redundant building codes plague St. Louis area development
Region’s combined codes nearly double the length of the IRS Code.
Digital Twin | Dec 20, 2021
Groups ally to advance augmented reality and digital twin technology
AREA and Digital Twin Consortium to work on improving how technology components interoperate.
Codes and Standards | Dec 20, 2021
Tension rises in California over state’s push to build more housing
Attorney general hints at lawsuits against cities that don’t comply with zoning reform.
Codes and Standards | Dec 17, 2021
Tension rises in California over state’s push to build more housing
Attorney general hints at lawsuits against cities that don’t comply with zoning reform.
Codes and Standards | Dec 16, 2021
Home builders defeat proposed Oklahoma energy conservation code upgrade
Builders cite high home prices for opposition.
Codes and Standards | Dec 16, 2021
Laws and regulations complicate growth of community solar gardens
New projects stymied by utility resistance and legislative restrictions.
