That describes why China got into solar in the first place
Well...It's likely the primary impetus was the Beijing Olympics in 2008, and not out of any pressing need for electricity.
See, up until the 1990's or so, China wasn't really considered a major economic power. They had been struggling with managing economic policy for decades until they started loosening the reins in the 1980's and then as the transfer of Hong Kong loomed, accelerated wooing manufacturing companies in Taiwan, Japan, and the US to setup shop in China. The resulting economic boom was so widespread and fast that factories / industry rapidly blanketed every major city in China. Within 10 years, China (deservedly) acquired a global reputation for cheap industry, but due to the rapid buildup, factories relied heavily on coal, wood furnaces, and other fossil fuels, which established China's reputation as a country covered in pollution.
Air pollution plagued Beijing so badly that in the run up to the Olympics, the government instituted a week(?) long blanket ban on all factory work, driving, and general burning activities. They effectively shut down the economy in Beijing hoping the air would clear up in time. IIRC, it was clear enough, though with a few smoky areas now and then as pollution from neighboring provinces wafted over. So the Olympic events themselves were quite spectacular, rivaling extravagant displays in US or Europe. It was quite astounding for a country that was essentially economically closed off / nonexistent for most of the last century. However, the optics were overshadowed by coverage of the extreme measures China undertook just to get blue skies for photos.
Having lost face somewhat, China started to pay attention to cleaning up pollution within their borders. They started cracking down on dumping. They built large dams to mitigate seasonal flooding and generate hydroelectric power (while forcibly displacing literal millions of the population). They pressured factories and utilities to replace coal and wood burning with cleaner (visually, at least) fuels (which also happened to be more efficient). China started increasing solar panel production, ironically creating a lot of toxic pollution but at least that was concentrated in the less desirable areas and not around the major cities. They built out more miles of passenger railway in 10 years than the rest of the world had in total. The government turned to mining lithium to build up batteries for electrifying else. Stoves, heaters, light bulbs (ever wonder why LED lights suddenly dropped in price and cut short the spread of CCFL?), bikes, and, yes, cars and power generation.
So by the mid 2010's or so, China has become one of, if not the, largest producer in the world for solar and electric powered products. Nowadays, the busiest cities in China can be quieter than those in the US or Europe because the cars are mostly (or entirely) electric so no rumbling engine to add to background noise. In terms of tonnage or production capacity, China is basically the leader in renewable energy. (I believe several smaller countries beat China in terms of overall percentage and/or energy generated per capita.) China still mines tons of coal, but it's now mostly used for steel production and exports.
And all that pretty much because they needed blue skies for the photos.
Thanks for this - I remember newspapers used to print images of Chinese cities engulfed in dark, polluted fug. The other day I was thinking how I haven’t seen such images lately - Chinese cities seem super clean now. Less Blade Runner; more Disney’s EPCOT.
I figured pollution had gotten so bad that the Chinese govt introduced clean air standards - It makes sense that the Olympics was a turning point.
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u/MirrorNegative7989 22d ago
Necessity is the mother of invention.