Module 2: China’s environmental journey

Module 2: China’s environmental journey

China’s extraordinary economic development since the 1980s came with extreme environmental costs. Air, water and soil pollution – as well as soaring carbon emissions and ecological destruction – were witnessed across the country during these years of rapid development. In 2014, 81% of coastal waters were classified as “highly contaminated” by China’s State Oceanic Administration. By 2013, Beijing was enduring average air pollution levels that we…