Global Warming in China: New Documentation
China
is the rousing giant of global warming. It stands as a developing
nation outside the guidelines of the Kyoto treaty, yet with more
than one billion people and a huge energy-gobbling economy, it
is one of the most influential countries in climate change. It
is first in coal consumption and the number two nation in carbon
dioxide emissions behind the United States. Many of its cities
are thick with air pollution and large regions are beset with
drought, failing crops and sandstorms linked to global warming.
China's leaders remain fixed on rapid development and increasing
energy use, yet the first steps are being taken toward emissions
control and alternative energy. These few photos represent the
first attempt by World View of Global Warming to bring China into
focus among all the other effects documented. More information
and photos will be added soon.
Capitol Steel Mill, the largest polluter and emitter in Beijing, dominates the west side of the city.
Beijing's center is a metropolis to rival New York and London, and automobile use is increasing rapidly
Most rural folk make their own briquettes for heating from pulverized coal from local coal mines.
Coal is also used to power hundreds of power plants and thousands of trucks are constantly delivering the fuel.
Air pollution, smoke and smog are a constant presence in many cities.
Residents near power plants and industrial sites face poor air quality.
Global warming has been implicated by Chinese scientists in a drought that helped spread forest fires.
In northern Guangdong, farmers who had good wells now must carry water past dried up fish ponds
Water tables are dropping in Guangdong province, forcing residents to use water direct from polluted rivers.
Glaciers across Western China and the Tibetan Plateau are shrinking, threatening more water shortages
Gary Braasch is indebted to guides and assistance from Greenpeace, Green Volunteers, Conservation International, and NRDC -- and is very grateful for the time generously given to his work by all those he worked with in China.
Photographs from the World View of Global Warming are available for license to publications needing science photography, environmental groups and agencies, and other uses. Stock photography and assignments available.
Please contact requestinformation@worldviewofglobalwarming.org or Gary Braasch Photography (503) 699-6666.
Use of photographs in any manner, in part or whole, without permission is prohibited by US copyright law. These photographs are registered with the US Copyright Office and are not in the Public Domain.
