@ThouArtThat
especially in China. There are also other factors that can ameliorate global warming. I'm confident that human ingenuity can surmount the difficulties once it puts its mind to it. (Another factor is food production. In the United States, there is a lot of food waste. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, food waste makes up approximately 30% to 40% of the food supply.)

What the 2021 China Wind Power Boom Means for the World
04 February 2022

Wind power in China is booming, according to data from last year. Offshore wind saw a 16.9 gigawatt (GW) increase in capacity, greater than every other country combined in the past five years. On top of that, China brought online an extra 30.67 GW of onshore wind energy. Together with solar power, China lays out a clear blueprint for pursuing a net-zero future. So, what’s stopping other countries if the most carbon-intensive economy can do it?

Renewable Energy in China – Solar Power, Wind Power Capacity and Offshore Wind Turbines

China’s renewable energy boom is making headlines. Its solar power capacity, for example, by the end of 2021, reached 306 GW, with a record 54.9 GW added just last year. China is planning to expand its offshore wind capacity in the coming years. In total, solar and wind now account for 635 GW of power, making up 26.7% of China’s total national capacity. This energy capacity is expected to increase to 1,200 GW by 2030. Yet, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), China will meet this target four years earlier—if current speeds are consistent. China’s wind power capacity has increased beyond expectations, and a lot of power comes from offshore wind turbines.

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Comparing China with Other Countries

China’s efforts towards net-zero carbon dioxide emissions are staggering compared to other countries. For example, China’s solar capacity spree in 2021 saw it build as much in one year as Germany has over its entire history. China’s onshore wind power added in 2021 alone exceeds what the UK, Spain and France have in total. Additionally, the 16.9 GW of offshore wind added trumped the UK’s capacity of 10 GW.

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Today, China has over 80 policies in full force, intended to streamline different areas of the energy market. They address and support issues like clean energy capacity development, sustainable urban planning, technology innovation, green transport and air pollution. China also introduced guidelines to ease power purchase management and launched a Green Development Fund to directly invest in environmental protection, pollution control and ecological restoration projects. The fund will also support the development of green industries, promote green technology R&D and a carbon-free transformation of the economy.

Manufacturing and Capacity Support

China’s vital role in the renewable energy success story is also thanks to its prominent role in manufacturing. From solar panels to electric vehicles (EVs), the capacity to manufacture on such an enormous scale has been a pillar for its success.

Today, China owns nine out of the thirteen biggest solar module manufacturing companies globally. Meanwhile, it takes seven out of the top ten spots for wind turbine manufacturers. China’s EV market is also nothing to baulk at, and it already has the globe’s largest EV market. In the coming years, this EV dominance is expected to grow and be larger than Germany, the US, Japan, France and South Korea combined.
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China Unveils its First Long-Term Hydrogen Plan
March 28, 2022

On March 23, the Chinese government released the country’s first-ever long-term plan for hydrogen, covering the period of 2021–2035. The plan laid out a phased approach to developing a domestic hydrogen industry and mastering technologies and manufacturing capabilities, while pointing to the country’s carbon peaking and neutrality commitments as an overarching driver.

The long-term plan builds on hydrogen-related visions and plans in several recent documents, including the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021–2025), where hydrogen is identified as a “frontier” area and one of the six industries for focused advancement. China is increasingly cultivating the production and consumption of lower-emission hydrogen to help meet energy needs while also decarbonizing its economy.

China’s push for clean hydrogen is an important step in the country’s stride toward its climate goals. China is the largest producer of hydrogen today, at about 33 million tons (Mt), where most of the volume is produced from fossil fuels as feedstocks in refineries or chemical facilities. The China Hydrogen Alliance has suggested that China’s hydrogen demand would reach 35 Mt in 2030 (at least 5 percent of the Chinese energy supply) and 60 Mt in 2050 (10 percent). Meanwhile, according to the latest government plan, China would produce 100,000 to 200,000 tons of renewable-based hydrogen annually and have a fleet of 50,000 hydrogen-fueled vehicles by 2025. Today, China is already the third-largest fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEV) market and the first for fuel cell trucks and buses in the world. Using low-carbon sources to produce hydrogen and using clean hydrogen in various industrial sectors would help mitigate China’s carbon emissions. For example, the Chinese government estimates that its 2025 target for renewable-based hydrogen could reduce the country’s carbon emissions by one to two million tons annually.
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China builds up world’s largest ultra-low emission thermal power plant cluster
Aug 23, 2022

China has built up the largest ultra-low emission thermal power plant cluster globally thanks to the efforts and investments made in environmental technologies and policies, with related technologies leading the way globally, the country's environment authority said on Tuesday.

China's ultra-low emission thermal power plants and large-scale waste incineration facilities are global leaders in cutting edge technology. The country's ultra-low emission thermal power plants have become the world's largest such cluster, Zhou Shoumin, director at the Department of Science, Technology, and Finance under China's Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE), said at the ministry's monthly press conference on Tuesday.
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By the end of 2021, China had about 1.03 billion kW of coal-fired power units that had achieved ultra-low emission status, accounting for 93 percent of the country's total installed coal power capacity, according to the China Electricity Council in July.
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In 2021, the operational income of the environmental protection industry reached about 2.18 trillion yuan ($318 billion), he said.

China has announced that it will strive to reach peak carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. In the latest efforts, this month, nine ministries and national departments jointly published a plan on scientifically and technologically supporting the country's dual carbon goals.

#14.1.1
Hi Ovals,

The way I phrase this is that solar panels and wind turbines are insufficient to operate western industrial society at present scale and scope. In other words we either reduce per capita consumption with present world population or we reduce present world population.

As to the mix of energy sources, if nothing changes (capitalism continues unchecked), all energy sources will be used to depletion. And once fossil fuels become economically nonviable, all other sources will also become economically nonviable because solar panels and wind turbines require fossil fuels to mine, manufacture and distribute. No fossil fuels, no wind turbines and solar panels.

Based on human history and observation, this human suspects that humanity will continue to use energy without regard to the consequences. And then, sometime in the foreseeable future, western industrial civilization will collapse due to its own complexity and reliance on energy sources that have run dry (no longer economically viable).