More cities pledge greater green efforts

Officials and urban leaders from China and the United States approved a declaration on Wednesday that sets the course for further cooperation between two countries to fight climate change.

The Climate Leaders Declaration was the outcome of the Second China-US Climate-Smart Low-Carbon Cities Summit, during which attendees discussed strategies and practices for fighting climate change, and signed 27 working agreements and memorandums of understanding.

The two countries - the world's largest carbon dioxide emitters - have pledged to take enhanced actions to reduce carbon emissions and increase climate resilience.

According to the declaration, each municipality, county, or region involved pledges to establish or re-establish ambitious and achievable targets and actions to control greenhouse gas emissions, report their greenhouse gas inventories, create a municipal or regional climate action plan to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, and enhance bilateral partnership and cooperation.

Under the declaration, a further 12 Chinese cities pledged to peak their carbon emissions earlier than the national deadline of 2030, joining the 11 cities and provinces that pledged to peak early at the first summit held in Los Angeles in September last year.

Jiang Zhaoli, deputy head of the department of climate change under the National Development and Reform Commission, said that ambitious goals set at municipal levels will be able to facilitate the implementation of the Paris Agreement, in which cooperation at the municipal level is crucial.

Xie Zhenhua, China's chief climate negotiator and former deputy chief of the commission, said he expected the declaration to further advance green and low carbon development in both countries.

"Building on the foundation of the Paris Agreement, the cities summit is another example of how leadership at all levels can help deliver last year's commitments. City leaders are on the frontline of the climate challenge and with strong conviction they can implement solutions that will improve the lives of billions of people and offer a new blueprint for sustainable urbanization worldwide," said Manish Bapna, executive vice-president and managing director of the World Resources Institute.