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Wind turbines, solar panels, electric coaches… China wants to show its ecological goodwill at the Olympic Games. But one month before the start of the tests, all means are good to make people forget that the country is the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases.
On paper, China has pledged to offer a more environmentally friendly Winter Olympics than these great sports masses usually are. But despite the promises of the organizers, the Olympic fortnight (from February 4 to 20) in the Chinese capital will have a significant ecological cost.
The use of water, “an aberration”
Artificial snow has been used as a supplement for the Olympic Games since those of Lake Placid, in the United States, in 1980, and those of 2022 will be totally dependent on it, Beijing being a territory known for its winter drought. So, to remedy a climate that is unlikely to comply with the international sports agenda, around 185 million liters of water will be used to cover the slopes with artificial snow.
“Organizing the Olympics in this region is an aberration, it’s irresponsible”, summarizes the geographer Carmen de Jong, from the University of Strasbourg, while Beijing already has only 300 cubic meters of water per year and per inhabitant, less than a third of the supply recommended by UN standards . The organizers assure that the water used will not contain chemicals and will naturally penetrate the ground when it melts.
Above all, in the longer term, the country’s authorities want to encourage 300 million Chinese to take up winter sports, which was one of Beijing’s arguments for applying to host the 2022 edition of the Olympic Games: these activities risk to put even more pressure on the water resources of the capital and its surroundings.
The source of electricity: forget about coal
The energy consumed during the events will be entirely of renewable origin, promise the organizers. And Beijing is thinking big: the wind turbines installed in Zhangjiakou, the city that co-organizes the Olympics, more than 180 kilometers northwest of the capital, can produce 14 million kilowatts. Approximately the same power as a small state like Singapore.
Added to this are the solar panels that cover the surrounding mountains, and represent an additional capacity of 7 million kilowatts. These different facilities are connected to a distribution center, to which the Olympic venues will be connected. This allows China to announce that the food for the Games will only be of renewable origin. While making people forget that at the national level, the country still depends on two-thirds of coal for its electricity production.
Air pollution: Beijing breathes better, not the rest of the country
On the side of the sky, it was also necessary to clear the way before the arrival of the international sports delegations. To ensure breathable air, coal stoves have been replaced by electric or gas heating systems in 25 million homes in Beijing and surrounding areas. Steel mills in the region were ordered to halve production last August and tens of thousands of factories had to pay fines for exceeding emission limits. Result: air quality has undeniably improved in Beijing. The city only recorded ten days of high air pollution in 2020, compared to 43 in 2015, according to the environment ministry.
But the rest of the country continues to suffocate under the fine particles, which regularly exceed the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO). “The lesson of the Olympics [d’été] of 2008 is that moving polluting industries out of Beijing is not enough to guarantee a lasting improvement in air quality,” commented Greenpeace in 2015.
Transport: the impact of domestic flights
As the mountains hosting the sporting events are distant from the capital, Beijing has built a high-speed train line to reach the ski slopes and other Olympic sites. Hundreds of coaches will also make the connection to transport the athletes and accompanying staff. According to the Chinese organisers, 85% of the vehicles used for these Olympic Games will run on electricity or hydrogen.
Nevertheless, the ecological cost of air transport will be greatly reduced compared to the previous Olympic Games. Covid obliges, only spectators residing in China will be able to attend the Games. Which still makes 1.4 billion potential travellers.
