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Clean Tech On Agenda As Chinese Officials Visit Washington State

AP

When Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in the Seattle area tomorrow, one of his first stops will be a forum focusing specifically on clean technology and economic development.  Five U.S. governors are also expected to attend, along with six Chinese governors and other officials. 

On the agenda will be the question of what can be done with emerging clean energy technologies to add not just to commerce but also to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions that cause air pollution and contribute to climate change.

Keith Phillips is Governor Inslee’s Special Assistant for Climate and Energy.  He says it was mostly the Chinese delegation that put this topic forward as one to emphasize during the visit.

“Where they live, in very heavily populated and dense cities in China, where they’ve seen the pollution with their own eyes and had to cover their mouths and can’t see the sky – and I’ve experienced that myself having visited several major cities in China – they know they have a problem that they want to solve. And clean energy helps them solve that problem, first hand and immediately,” Phillips said.

He says some of the Chinese governors and leaders coming who will be at the table Tuesday are leaders of big urban areas, where they’ve recognized the need to do this and are actively pursuing it so that they can improve the conditions in their own cities.

Some observers predict the forum could produce some kind of accord demonstrating on a local level that people and businesses are ready to tackle climate change and meet targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.  In the past, such local agreements have helped spur those on the federal level, and with big United Nations climate talks coming up in Paris later this year, they say sending a message from Seattle could be important. Should such an accord to come to pass, firms specializing in clean technology stand to benefit.

The commerce and exchange that takes place between the US and China is not just a one-way street, according to the head of the Washington state China relations board, Kristi Heim.

“Trade can go both ways, the ideas are going both ways,” she said. Heim notes, for example, that Seattle and Shenzhen signed a partnership recently on ways to work together and exchange ideas around developing clean and green energy technology. And Shenzhen now has more electric vehicle charging stations than any other city in the world.  So Heim wants to know what we could learn from what they’re doing.

“It’s not just us exporting ideas and technology – as we pursue modern and sustainable cities,” She said. “I think there’s ample opportunity to learn from each other.”

Bellamy Pailthorp covers the environment for KNKX with an emphasis on climate justice, human health and food sovereignty. She enjoys reporting about how we will power our future while maintaining healthy cultures and livable cities. Story tips can be sent to bpailthorp@knkx.org.