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The authorities will introduce an ambitious program to combat climate change at the provincial level, with financial and technological support from the United Nations and Norway.
"It is the first time that the country (China) will launch a pilot program to encourage local governments to face the issue and take practical measures," Shen Yiyang, an expert from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) who is working on the project, said.
Shen said the project will cover provinces and autonomous regions that are sensitive to climate change, such as Qinghai, Tibet and Ningxia, as well as fossil-fuel-intensive provinces and autonomous regions like Shanxi, Liaoning, Inner Mongolia and Hebei.
Under the project, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and UNDP will set up a diagnosis system for each pilot province or autonomous region to analyze the effects of climate change as well as opportunities for mitigation.
And it is expected that efforts to adapt to climate change could eventually be included into local development plans in pilot areas, Shen said.
"At present, few people in China are fully aware of the severe problems caused by climate change, let alone the need to map out long-term contingency plans, monitor greenhouse gas emissions or collect related information," Shen said.
For example, on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, where glaciers are melting because of the rising temperatures, river runoff has increased, posing a threat to the country's water supply.
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