China Climate Cooperation Affirmative SLUDL/NAUDL CORE FILES
Summary/Glossary
Climate Change Affirmative
Climate Change Affirmative
Summary
Glossary
GW 1AC (4 Min Vsn) (1/5)
GW 1AC (Short Vsn) (1/7)
GW 1AC (Long Vsn) (1/10)
Science Diplomacy Extensions
Yes Climate Change is happening Extensions
Answers to: Climate Science is Biased
Answers to: Paris Agreement Fails
Answers to: It’s too little change
Chinese Emissions Key to Climate
Climate Impact – Comparatively Bigger
Climate Change hurts Agriculture
Answers To: CO2 helps Agriculture
Climate Change kills Biodiversity
Climate Change causes War
Climate Change destroys Economy
Answers to: US must reduce emissions
Answers to: No Chinese Enforcement
Answers to: China can’t reduce emissions
Summary
In 2012, China and the U.S. are the two largest greenhouse gas emitters in the world and accounted for over 35% of global emissions. Cooperation between the two over climate change is critical to any successful approach to deal with global warming. The U.S. currently fears that economic concerns will prevent China from having an agenda focused on global warming.
The climate change advantage argues that if steps are not taken now to control carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions then the earth will heat up 8 degrees Fahrenheit which would cause devastating changes to the earth. That much heat would collapse ecosystems as well as make the earth unlivable for civilizations. Uncontrolled emissions cause warming because about 44% of CO2 released in the air stays there for a century or longer. Because of atmospheric transportation* CO2 envelopes the earth, like a blanket by trapping heat given off by the Earth’s surface and the atmosphere.
It is believed that by decreasing demand for and consumption of fossil fuels, there will also be a decrease in the release of carbon emissions; since China and the U.S. are the biggest world contributors to these emissions, any effort that does not involve the two countries will not affect emission enough to make a difference. Hence, the affirmative offers green technology as a means of cooperating on decarbonization. This green technology transfer incentivizes China because it creates an agenda for climate change while not interfering with their focus on growing their economy. Aside from bilateral cooperation on fixing climate issues, the plan creates a larger form of transparency between the U.S and China that makes for an easier transition to cleaner energy sources.
In addition, there is a Science Diplomacy advantage that highlights the importance of cooperation of U.S and China in areas like science has in other areas like how their militaries interact. This is especially important in the South China Sea, a region that many experts predict could be a source for conflicts in the near future. If cooperation occurs over the environment it will decrease the tensions rising from China’s expansion in the South China Sea. Furthermore, this model of cooperation creates a form of diplomacy between the U.S. and China that allows for better decision making, peace keeping, and global climate cooperation.
*Atmospheric transportation is the movement of pollutants caused by a time-averaged wind flow
China Climate Cooperation Affirmative SLUDL/NAUDL CORE FILES
Summary/Glossary
Glossary
Atmospheric transportation- is the movement of pollutants caused by a time-averaged wind flow
Anthropogenic- environmental harm originating from human activity
Biodiversity- the variety of life in the world or in a particular habitat or ecosystem.
Biosphere- the regions of the surface, atmosphere, and hydrosphere of the earth
Climate Change- a change in the distribution of weather patterns that last over an extended period of time
COP 21- UN negotiations aimed to achieve a legally binding and universal agreement on climate
Decarbonization- the reduction of carbon (gaseous compounds) from the Earth’s atmosphere
Emissions- air pollutants
Existential- relating to existence, often used to describe the nature of a danger to the existence of the planet or the human species.
Global Warming- the calculation of the rise in the temperature of the Earth’s climate system
Green Energy- or renewable energy come from natural sources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, plants, algae and geothermal heat.
Greenhouse Gas (GHG)-a gas that contributes to the greenhouse effect by absorbing infrared radiation
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)- group formed by the United Nations to assess the state of scientific knowledge about the human role in climate change.
Paris Agreement- an agreementwithin the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) governing greenhouse gases emissions mitigation
China Climate Cooperation Affirmative SLUDL/NAUDL CORE FILES
First Affirmative Constructive
GW1AC (4 MinVsn) (1/5)
Contention one—Inherency-Although the United States and China have taken action to address global climate change, much work remains to be done.
Aldy, et al 2016 (Joseph, Associate Professor of Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School. “Bilateral Cooperation between China and the United States: Facilitating Progress on Climate-Change Policy.” Harvard Project on Climate Agreements, February. )
China and the United States, the two largest greenhouse gas (GHG) emitters in the world, together accounted for 35% of global GHG emissions in 2012. While there are major socioeconomic and political differences between the two countries, it is widely acknowledged that action by China and the United States is necessary for the world to effectively address global climate change. Cooperation between China and the United States with regard to climate change was one important factor in the success of the Twenty-First Conference of the Parties (COP-21) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). At COP-21, in Paris in December 2015, a major new international agreement to address climate change was concluded. For most purposes, the agreement will begin to be implemented in 2020.3
Domestic social, economic, and political changes have helped shape the manner in which China and the United States are dealing with climate change—using domestic policy (that is, a “bottom up” approach), in addition to working through the UNFCCC. As the Chinese society and economy have entered a new epoch, the significance of low-carbon development and energy-structure transformation have begun to draw attention. Under such circumstances, climate policy is regarded as a key strategy to encourage manufacturing industries to upgrade their technologies and improve energy efficiency.
Since 2013, China has been addressing climate problems raised in the Twelfth Five-Year Plan: implementing the action plan for controlling greenhouse gas emissions, adjusting the industrial structure, saving energy, increasing energy efficiency, optimizing energy infrastructure, increasing carbon sinks, adapting to climate change, and increasing institutional capacity. As a result of these actions—and of industrial modernization and structural changes in the economy—carbon dioxide emissions per unit of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2013 were 4.3 percent lower than in 2012, and 28.6 percent lower than in 2005.
Also, energy consumption per unit of GDP was reduced by 3.7 percent in 2013 (as compared with 2012). In the first three years of the Twelfth Five-Year Plan period (2011-2013), energy consumption per unit of GDP was reduced by 9 percent; the equivalent of approximately 350 million tons coal equivalent was saved—that is, a reduction of more than 840 MtCO2 (million tons of carbon dioxide). These measures also bring collateral benefits in reducing air pollution in urban areas, which has become a significant threat to public health.
In the United States, the Obama Administration has taken several executive actions under existing statutory authority (primarily the Clean Air Act) that either have the immediate purpose of reducing GHG emissions or incidentally have that effect. In addition, the state of California, which by some measures would have the world’s eighth largest economy if it were a country,4 has implemented an ambitious, nearly economy-wide GHG emissions trading system (ETS) and other policies to reduce emissions.
Finally, the development and deployment of hydraulic fracturing technologies has very significantly increased the supply— and lowered the price—of natural gas in the United States, with the result that gas is replacing coal as the primary fuel for a significant portion of electricity generation. Since natural gas produces roughly half as much CO2 per unit of combustion heat compared to coal, this has led to a significant reduction in U.S. power-sector GHG emissions.5 On November 12, 2014, immediately following the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in Beijing, Presidents Xi Jinping and Barack Obama jointly announced their intentions to reduce each country’s CO2 emissions. In the announcement, the two governments also pledged to expand ongoing collaboration to develop and demonstrate clean-energy and carbon-capture-and-storage technologies; advance previous collaboration to reduce emissions of hydrofluorocarbons, a group of gases with very high warming potential; share best practices on low-carbon cities; and promote trade in “green goods.”6
The announcement states that China’s CO2 emissions would peak by “around 2030” (earlier, if possible) and China would “make best efforts” to increase the contribution from non-fossil sources to 20% of total energy consumption by the same year. The United States would cut economy-wide GHG emissions by 26% to 28% below the 2005 level by 2025and would make “best efforts” to hit the high end of this range. The commitments in this China–U.S. bilateral announcement were included in nearly the same form in the Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) the two countries submitted to the UNFCCC in 2015, in preparation for COP-21 in Paris.7 (INDCs are the voluntary [“nationally-determined”] commitments that countries submitted for inclusion in the Paris Agreement.)8
China and the United States made a second joint announcement on September 25, 2015.9 In this statement, the two countries agreed to work together to ensure an ambitious international agreement in Parisin December 2015, enhance bilateral and multilateral cooperation on climate change, and advance domestic climate action in each country. China, among other things, announced plans to implement a national emissions trading system in 2017, provide significant financial support for climate action in developing countries, and lower carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP by 60% to 65% from the 2005 level by 2030. The United States, among other things, announced intentions to finalize its implementation approach for the Clean Power Plan in 2016 and finalize regulations for improved fuel efficiency in heavyduty trucks.10 Given that China and the United States are the world’s two largest GHG emitters; the momentum that already exists with respect to bilateral cooperation on climate change and clean energy technologies;11 and the completion of the Paris Agreement at COP-21—it is important to explore opportunities for and challenges to furthering this cooperation. Among other reasons, much work remains to be done to elaborate the Paris Agreement over the next five years—to specify rules, procedures, and guidelines for the various elements of the accord. China-U.S. collaboration will continue to be very important during this preparatory phase. More generally—beyond the UNFCCC process—it is important to explore how China–U.S. cooperation can facilitate multilateral cooperation in global efforts to address climate change.
GW 1AC (4 MinVsn) (2/5)
Contention Two is Climate Change is real and caused by humans. Now is time to make efforts toward reducing climate change in order to avoid catastrophe
Gillis, 2015, Justin Gillis, Winner Oakes Award for Distinguished Environmental Journalism, New York Times reporter, "Short Answers to Hard Questions About Climate Change", New York Times, 11-28-2015,
1. How much is the planet heating up?1.7 degrees is actually a significant amount.As of October 2015, the Earth had warmed by about 1.7 degrees Fahrenheit since 1880, when records begin at a global scale. That figure includes the surface of the ocean. The warming is greater over land, and greater still in the Arctic and parts of Antarctica.The number may sound low, but as an average over the surface of an entire planet, it is actually high, which explains why much of the world’s land ice is starting to melt and the oceans are rising at an accelerating pace.The heat accumulating in the Earth because of human emissions is roughly equal to the heat that would be released by 400,000 Hiroshima atomic bombs exploding across the planet every day.Scientists believe most and probably all of the warming since 1950 was caused by the human release of greenhouse gases. If emissions continue unchecked, they say the global warming could ultimately exceed 8 degrees Fahrenheit, which would transform the planet and undermine its capacity to support a large human population.2. How much trouble are we in?For future generations, big trouble.The risks are much greater over the long run than over the next few decades, but the emissions that create those risks are happening now. Over the coming 25 or 30 years, scientists say, the climate is likely to resemble that of today, although gradually getting warmer. Rainfall will be heavier in many parts of the world, but the periods between rains will most likely grow hotter and therefore drier. The number of hurricanes and typhoons may actually fall, but the ones that do occur will draw energy from a hotter ocean surface, and therefore may be more intense, on average, than those of the past. Coastal flooding will grow more frequent and damaging.Longer term, if emissions continue to rise unchecked, the risks are profound.Scientists fear climate effects so severe that they might destabilize governments, produce waves of refugees, precipitate the sixth mass extinction of plants and animals in Earth’s history, and melt the polar ice caps, causing the seas to rise high enough to flood most of the world’s coastal cities.All of this could take hundreds or even thousands of years to play out, conceivably providing a cushion of time for civilization to adjust, but experts cannot rule out abrupt changes, such as a collapse of agriculture, that would throw society into chaos much sooner. Bolder efforts to limit emissions would reduce these risks, or at least slow the effects, but it is already too late to eliminate the risks entirely.
GW 1AC (4 MinVsn) (3/5)
Thus, We offer the following Plan: The United States federal government should substantially increase its engagement on decarbonizationwith the People’s Republic of China.
GW 1AC (4 MinVsn) (4/5)
Contention Three is Solvency –
1. US & Chinese cooperative action towards deep decarbonization is a necessary and effective step to resolve global climatechange.
Teng & Williams, 15
FeiTeng: Associate professor in the Institute of Energy, Environment, and Economy at Tsinghua University. He is also a lead author of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report, Working Group III. Jim Williams: Director of the Deep Decarbonization Pathways Project for the U.N. Sustainable Development Solutions Network, headquartered at the Earth Institute, Columbia University. “What Would New Breakthroughs on Climate Change Mean for the U.S.-China Relationship? A ChinaFile Conversation” ChinaFile
A vital step going forward is a commitment by both countries to develop detailed long-term low-carbon transition plans. Deep emissions reductions require changes in the physical infrastructure and equipment that produce and use energy. Because the economic lifetimes of many key elements in the energy system—power plants, buildings, industrial boilers, freight trucks—are decades long, decisions made today have emissions consequences far into the future. A long-term plan that takes infrastructure inertia into account is an essential point of reference for all aspects of an effective climate strategy, from short-term policy to R&D priorities to sending the right signals to businesses and investors. Transparent sharing of such plans between countries is essential for trust-building and problem-solving. A model for this effort can be seen in the Deep Decarbonization Pathways Project (DDPP), an international collaboration among research teams from the sixteen highest-emitting countries, including the U.S. and China. The researchers—many of whom are key advisors to policy makers—have developed blueprints for sector-by-sector changes in their own countries’ energy systems out to the year 2050 needed to reduce emissions to a level consistent with limiting global warming to 2°C or less. These “deep decarbonization pathways,” which incorporate national goals for development and economic growth, provide clear insight into the physical changes, technologies, and investment that climate protection will ultimately require, and are a necessary complement to the prevailing focus on short-term policies and incremental reductions. Open sharing of these findings has already expanded the global knowledge base on what meaningful climate mitigation entails. For China and the U.S., transparently sharing low carbon transition plans has great value for bilateral cooperation in areas that have already been agreed on but whose implementation details remain fuzzy. For example, it provides an indispensable organizing principle for cooperation at the subnational level, among “early-peaking” cities or between states and provinces such as California and Guangzhou that have signed climate MOUs. For California itself, low carbon pathways studieshave been central to developing its leading-edge climate policies.