WORLD EXPO 2010: ENVIRONMENTAL FOCUS ON "BETTER CITY, BETTER

UNCLAS SHANGHAI 000148 STATE PASS TO CEQ SUTLEY EPA FOR INTERNATIONAL - KASMAN/GIANNINI-SPOHN USDOC FOR MAC AND MAS USDOE FOR INTERNATIONAL NSC FOR LOI STATE FOR S/SECC-STERN/PERSHING STATE ALSO FOR EAP/CM-HABJAN, EAP/PD-STOLTZ, GALT, AND EMMONS STATE ALSO FOR OES-DAS MIOTKE, OES/EGC, AND OES/ENV STATE ALSO FOR EEB AND ECA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SENV ETRD ENRG TRGY SCUL BEXP CH SUBJECT: WORLD EXPO 2010: ENVIRONMENTAL FOCUS ON "BETTER CITY, BETTER LIFE" REF: 08 SHANGHAI 430 ¶1. SUMMARY: Shanghai officials and event organizers are already touting the "green" focus of Expo 2010, set to open May 1, 2010 and run for six months. With the theme "Better City, Better Life," the Expo will showcase new approaches to urban development, human habitats, lifestyles, and working conditions in an effort to foster an eco-friendly society. Environmental protection and energy conservation are key pillars; the Expo site and facilities will boast technologies such as ecological water purification, rainwater collection and reclamation, solar energy, wind farm technology, geothermal heating, LED lighting, wastewater treatment, and clean energy vehicles. Participating countries and international organizations are also embracing the "green values" of the Expo theme. Although U.S. participation in the Expo is still in limbo, designers of the proposed private-sector U.S. pavilion also plan to emphasize green initiatives. China views the Expo as an opportunity to increase awareness of these green values and, as a follow-on to the 2008 Olympics, to further showcase its rapid growth on the world stage. END SUMMARY. EXPO 2010 BACKGROUND -------------- ¶2. Since the Great Exhibition in London in 1851, World Fairs have served as venues to exhibit innovation and to promote cultural exchange. Shanghai is now taking its turn with Expo 2010, the first such event in a developing country. Over 200 countries and international organizations are expected to participate, with more than 70 million expected visitors (the most in history) over the six-month period from May to October. The Expo 2010 zone itself covers a total area of 5.28 square kilometers of a former shipyard and straddles both sides of the Huangpu River. AN URBAN FOCUS: "BETTER CITY, BETTER LIFE" AND GREEN VALUES -------------- -------------- ¶3. With Shanghai, one of China's richest, most populous and modern cities as host, Expo 2010 will focus on urban life in the 21st century (55 percent of the world population is expected to live in cities by the event's opening). Using the theme "Better City, Better Life," the Expo plans to showcase new approaches to urban development, human habitats, lifestyles, and working conditions in an effort to foster the creation of an eco-friendly society and the furthering of sustainable development. The Shanghai Municipal Government and Expo 2010 organizers are touting the "green" aspects of the event, most recently in the March edition of the Expo Bureau magazine and in a speech by the Bureau's Deputy Director ZHU Yonglei March 24. ¶4. At the March 24 "Networking Party on Cooperation and Collaboration for the World Expo 2010" featuring former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, Deputy Director Zhu discussed plans to recycle the temporary pavilions after the six-month fair and described some of the energy saving and sustainable aspects of various national pavilions. An Australian Consulate representative told the Consul General that his country's pavilion will be completely recycled when the fair ends, more or less paying for the required take-down costs. ¶5. According to the March Expo Bureau magazine, the Expo zone will have a wide variety of facilities to reflect the Expo theme and core "green" values. These installations, on permanent and temporary structures alike, will include facilities for ecological water purification, rainwater collection and reclamation, solar energy, wind farm technology, geothermal heating, LED lighting, wastewater treatment, and clean energy vehicles. The expected 140 Expo and eco-related science and technology projects will have a total investment of CNY 544 million (USD 79.65 million). GREENING OF THE EXPO ALREADY UNDERWAY -------------- ¶6. As with the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Shanghai authorities are developing strategies to ensure that the host city puts its best foot forward for the international community, especially on environmental issues. Shanghai Environmental Protection Bureau (EPB) officials told Econoff that Shanghai faces unique challenges with the Expo that Beijing did not have with the Olympics. The Olympics lasted less than three weeks and therefore drastic measures such as shutting factories could be implemented on a short-term basis without much impact on people's daily lives or the economy. However, with the Expo running for six months, authorities have to find longer-term solutions that will minimize economic and social disruption. For starters, the city government has moved the biggest source of pollution in the downtown area, the Shanghai No. 3 Steel Works, to an industrial park outside of the city. ¶7. As for the Expo site itself, all facilities in the Expo zone are to be constructed according to China's "Green Building Standard." (NOTE: The World Expo Center has already received "China Green Building Certification" and is applying for a U.S. Energy and Environment Design Pioneer Award. END NOTE.) In the "Best Practices Area" of the zone, a model named "Shanghai Eco-House" representing life in 2030 will be built using eco-friendly construction and energy conservation technologies. Because China lacks forest resources, timber will be used only in very limited quantities. Temporary pavilions, including national pavilions, are required to use materials that can be dismantled and reused later. Greenbelts are to cover more than one-tenth of the 5.28 sq km of the Expo zone. TRANSPORTATION - LOW OR EMISSION FREE -------------- ¶8. Eco-friendly transportation is another key aspect of the "green" focus. About 1,000 eco-vehicles will be used to help the Expo zone stay emission-free and to keep the area around the site at low-emission levels as well. Buses powered by dimethyl ether (an organic compound and a clean-burning hydrocarbon fuel) or with super capacitors will be widely used in Shanghai's public transport system. Hydrogen-fuel-cell cars will also be featured prominently. Plans are in the works to use them to transport visitors not only during the Expo, but also after the event to further test the technology's reliability. Similarly, hydrogen refueling stations will be built in areas that are convenient for the Expo as well as other parts of the city to help further the domestic eco-vehicle industry. LIGHTING AND AIR CONDITIONING - KEEPING EXPO BRIGHT AND COOL -------------- -------------- ¶9. Expo zone lighting will make wide use of LED technology. Since East China is home to some of the country's largest solar companies, solar energy will also be utilized in the zone's lighting system. Photovoltaic batteries will be widely used on the roofs and walls of all major Chinese pavilions, with a total scale of more than 4 megawatts. Light-guiding fiber equipment will also be featured, and by using this technology, sunlight will be guided into underground spaces and solar energy will then be stored for use at night. The grid-connected solar PV facilities on the roofs and walls will also serve the backup power systems used for the pavilions in emergency situations. ¶10. Recognizing that Shanghai gets hot in the summer, Expo authorities are designing a series of measures to control temperatures, including building facilities on stilts to maximize air flow, designing natural wind fields, installing sun-shading systems, using special temperature decreasing materials, and cooling a building down by the sprinkling of water. Technology utilizing the Huangpu River as a source for storing heat in the summer and retrieving it in the cooler autumn will be used. Compared with providing heat through fuel gas, this technology could help save energy consumption by 40-60 percent and decrease carbon dioxide emissions by 2,600 tons on an annualized basis in the Expo zone. WASTE AND WATER MANAGEMENT - COLLECTION IS KEY -------------- - ¶11. Waste control will be a large challenge and organizers are hoping to use the "3R" principle (recycle-reduce-reuse) to address this issue. A computer-controlled system to deal with waste in the Expo zone is currently being installed. This system will link 64 trash containers in the core area of the Expo site through fully enclosed underground pipelines. It is the largest such system in China and will be completely automatic, requiring only three operators. At a cost of about CNY 60 million (USD 8.76 million),it will handle approximately 60 of the 160 tons (37.5 percent) of the garbage expected to be produced at the Expo site each day. Additionally, all disposable tableware will be made of pollutant-free biomass materials instead of traditional plastics. ¶12. The Expo zone will use additional eco-friendly technologies, such as rainwater circulation. For example, all four permanent structures (the World Expo Center, Performance Center, Theme Pavilion, and China Pavilion) will be equipped with rain collection and utilization systems. Water used in the zone will mainly come from rain, which will save 1 million cubic meters of tap water annually. THE CHINA PAVILLION. . . -------------- ¶13. German-owned Siemens, via a global partnership with the organizer, is helping to shape the China pavilion as a green landmark. Equipped with Siemens building automation systems, the China Pavilion will make fresh air available to visitors with an estimated 25 percent less energy consumption than traditional buildings. Installing Siemens low/middle-voltage power distribution equipment, the China Pavilion will save about 50 percent of energy, and no harmful gas emissions will be generated due to newly developed insulated materials. The "green" lighting solutions from Siemens Osram will make the China pavilion attractive at night, but also contribute significantly to energy-savings. Other natural purification elements incorporated into the design include natural ventilation, solar technology, and a "China Garden" on the roof. . . . AND THE OTHER PARTICIPANTS. . . -------------- ¶14. Other participating countries and organizations are following suit and employing the latest cutting-edge technology and environmentally friendly practices. Although US participation in the Expo is yet to be confirmed, designers of the proposed private-sector-funded U.S. pavilion also plan to emphasize green initiatives, including a "green roof" complete with bee hives and an urban agriculture zone. Following is a synopsis of eco-friendly aspects of various pavilions from other participants. -- CANADA: The whole building will be wrapped by a special green-leaf plant, with a special rainwater collection system. -- COCA-COLA: Coke's building will be designed to reflect the theme of a "green Expo" and will acquaint visitors with the company's R&D efforts and eco-friendly practices in product packaging, waste water treatment and air protection. -- FINLAND: The pavilion will utilize both green design and green construction. 3D computer models will be used to support the construction as well as proper dismantling and reassembly in the future. -- HAMBURG'S URBAN BEST PRACTICES AREA PAVILION: "Hamburg House" will use recycled energy, be self-sufficient and have zero emissions. Technologies will be used to keep the pavilion cool in summer while warm in autumn without having an air-conditioner. -- JAPAN: Japan's national pavilion will highlight the country's sophisticated technological prowess by creating a "pavilion that breathes." It will also employ layers of ultra-light membranes that can generate electricity. -- NORWAY: With the theme: "Norway Powered by Nature," the pavilion will collect solar energy via a semi-transparent roof. It will be built by using prefabricated laminated wood building kits and bamboo to be shipped from Norway. -- SAIC-GENERAL MOTORS AUTO PAVILION: Brand new sustainable automobile power and transmission systems will be displayed. GM will also show how environmentally friendly, safe, and smart autos in the future will resolve problems such as congestion, air pollution and traffic accidents. -- SWITZERLAND: The pavilion will feature an outside "curtain" made from soybeans and dye-sensitized solar cells that are capable of generating electricity. -- United Nations World Meteorological Organization: As the first meteorological pavilion in the 157-year history of the World Fairs, the United Nations plans a high-tech weather station that will simulate climate cataclysms to urge people to protect the environment. It will offer weather forecasts for the Expo site to visitors through bulletin boards inside the site and to visitors' mobile phones. -- UNITED KINGDON: All materials will be recycled and the whole building will have zero emission. COMMENT -------------- ¶15. World Expos feature a lot of flashes and bangs -- futuristic gadgets that may never be marketable to an average consumer but do point the direction of innovative technology. Expo 2010's focus on green urban development underscores Shanghai's, and China's, increasing recognition of the importance of the environment and people's wellbeing. Participating countries, either through their national pavilions or through multinationals like Siemens hope to use Expo 2010 to showcase their latest technologies to China and the world. Shanghai views Expo 2010 as an opportunity to demonstrate its own commitment to green values. Moreover, as a follow-on to the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China hopes the Expo will promote the country's rapid growth and development into a prominent actor on the world stage. CAMP