Next Winter Olympics could be powered by renewable energy

Air quality concerns were raised for the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing, where air quality has at times been below levels considered healthy by the World Health Organization. Beijing’s air pollution levels continue to raise public health concerns. During the signing of a memorandum of understanding, Adnan Amin, the director-general of the International Renewable Energy Agency, said that China as a whole has made steady progress with its renewable energy aims.

“From renewable energy adoption to technological innovation – China is emerging as a leader of the new energy economy and a key factor in energy transformation,” he said in a statement.

The memorandum signed with the IRENA calls for a “low-carbon” zone in Zhangjiakou, with Olympic facilities drawing on renewable energy. For the four years ending in 2016, Chinese solar energy incorporation has increased by a factor of 10. The nation as a whole plans to invest at least $350 billion on renewable over the next two years.

“The pursuit of a low-carbon Winter Olympics in 2022 will not only support China’s ambition to lower harmful emissions, but it will also see them pioneer a movement towards the cost-effective decarburization of the world’s greatest spectacles,” Amin added.