China going renewable – but green? Maybe

And, in a serious way. Serious enough that Beijing believes it can catch Europe by 2020, with a fifth of its energy coming from renewables.

And, sometimes, a demand economy, or semi-demand economy, or a demand government, can do certain things. Per the Guardian story, in related green news, China has the ambitious plan of installing 100 million energy-efficient lightbulbs this year alone.

That said, the story doesn’t say how much of the “renewable” energy is from either nuclear power or non-environmental sources like the Three Gorges Dam. And, speaking of demand governments, Beijing can build nuclear plants all it wants.

So, renewable? Perhaps. Green? Perhaps not.