Abstract
While the world is going through tremendous changes brought about by informatization, China is also undergoing rapid development driven by urbanization and industrialization, as if it is taking a high-speed train. In the past over 30 years, China has achieved development in economy, society and ecological environment which took advanced economies centuries to achieve. In such a compressed period, the living environment, living conditions and consumption patterns of Chinese residents have also undergone unprecedented changes.
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Notes
- 1.
The earliest record of water wheel is probably found in the Mediterranean region or Greece. In China, water wheel has been used for grain production since the Han dynasty. See Oleson, J. P. (1984). Greek and Roman mechanical water-lifting devices: the history of a technology. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
- 2.
See World Energy Outlook 2016 issued by the International Energy Agency.
- 3.
For application of such data, see Overview of researches based on DMSP/OLS nighttime light data. Wang, H. R., Zheng, X. Q. & Yuan, T. (2012). Overview of researches based on DMSP/OLS nighttime light data. Progress in Geography, 31(1), 11–18.
- 4.
For multiple effects of solid fuels on the impoverished population, please refer to the report of World Health Organization (WHO), Fuel for life: household energy and health, 2006.
- 5.
According to the latest estimation of WHO, in 2013, there was still 45% of Chinese population using solid fuels. 14% of its urban population use solid fuels and 79% of its rural population use solid fuels. See WHO: Global health observatory data repository, public health and environment-household air pollution-exposure.
- 6.
Countries falling into this cluster have high income and low energy consumption. As shown in Fig. 13, the energy consumption per capita is less than 3,000 kg of oil equivalent in Italy and less than 4,000 kg of oil equivalent in Germany, while both countries enjoy higher income per capita. So, Italy and Germany both fall into this cluster.
- 7.
Finland has a high GDP per capita of nearly USD40,000 and high energy consumption. So, theoretically, it falls into the cluster of countries with high income and high energy consumption.
- 8.
For research on differences in energy consumption, further information can be obtained from: Sun, J.W. (1998) Changes in energy consumption and energy intensity: a complete decomposition model. In: Energy Economics 1998, 20(1): 85–100; Ang, B.W., Zhang, F.Q. (2000) A survey of index decomposition analysis in energy and environmental studies. In: Energy 25(12): 1149–1176.
- 9.
For more information about the effect of urbanization on demand for energy, please refer to: Glaeser, E. (2011) Cities, productivity, and quality of life. In: Science 333(6042): 592–594; Wei, C. (2017) Will urbanization increase residential energy demand-a literature review. In: Economic Theory and Business Management V36(1): 95–109.
- 10.
Thackeray, F. & Findling, J. (2015). Events that changed Great Britain since 1689 (Shi, L. Trans.) Beijing: New World Press (original work published in 2002).
- 11.
For the definition and explanation of energy Internet: Rifkin, J. (2012) The third industrial revolution (Zhang, T.W. & Sun, Y.N. Trans.) Beijing: CITIC Press.
- 12.
For more on this idea, please refer to: Rifkin, J. (2014) The zero marginal cost society the internet of things, the collaborative commons, & the eclipse of capitalism (CCID experts group, Trans.) Beijing: CITIC Press.
- 13.
While calculating the rural residential energy consumption expenditure, the accessible firewood and charcoal are converted based on market price (It is possible that the rural residents collect such energy for free and do not have to pay).
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© 2019 China Renmin University Press and Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
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Wu, S., Wang, D., Hu, J., Wei, C. (2019). Research Background and Main Conclusions. In: Zheng, X., Wei, C. (eds) Household Energy Consumption in China: 2016 Report. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-7523-1_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-7523-1_1
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