Pudong New Area is the district with the highest net carbon emissions in the city, while Chongming County has the lowest and also absorbs the most carbon, said a report released by Tongji University yesterday.

Downtown areas have comparatively low carbon-emission rates compared to areas on the outskirts of Shanghai, where most of the city's industry is located.

The city's net carbon emission has risen by an average of 12.97 percent each year for the past three years.

Energy consumption in the city created 65 million tons of net carbon emissions last year. Coal burning and oil consumption are the largest contributors to carbon emissions, accounting for about 70 percent of the total.

The green areas, farmlands and wetlands in rural areas and the green spaces downtown are the city's main carbon absorbers.

According to experts, the city has started to realize the importance of carbon-emission control and energy saving. The amount of carbon released in order to generate GDP has decreased from 0.58 tons per 10,000 yuan in 2006 to last year's 0.55 ton, one of the lowest in the nation, the report said.

However, Shanghai's total net carbon emission and personal net carbon emission still top the nation.

"The increase of energy consumption and carbon emission is almost in line with the city's annual GDP growth rate," said Li Fengting, vice dean of Tongji's environment and sustainable development institute and the program's chief researcher. "Which means Shanghai's economic development, to a large extent, depends on traditional energy consumption."

The report included three other cities in the Yangtze River Delta region - Suzhou, Wuxi and Nantong.

The report said all four cities have adopted environmental protection measures and Nantong's net carbon emission for every 10,000 yuan GDP has been lower than Shanghai's since 2005, reflecting its effective energy-saving practices.

"Shanghai is facing huge pressure from its carbon emissions," Li said. "One of the most important policies is to enhance the research and development of green energy. Green energy only accounts for a very low percentage in the local energy structure."

Protection of wetland and farmland, the construction of parks and green spaces, stricter monitoring of carbon discharge and public education are all effective methods for the city, he added.

(Shanghai Daily December 12, 2008)