Health Co-Benefits from NDC Implementation in China

The report analyzes the intersection of China's climate policies and public health, arguing that achieving NDC targets—primarily through reducing coal dependence and expanding renewables—would significantly reduce premature deaths from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. It highlights a budgetary contradiction where China continues to provide substantial fossil fuel subsidies despite the high health and environmental externalities associated with them. Quantitative models cited in the report suggest that the economic value of avoided premature deaths would far outweigh the costs of implementing climate policies by 2050.

• Climate change and air pollution from fossil fuel combustion are linked to serious non-communicable diseases in China, including cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, cancer, and malnutrition.
• In 2016, stroke, ischemic heart disease, COPD, and lung cancer were among the top causes of death in China, with ambient air pollution contributing to an estimated 1.1 million deaths that year.
• China's NDC targets for 2030 include peaking carbon dioxide emissions, reducing emissions per unit of GDP by 60% to 65% from 2005 levels, increasing non-fossil fuel primary energy consumption to around 20%, and increasing forest stock volume by approximately 4.5 billion cubic meters over 2005 levels.
• Quantitative models estimate that achieving NDC targets could avoid between 225,000 and 368,000 premature deaths by 2050, with specific benefits seen in the reduction of strokes, ischemic heart disease, COPD, and lung cancer.
• The economic value of health co-benefits from climate mitigation is projected to significantly exceed the costs of implementation; one model estimates cumulative savings of approximately USD 6.5 trillion between 2020 and 2050.
• China's public spending on fossil fuel consumption subsidies reached USD 40 billion in 2017, which is approximately 19% of its public health budget for the same year.
• When including externalities, the total cost of fossil fuel subsidies in China was estimated at USD 1.79 trillion in 2017, which is over eight times the country's public health budget.
• Removing fossil fuel subsidies could reduce carbon dioxide equivalent emissions by 1.1% by 2025, and by 6.53% by 2030 if a modest energy tax is introduced and revenues are reinvested in renewables and energy efficiency.

APA

Wang, H., & Sanchez, L. (2019). Health Co-Benefits from NDC Implementation in China. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/health-ndc-implementation-china.pdf

Chicago

Wang, Hanjie, and Lourdes Sanchez. Health Co-Benefits from NDC Implementation in China. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2019. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/health-ndc-implementation-china.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Wang |first1=Hanjie |last2=Sanchez |first2=Lourdes |title=Health Co-Benefits from NDC Implementation in China |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=November 2019 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/health-ndc-implementation-china.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wang2019health, author = {Wang, Hanjie and Sanchez, Lourdes}, title = {{Health Co-Benefits from NDC Implementation in China}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2019}, month = nov, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/health-ndc-implementation-china.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }