Report: China nears renewable goals

WASHINGTON, Nov. 16 (UPI) -- China is on its way to meeting its renewable energy goals, according to the Washington-based Worldwatch Institute.

The country is on track to acquire 15 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2020, while the United States is not as far in its transition away from fossil fuels, according to a report released in Washington this week.

Countries worldwide invested more than $50 billion collectively into renewable energy conversion last year, and in 2007 China alone is expected to account for some $10 billion of investment, according to the report, "Powering China's Development: The Role of Renewable Energy."

"The future of the global climate may rest in large measure on China's ability to lead the world into the age of renewable energy, much as the United States led the world into the age of oil roughly a century ago," said Worldwatch President Christopher Flavin.

While the Chinese government advances closer towards its renewable energy goals, the U.S. Congress has just recently begun discussing energy legislation.

The terms in question would mandate a 35-mile-per-gallon fuel efficiency standard for the U.S. fleet of cars and light trucks; expand renewable energy tax incentives; and mandate that a 15-percent share of the nation's energy come from renewable sources by 2020, China Daily reported.