Understanding Citizens’ Perceptions and Attitudes toward Energy Restructuring under China’s NDC for Quality of Life: A Case of Linfen City

Abstract

China updated its NDC in 2020, pledging to achieve carbon peaking before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. To achieve these targets, China must revise its energy mix planning to increase energy security and meet the demand for low-carbon energy production to combat climate change. Linfen is one of the most important economic cities in Shanxi Province, which is one of China's most important coal-producing regions and is plagued by high pollution and high energy consumption. Linfen was chosen as the city of interest for this study due to being a coal hub and one of the most polluted cities in the nation. To ensure effective policy implementation, it is essential to investigate citizens understanding and integrate their perceptions into policy formulation. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the perceptions and attitudes of Linfen citizens regarding China's National Determined Contributions (NDCs) on energy transformation for enhancing quality of life. The questionnaire, containing 27 questions, was distributed online, and received 402 valid responses. The finding revealed that 72.14% of respondents indicated that people were concerned about climate change, and more than 80% agreed with the China NDC's target of increasing the use of renewable energy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and achieve carbon neutrality. They also revealed that developing renewable energy projects based on China's NDCs could improve their quality of life while also boosting the city's economic and social benefits. Nevertheless, it was observed that 10.34% of the participants showed a limited knowledge of the local environmental regulations and China's NDCs. To achieve the government's goals of carbon neutrality by 2030, it is essential to increase the awareness, engagement, and education of Chinese citizens. This will facilitate successful carbon neutrality efforts and necessitate the implementation of public outreach programs that foster communication among diverse stakeholder groups at the local level.