Chinese government officials, entrepreneurs and industry experts buckled down at the 2012 Workshop on Latest Trends of Sustainable Development to discuss ways to keep China's economic development on a low-carbon, energy-saving path.

The workshop was organized by the China Business Council for Sustainable Development (CBCSD) with around 180 senior business representatives and government officials attending.

"Energy saving and emission reduction is neither window dressing nor a short-term task," China Enterprise Confederation President Wang Zhongyu said at the Wednesday workshop in Beijing. "It should be viewed in connection with the overall and long-term growth of a company and the community where it is located."

The Chinese government has stepped up efforts to reduce China's heavy dependence on natural resources in its current growth model. During the implementation of the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-2012), energy consumption per unit of economic output declined 19.1 percent, saving 6.3 tons of coal and roughly 1.5 billion tons of carbon emissions.

China lowered its GDP growth target to 7.5 percent this year, a signal of the government's commitment to improve the quality and efficiency of the country's economic growth.

Wang said the government has done more than paying lip service. He said the Ministry of Finance will give priority this year to energy saving and emission reduction programs and adopt policies and measures to continuously support alternative energy vehicles, efficient lighting and other such products.

China has set ambitious goals for its clean energy industries and reduction of carbon emissions in its 12th Five-Year Plan, and it unfortunately fell short in the first year of the 2011-2015 implementation period.

Energy consumption per unit of economic output was reduced by 2.01 percent in 2011, below the target of 3.5 percent set by the National Development and Reform Commission, according to a report released by the National Bureau of Statistics in February.

"This year is the second year of the 12th Five-Year Plan,"said Wang. "It is also a crucial year for the accomplishment of the energy saving and emission reduction tasks."

Peter Bakker, president of World Business Council for Sustainable Development, said that although China is one of the world's largest polluters, it also has taken a leadership role in the green race. In this regard, any failure by China to meet its own energy efficiency targets would be a big setback for global efforts to limit emissions.

"China is a key player in creating a sustainable future and is leading the green race globally,"Bakker said. "China is using its edge in developing clean energy, including wind and solar power, to shape up the map of future growth."

Bakker said he believed enterprises were the most powerful change agents and were tasked with providing solutions to the world's environmental challenges.

"There will be 9 billion people living on earth by 2050, so it is really a big question everyone needs to tackle,"he said.

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