Abstract:
As fossil fuels have helped human to get rid of dependence on agricultural civilization and embark on industrial civilization but also have brought about serious environmental problems and climate change, the earth is calling for human to move on from industrial civilization to ecological civilization to reach a sustainable future, where the basis is a new "energy revolution". A macroscopic quantitative analysis of China's environmental capacity and climate capacity shows that China is in an urgent need to change the extensive mode of development and promote an energy revolution. At present and in the next few decades, fossil fuels will remain one of the leading energies in China's energy mix. So, efficient and clean use of fossil fuels is important. But this is not an energy revolution which is the only fundamental solution. Unconventional gases including shale gas play a role in mitigation of environmental problems and climate change, but slogans like "revolution of shale gas" or "era of shale gas" is not appropriate to China because proportion of natural gas in primary energy structure in the country can be increased to a maximum of twenty percent. The Chinese energy structure's transition from a stage dominated by fossil fuels to a stage of multiple components and then to a stage dominated by non-fossil fuels is the inevitable direction, and renewables and nuclear energy will contribute to this transition. In renewables, proportion of non-water renewables will gradually increase. Improvement of their market competitiveness(economical efficiency)relies on technological innovation. Renewables will be the mainstay energy source for the earth in future. Despite the impact of the Fukushima nuclear disaster, the world, including China, will not give up nuclear energy development. Safe, steady and large-scale development of nuclear power is a rational choice of China. Transition from nuclear fission power plant to nuclear fusion power plant is the inevitable direction. Nuclear energy will be a sustainable energy source and another mainstay energy source of the earth in future. China needs to enhance energy security consciousness, curbing unreasonable demand, reducing waste, saving energy, improving energy efficiency, controlling total amount are not only the indispensable strategies for China' energy sustainable, environmentally sustainable, social and economic sustainable, but also the main connotation of energy consumption revolution which aims at building a new energy system that is effective, low carbon and green. Energy revolution reflected both China's identity and the world's diversity is the basis of a sustainable future, which enjoys wide cooperation and requires nations to work together. However, energy revolution is also an international competition, as well as the requirement for China to become an innovative nation and realize the great rejuvenation.