Policy engagements for a just decarbonisation: China’s 2060 carbon neutrality pledge’s ramifications on the coal industry workforce in Shanxi

Abstract

To achieve its ambitious carbon neutrality pledge by 2060, China, whose energy mix is still largely dominated by coal, must progressively phase out coal-fired power plants. Being highly polluting, coal is no longer perceived as suitable to promote a sustainable, clean, and long-standing economy. Shanxi, a landlocked northern province, is considered one of China’s most coal-dependent provinces and accounts for a colossal coal workforce depending on the industry. Such a transition will, therefore, considerably alter the economic prospects and labour relations of this province. Considering the inevitability to lay off coal workers, the objective of this thesis is to determine how just China’s policies are in the context of Shanxi’s decarbonisation and the impacts of the transition on coal workers. Specifically, it examines if Shanxi will lead a ‘just decarbonisation’, emphasising a just transition in industries to be decarbonised with respect to the right to decent work.

To answer the main research question, this thesis conducted a qualitative content analysis of available policy documents that support coal workers in Shanxi, as well as semi-structured interviews with experts of China’s environmental policies. The analysis closely examined the formulation of support policies to determine whether they are mentioning keywords in alignment with the just decarbonisation concept. Through a human rights-based approach, the concept of environmental justice, and the political concept of fragmented authoritarianism, this paper found that numerous policies are available to support coal workers throughout unemployment and re-employment.

These results suggest that different needs and employment difficulties are identified and highly recognised in the formulation of policy documents. Nevertheless, aspects of procedural justice, involving the use of participatory approaches, were the least retrieved in the policy analysis in consideration of China’s top-down bureaucratic structure. The thesis concludes that within various relevant policies, numerous measures are available to ensure a just decarbonisation, although the challenge of their successful implementation is not yet assured.