USTDA Advances Aviation and Clean Energy Cooperation in China

(USTDA) BEIJING, China – Yesterday, U.S. Trade and Development Agency Director Leocadia I. Zak met with USTDA’s Chinese partners to formalize cooperation efforts for new aviation and clean energy initiatives.

Director Zak signed two grant agreements that address mutual priorities discussed during a meeting of leaders of the U.S.-China Aviation Cooperation Program (ACP) earlier this year. The first agreement expands the breadth of two training programs that, to date, have connected over 1,200 Chinese aviation leaders with U.S. industry officials to share best practices and identify areas of future collaboration.

The second agreement responds to the challenge of airspace congestion by addressing flight delays. Using Xian International Airport as a case study, USTDA and its ACP partners are cooperating on a pilot project that will demonstrate how modeling – combined with effective airport planning and airspace utilization – can be implemented at the regional, national and policy levels to increase capacity.

Director Zak also signed a grant agreement to support the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau’s (EPB) efforts to reduce nitrous oxide (NOx) from gas-fired boilers in China. One of China’s major sources of NOx – a potent greenhouse gas that is a significant contributor to air pollution – is from industrial heating, which is primarily powered by boilers. The project will demonstrate technologies from three U.S. companies that, if implemented throughout the city of Beijing, could reduce NOx emissions by 35,500 tons annually.

This pilot project is a high priority for the Beijing EPB, which is in the process of implementing some of the strictest regulations for industrial boilers in the world. It also supports an agreement made between President Obama and President Xi last November to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by historic levels. USTDA has long supported China’s efforts to mitigate the effects of global climate change, partnering with China’s Ministry of Environmental Protection on over 40 environment and climate change projects since 2001.