CHINAS NEW EURASIAN AMBITIONS: THE ENVIRONMENTAL RISKS OF THE SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT

Eurasian Geography and Economics. 2017. Vol. 58. No. 1. P. 56–88.

Tracy E. F., Shvarts E., Simonov E., Babenko M.

China is moving ahead with the Silk Road Economic Belt, an ambitious infrastructure development agenda with the distinct promise of regional and sub-regional economic development. However, the initiative will create new environmental risks across the entire Eurasian continent, especially in countries with predominately poor records of environmental governance, including the former Soviet republics and Russia. Concurrently, on the domestic front, the Chinese Government has launched a new policy paradigm, “ecological civilization,” to dramatically improve environmental regulations, reduce pollution, and transform industries by adopting new green technologies and higher environmental standards. But does China’s intention to go through a “green shift” domestically resonate with these new transborder infrastructure development mega-projects? This paper will attempt to answer this question by juxtaposing China’s new domestic policy paradigm with environmental standards currently proposed in its global outreach projects focusing on China-northern Eurasia and China-Russia, including trade exchanges in natural resources.

Keywords: Russia, China, The Silk Road Economic Belt, ecological modernization, strategic environmental assessment (SEA), environmental impact assessment (EIA), transboundary environmental risks, global environmental governance