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We are pleased to share two new publications from the California-China Climate Institute and the Center for Law, Energy & the Environment that address key dimensions of methane mitigation policy and practice. Developing and Implementing Numeric Methane Targets in China examines why explicit quantitative methane targets remain limited in China and sets out a practical roadmap for developing, implementing, and evaluating them. Integration of Top-Down Data to Improve Methane Inventory: Lessons from Canada explores how Canada has incorporated atmospheric measurements into official inventory development and identifies a hybrid framework that can help strengthen methane accounting and policymaking in China.
The California-China Climate Institute is also releasing Transforming Rice Straw into Climate Solutions: Shanghai’s Pilot for Low-Emission Agriculture, a case study of Shanghai’s Qingpu pilot, which converts rice straw into biogas, electricity, and organic fertilizer while combining field measurement, life-cycle analysis, and economic assessment. Together, these publications highlight the importance of stronger methane data, clearer policy design, and practical implementation pathways across sectors. We hope they will be useful to policymakers, researchers, and practitioners working to advance near-term climate action.
Developing and Implementing Numeric Methane Targets in China
This report examines why China still lacks explicit quantitative methane targets and sets out a practical roadmap for developing, implementing, and evaluating them. Drawing on domestic policy developments and international experience, it identifies the technical and institutional foundations needed to translate methane ambition into measurable results, with particular attention to inventories, standards, finance, accountability, and subnational implementation.
Read the summary in Chinese here.
Read the summary in English here.
Integration of Top-Down Data to Improve Methane Inventory
This report analyzes how Canada has integrated top-down methane measurements into official inventory development and distills lessons for China. It shows why accurate methane inventories are essential for credible target setting and effective mitigation, and offers a practical framework for building hybrid inventory systems that combine bottom-up data, targeted measurements, and institutional support for continuous improvement.
Transforming Rice Straw into Climate Solutions Shanghai’s Pilot for Low-Emission Agriculture
This brief highlights Shanghai’s Qingpu pilot, which converts rice straw into biogas, electricity, and organic fertilizer while testing a lower-emission pathway for rice agriculture. By combining field measurement, life-cycle analysis, and economic assessment, it shows how improved straw management can reduce emissions, generate useful products, and provide practical lessons for scaling agricultural methane mitigation.
Offshore Wind Power and Resource Adequacy in the China Southern Grid
As China accelerates its transition toward its “Dual Carbon” goals, the rapid scaling of offshore wind presents both significant opportunities and new challenges for power system planning and operations. How will large-scale offshore wind development impact the resource adequacy and stability of the China Southern Power Grid by mid-century? New analysis from the California-China Climate Institute and the University of California, San Diego provides in-depth modeling and policy analysis on offshore wind development and power system resource adequacy planning practices within the China Southern Power Grid region. Read the Executive Summary here.
China’s 2025 Methane Action Update
Methane is a powerful super-pollutant, and China is making strides to reduce its impact and achieve GHG mitigation targets. CLEE’s California-China Climate Institute recently released a new annual review of its efforts in 2025. The review details recent advancements, challenges, and trends in China’s actions to reduce methane emissions.
Financing Battery Storage in China: Insights From California’s Practices
China’s rapid expansion of battery storage faces a pressing challenge: ensuring sustainable and market-based revenue models. This report draws on California’s experience to identify policy and market design strategies that can inform China’s path toward financially viable battery storage development. Read the Chinese version here.
Bay Areas: Regional Governance and Flood Mitigation for Climate Change Adaptation in California and Southeastern China
This report compares climate-related flood risks and adaptation strategies in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Greater Bay Area in Guangdong, China. It highlights how regional governance, cross-border collaboration, and climate-conscious infrastructure can strengthen resilience and provide lessons for climate adaptation planning.
China’s Energy Transition Brief: How Power Market Reforms are Meeting Climate Goals
This brief provides an overview of these provincial reforms and analyzes their possible contribution to China’s climate goals. It also briefly highlights the challenges ahead and explores opportunities to further unleash the potential of power market reforms.
Aligning markets and mandates: Insights from U.S. renewable energy credits for China’s green certificates
This brief examines China’s evolving green certificate program and its integration with provincial renewable energy targets. Drawing on U.S. REC tracking systems, it highlights lessons for building a transparent, standardized, and credible certificate-based framework to advance China’s clean energy transition. Read the Chinese version here.