On Mar. 19, at the press conference announcing the establishment of the Boao Near-Zero Carbon Demonstration Zone, Hu Yaowen, president of the Hainan branch of the China Academy of Urban Planning and Design and the Hainan Province Exploration and Design Association expert said that as the first domestic demonstration zone to be certified for ‘regional zero-carbon operation’, the experience gained in setting up the Boao Near-Zero Carbon Demonstration Zone is of great significance for the exploration and achievement of China’s ‘Double Carbon’ goals.

The Boao Near-Zero Carbon Demonstration Zone has already garnered high praise from domestic and international experts. The Swedish SWECO Group, University College London, the German Energy Agency, the US Environmental Protection Agency, the American Energy Foundation, the United Nations in China Environment Program, Chinese academicians Jiang Yi, Huang Wei, and Li Xiaojiang, as well as many other well-regarded experts in the green and low-carbon field have spoken highly of the Boao Zone, unanimously agreeing that it has achieved international first class and leading domestic standards.

The Boao Zone has also been recognized by a number of professional certification and evaluation agencies, with the results certified by many authoritative bodies including the German Energy Agency, the China Environmental United Certification Center, and several of China's national standards publication institutions. The ‘Regional Zero-Carbon Operation Certificate’ awarded by the German Energy Agency is of great value.

In addition, the Boao Zone was selected as a model of urban renewal by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of the People's Republic of China as well as a model for low-carbon energy use by the National Energy Administration. It was also named an Excellent Demonstration Project by the National Comprehensive Smart Energy Conference.

This is the first demonstration zone in China to obtain ‘Regional Zero-Carbon Operation’ certification, and is classified as an ‘existing area transformation’. There are two very important key phrases in play here - ‘regional zero-carbon’, which is much more difficult to achieve than individual building zero-carbon certification, and ‘zero-carbon achieved through renovation’. Seventy percent of China’s carbon emissions come from developed areas, making carbon reduction through renovation of great significance for the exploration and achievement of China’s ‘Double Carbon’ goals.

Hainan is located in a tropical region, and so the demonstration area was set up to handle a tropical climate through the use of four main measures. Photovoltaic blinds that can both provide shade and generate electricity were installed, combining shade provision with solar energy generation. Both sealing and ventilation were taken into consideration, and separate controls were installed to regulate temperature and humidity. Roof insulation was improved (raising the heat transfer coefficient to 0.48 watts per square meter per degree) and gas boilers were replaced by six air supply heat pumps, reducing heat consumption. Implementing these measures has provided a great deal of experience and guidance for future green renewal projects in tropical regions.