China should consider a valuation system that makes reliance on heavy carbon use costlier in order to encourage green development, according to a senior national political adviser and senior economist.

Such a system would make clear local governments" responsibilities and the economic benefits of further adopting low-carbon energy, said Liu Shijin, deputy director of the Economic Affairs Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People"s Political Consultative Conference.

Liu also called on the government to devise exit plans for high-carbon projects, a move he believes will address the concerns of stakeholders and smooth the way for the transformation to green energy.

A valuation system would help discourage local governments from involvement in high-carbon development projects, Liu said at the Stories to Watch in 2021 conference, organized by the World Resources Institute in Beijing on Feb 26.

When calculating the costs of China"s economic development, environmental concerns such as pollution and carbon emissions are not considered, he said. A valuation system would switch the focus away from industrialization to green development.

Under such a system, high-carbon emissions and projects that are heavily reliant on carbon would incur greater tariffs, Liu said. "If such a constraint mechanism could be established, I think local governments will be clearheaded and make the right choice."

Despite regional differences－where some areas are major fossil energy producers and others are big consumers of coal and oil－a method could be devised to calculate the cost-efficiency of a development, Liu said. "With a new conclusion, they (governments) will act differently," he said.

However, a clear decarbonization road map won"t be possible without a thorough exit plan for stakeholders in high-carbon industries, especially the coal sector, he said.