Introduction

China's unprecedented economic growth has caused a continuous increase in energy consumption. The country's voracious appetite for all types of energy is said to be one of the factors adding tension to the international energy markets. It's use of coal as a primary source of energy and the consequent environmental impacts are also causing serious concern in neighbour countries and across the international community. Despite the increasing attention China has received, the outside world still knows little about the nature and scale of the energy and environmental challenges facing the country, the policy responses of the government, the existing legal and regulatory framework, and the implications of Chinese energy challenges.

This special issue on "China's Energy and Environmental Challenges" seeks to analyse these issues by bringing together the views of leading specialists in order to help outsiders to develop a better understanding of the Chinese energy and environmental issues.

The articles included in this special issue address the following issues:

1. General analysis of the Chinese energy sector analyses the nature of china's energy sector and challenges the country is facing.
2. Energy security, one of the core challenges facing China.
3. Energy related internationalissues.
4. Energy Law and Policy introduces the general legal and policy response of the Chinese government to the energy and environmental challenges. It also introduces the existing energy and environmental related legal and regulatory framework in China.
5. Environmental policy addresses the environmental policy response of the Chinese government. It also analyses one specific aspects of environmental policy, the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).
6. Energy efficiency and conservation addresses a specific policy response of the Chinese government in enhancing energy and environmental security.
7. Sector specific policies analyses sector related policies including power, coal, oil and natural gas. It also covers specific aspects of petroleum policy, ie, the behaviour of Chinese national oil companies.

I wish to thank Ji Chen for his editorial help with the environmental-related articles.

I would also like to thank Dr. Philip Andrews-Speed and Zhenning Cao for their assistance in reviewing papers for this special feature, Professor Thomas Waelde for suggesting this special, the OGEL publishers who made its publication possible, and last but not least, the contributing authors for the valuable insights.