Implications of COVID-19 for Climate Governance in China: The Rise of an Eco-Surveillance State?

Abstract

China’s success in pursuing zero-COVID through unprecedented levels of population monitoring and control may result in the expansion of the surveillance state. This paper examines the development of COVID surveillance strategies and explores how the strategies may be applied in the country’s commitment to carbon neutrality, constituting what can be called an eco-surveillance state. The probable introduction of a series of carbon rationing schemes, covering local governments, enterprises, and the public, and enforcement of these schemes with advanced surveillance technologies by the government are presented. The potential challenges and debates regarding the rise of an eco-surveillance state are discussed.