China didn't ban bitcoin because of environmental concerns. They take poor care of their environment as it is.
They banned it because they fear open networks such as bitcoin. They do not like having ANYTHING that cannot be censored one way or the other.
POW is not a bug in bitcoin, but one of its most important features. Don't get it twisted.
I've been saying this for a while now; climate change is the buzz word, which is being used to pile onto Bitcoin, and make it public enemy number one despite there being far bigger contributors that the government, and companies approve of when it works in their favour.