China’s greenhouse gas emissions soar 53 per cent in a decade, data shows
- Figure for 2014 was 12.3 billion tonnes, according to carbon ‘inventory’ submitted to United Nations
- Country is aiming to bring its total to a peak by ‘around 2030’
China’s carbon emissions data is notoriously opaque, but as a signatory to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Beijing is obliged to submit an official inventory to the UN on a regular basis. It has previously released figures for 2005 and 2010.
As the world’s biggest greenhouse gas producer, China is aiming to bring its total emissions to a peak by “around 2030”, though it has also pledged to show “the highest possible ambition” when it reviews its targets next year.
The 2014 figure, based on the most recent calculations by the Chinese government, includes China’s emissions of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane, but does not make adjustments based on changes in land use or increases in forest coverage.
The environment ministry said if the impact of forests and other “carbon sinks” were taken into consideration, total emissions would have stood at 11.186 billion tonnes in 2014, still up 17 per cent from 2010.
Total net US emissions were measured at 5.74 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2017, down 0.5 per cent on the year, according to the country’s Environmental Protection Agency.
