Official Chinese data that has just come to light reveals that China has been dramatically underreporting the amount of coal it consumes every year by 17% more than was previously disclosed by the government. If correct, this means it has emitted nearly a billion additional tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year. This is about the equivalent of the whole national consumption of Germany, and Germany is a large consumer of coal. This could complicate matters in the fight against global warming ahead of the Times climate change conference in Paris starting 30 November.
Official Chinese data that has just come to light reveals that China has been dramatically underreporting the amount of coal it consumes every year by 17% more than was previously disclosed by the government. If correct, this means it has emitted nearly a billion additional tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year. This is about the equivalent of the whole national consumption of Germany, and Germany is a large consumer of coal. This could complicate matters in the fight against global warming ahead of the UN climate change conference in Paris starting 30 November.