Shocking! China Burns Far More Coal Annually Than Thought Or Officially Admitted - NYT

[hatrack]

BEIJING — China, the world’s leading emitter of greenhouse gases from coal, has been burning up to 17 percent more coal a year than the government previously disclosed, according to newly released data. The finding could complicate the already difficult efforts to limit global warming.

Even for a country of China’s size, the scale of the correction is immense. The sharp upward revision in official figures means that China has released much more carbon dioxide — almost a billion more tons a year according to initial calculations — than previously estimated.

The increase alone is greater than the whole German economy emits annually from fossil fuels.

Ed. - Emphasis added.

Officials from around the world will have to come to grips with the new figures when they gather in Paris this month to negotiate an international framework for curtailing greenhouse-gas pollution. The data also pose a challenge for scientists who are trying to reduce China’s smog, which often bathes whole regions in acrid, unhealthy haze.

EDIT

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/04/world/asia/china-burns-much-more-coal-than-reported-complicating-climate-talks.html?_r=0

[Solero]

1. China won't do much to address it either

They think it's a Western plot to strangle the Chinese economy.

[MisterP]

3. Brazil and Indonesia/Malaysia also say that about forest reserves

"you cut all YOUR trees down, you have no right to put orangutans and primitives above palm oil" (neatly forgetting that that developmentalism is super-colonialist)

back in the 70s they also said that about cautions that maybe deliberately ladling millions of people they can't feed or educate isn't a good idea ...

[NV Whino]

2. Who'd have thunk it?

What with their clear skies and all.

[NickB79]

4. So much for earlier claims they were releasing less carbon/burning less coal

http://qz.com/364886/china-grew-its-economy-last-year-without-any-extra-coal/

China grew its economy last year without any extra coal

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/08/25/3694669/chinas-missing-carbon-emissions/

New Study Attributes Fewer Carbon Emissions To China. So Where Did They Go?

[NickB79]

5. So, the estimate that we'll lock in 2C of warming by 2036 is probably not accurate

China has released much more carbon dioxide — almost a billion more tons a year according to initial calculations — than previously estimated.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/112793146

It has been calculated that to have a 66 per cent chance of limiting warming to 2 °C, cumulative emissions from 2011 must be limited to 1000 GtCO2. The UN report, however, says we’ll have burned through 75 per cent of this carbon budget by 2030. That means we could only emit another 250 GtCO2 after 2030 – which means we’ll bust the budget in around 2036 assuming emissions stay above 40 GtCO2 per year.

So, maybe 2025-2030 instead?

[Nihil]

6. Yes but don't forget the silver lining ...

This advance of the timetable means that a whole lot more people are going
to be seeing the effects first-hand rather than just hand-waving them away
with a "Well, I'll be dead by then" glib response.

Front-row seats for major catastrophe!

The view will be good but the tickets are probably going to cost the Earth ...