What’s the surprise?
The Guardian was “surprised” that a country with few environmental controls, 1.3 billion people, a GDP growth rate for the last 20 years claimed to be about 10% per annum, and a track record of opening two coal-fired power plants per week, is now the largest emitter of CO2 on the planet:
China has overtaken the United States as the world’s biggest producer of carbon dioxide, the chief greenhouse gas, figures released today show. The surprising announcement will increase anxiety about China’s growing role in driving man-made global warming…according to the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, soaring demand for coal to generate electricity and a surge in cement production have helped to push China’s recorded emissions for 2006 beyond those from the US already. It says China produced 6,200m tonnes of CO2 last year, compared with 5,800m tonnes from the US…
The new figures only include carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel burning and cement production. They do not include sources of other greenhouse gases, such as methane from agriculture and nitrous oxide from industrial processes. And they exclude other sources of carbon dioxide, such as from the aviation and shipping industries, as well as from deforestation, gas flaring and underground coal fires. Dr Olivier said it was hard to find up to date and reliable estimates for such emissions, particularly from countries in the developing world. But he said including them would be unlikely to topple China from top spot. “Since China passed the US by 8% [in 2006] it will be pretty hard to compensate for that with other sources of emissions.”
It would be delightful to see the hysterics turn their attention to China as the primary offender of Gaia in the matter of Global Warming (or cooling!). But will it ever happen?
June 21st, 2007 at 6:53 am
No. Are you kdding or obtuse? Surely you are aware that the United States is the source of all evil (like Global Warming) in the world today, while all other cultures - especially those that are oppositionally arranged to the US - are the source of all good?
Get with the script!!