Global Warming

China to Overtake USA as Largest Contributor to Global Warming

China is set to overtake the United States as the leading cause of modern global warming at some point within the next two years, a dangerous benchmark for a country that’s also aiming to curb its dependence on coal.

China is already the top emitter of greenhouse gases, having surpassed the United States in 2006, but two separate estimates now indicate that its cumulative emissions since 1990 are on pace to exceed those of the United States, which would make China the largest contributor to modern climate change.

According to Reuters, the Norway-based Centre for International Climate and Environmental Research estimates that China’s cumulative emissions since 1990 will overtake the United States’ this year. Using “slightly different data,” the U.S.-based think tank World Resources Institute (WRI) estimates China’s cumulative emissions will surpass the United States’ in 2016. According to the WRI, China’s 1990-2016 emissions will reach 151 billion tons in 2016, while the U.S. will total 147 billion tons.