The Downside to China's Growth

The Downside to China's Growth In the past 20 years, China has grown to become the second-largest economy in the world. 2011 GDP Billion U.S. dollars Germany 3,577 China France Japan 5,869 United States 7,298 2,776 15,094 With economic development comes an increasing demand for energy. China's energy demand almost quadrupled since 1990. The country became the world's largest energy consumer in 2009. Primary energy consumption Million tonnes of oil equivalent 6,000 5,000 4,000 China 3,000 ... Japan France 2,000 Germany 1,000 United States 1990 1992 2000 2001 2003 2004 2005 1996 2006 2007 1998 2009 2010 2002 Energy consumption per capita in 2011 Tonnes of oil equivalent China's energy demand is likely to grow even further, since energy consumption per capita is still much lower than it is in developed countries. 4.. 3.. 2.. 1 United States France Germany Japan China Primary energy consumption in 2011 by fuel type Million tonnes of oil equivalent China's primary source Coal of eňergy is 2,000 1,500 1,000 500 .. Coal Oil Hydro electricity Natural gas Nuclear energy Renewables Carbon dioxide emissions in 2011 Million tonnes carbon dioxide China United States 8,979 6,017 India 1,798 Russian Federation 1,675 Japan 1,307 China has surpassed the United States to become the Germany 803 world's largest emitter South Korea 738 of carbon dioxide. Canada 624 Saudi Arabia 602 Iran 594 2,000 4,000 6,000 8,000 10,000 In 2011, China accounted for 26% of global carbon dioxide emissions. Moreover, China accounted for 73% of global carbon emission growth in the past 5 years. Carbon dioxide emissions in 2011 China 8,979m tonnes Rest of the world 25,054m tonnes Carbon dioxide emissions growth from 2006 to 2011 China 2,564m tonnes Rest of the world 945m tonnes 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Unfortunately, the growth of China's carbon dioxide emissions shows no signs of slowing down. In 2011, China's emissions grew 9.4% over 2010. A growth rate only surpassed by four countries in the world (who are all much much smaller emitters). Year-over-year growth of carbon dioxide emissions 2011 over 2010 Carbon dioxide emissions in 2011 Million tonnes carbon dioxide 15% 10,000 12% -- 8,979 8,000 9% 6,000 14.7% 6% 13.7% 4,000 10.6% 10.5% 3% 9.4% 2,000 0% Bulgaria Qatar 198 Peru Azerbaijan China Bulgaria Qatar Peru Azerbaijan China statista greative commons The Statistics Portal Sources: BP's Statistical Review of World Energy 2012, Statista 1991 1993 1994 1995 1997 1999 2008