One of the most common objections I hear to climate action is: “But what about China?”

One of the most common objections I hear to climate action is: “But what about China?”

The person making this argument usually goes on to claim that China is doing nothing, while everyone else is making sacrifices. But that’s not what the data show.

Here’s the reality:

* As the U.S. doubles down on fossil fuels and blocks new wind and solar projects, its emissions are ticking up.

* In contrast, China’s emissions appear to have peaked — and may now be starting to decline.

* Last year, China installed a full half of all the world's new wind and solar energy.

* Over the past two years, China installed more new solar power each year than the U.S. has installed in total across its entire history.

* China's clean exports alone are cutting CO2 outside its borders by 1% year on year.

Of course no country can fix climate change on its own. But just as it's a global problem, progress in one place helps everyone.

https://www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-chinas-co2-emissions-have-now-been-flat-or-falling-for-21-months/

One of the most common objections I hear to climate action is: “But what about China?”

The person making this argument usually goes on to claim that China is doing nothing, while everyone else is making sacrifices. But that’s not what the data show.

Here’s the reality:

* As the U.S. doubles down on fossil fuels and blocks new wind and solar projects, its emissions are ticking up.

* In contrast, China’s emissions appear to have peaked — and may now be starting to decline.

* Last year, China installed a full half of all the world's new wind and solar energy.

* Over the past two years, China installed more new solar power each year than the U.S. has installed in total across its entire history.

* China's clean exports alone are cutting CO2 outside its borders by 1% year on year.

Of course no country can fix climate change on its own. But just as it's a global problem, progress in one place helps everyone.

https://www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-chinas-co2-emissions-have-now-been-flat-or-falling-for-21-months/

@Laird_Dave @StaceyCornelius @kathhayhoe
I think that less pollution is more than just a nice side effect. China is grappling with terrible smog problems, which is driving up health care expenses.
https://www.iqair.com/ca/newsroom/november-5-2025-beijing-among-top-10-most-polluted-cities-in-the-world

@kathhayhoe

It's a lie that China's emissions have peaked. Their annual emissions are a vertical line. How are people suppose to take this argument seriously? Their coal production has outpaced even that of the US.

It's pure wishcasting by people who want there to be a "good guy" who will save us.

https://ourworldindata.org/co2-emissions

One of the most common objections I hear to climate action is: “But what about China?”

The person making this argument usually goes on to claim that China is doing nothing, while everyone else is making sacrifices. But that’s not what the data show.

Here’s the reality:

* As the U.S. doubles down on fossil fuels and blocks new wind and solar projects, its emissions are ticking up.

* In contrast, China’s emissions appear to have peaked — and may now be starting to decline.

* Last year, China installed a full half of all the world's new wind and solar energy.

* Over the past two years, China installed more new solar power each year than the U.S. has installed in total across its entire history.

* China's clean exports alone are cutting CO2 outside its borders by 1% year on year.

Of course no country can fix climate change on its own. But just as it's a global problem, progress in one place helps everyone.

https://www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-chinas-co2-emissions-have-now-been-flat-or-falling-for-21-months/

@kathhayhoe

It's a lie that China's emissions have peaked. Their annual emissions are a vertical line. How are people suppose to take this argument seriously? Their coal production has outpaced even that of the US.

It's pure wishcasting by people who want there to be a "good guy" who will save us.

https://ourworldindata.org/co2-emissions

@contrasocial @kathhayhoe you are not wrong, but I reckon this take is over simplistic.
even in the Our World in Data you can see the per capta emissions and, and here is the important bit, the historical progression.
take Europe (and the regions of Africa and others places it used to control) and the US and analise it with this question in mind: is it fair the rich countries, that got rich by exploring everything and everyone, now demands countries that are getting richer and making life for its people better to curb that because said rich countries now developed a conscience?
I'm not saying we should follow the destruction method or not care for environment, I'm just pointing out the complexity.
western rich countries need to be held MORE accountable.
and yet, places like China and Brazil, places that were harmed by colonialism and power play for such a long time and are, now, getting richer and prosperous (I'm not talking about just numbers, I'm talking taking people from the hunger map and etc), are developing it's industries and technology I a way more green way then the western world did. China is emitting a lot os CO2 but is aware and has a huge decrease plan for it - but to develop green tech, you need traditional industrial ways first...

@thegarbagebird @TorbenI @kathhayhoe

Because it's not a normal country and the regime has a long history of lying and manipulating information to save face. They have fleets of heavily armed, illegal fishing vessels stripping the oceans right off the coasts of countries as far as South America.

A better question to ask is how people have been massaged over the past 20 years into accepting that China is normal and pretending that they are a friend to the environment or human rights.

@contrasocial so it's bad when they do it

@TorbenI @kathhayhoe

@thegarbagebird @TorbenI @kathhayhoe

Because it's not a normal country and the regime has a long history of lying and manipulating information to save face. They have fleets of heavily armed, illegal fishing vessels stripping the oceans right off the coasts of countries as far as South America.

A better question to ask is how people have been massaged over the past 20 years into accepting that China is normal and pretending that they are a friend to the environment or human rights.

@contrasocial @TorbenI @kathhayhoe i agree it's not normal

@thegarbagebird @TorbenI @kathhayhoe

Because it's not a normal country and the regime has a long history of lying and manipulating information to save face. They have fleets of heavily armed, illegal fishing vessels stripping the oceans right off the coasts of countries as far as South America.

A better question to ask is how people have been massaged over the past 20 years into accepting that China is normal and pretending that they are a friend to the environment or human rights.

@thegarbagebird @TorbenI @contrasocial @kathhayhoe
"Their annual emissions are a vertical line" (1950 to 2024)

@thegarbagebird @TorbenI @kathhayhoe

Because it's not a normal country and the regime has a long history of lying and manipulating information to save face. They have fleets of heavily armed, illegal fishing vessels stripping the oceans right off the coasts of countries as far as South America.

A better question to ask is how people have been massaged over the past 20 years into accepting that China is normal and pretending that they are a friend to the environment or human rights.

@contrasocial i know it's very rude but i must go back and how far out of pocket you came. a better question is asking why chevron’s ghost fleets, replete with the same flags and papers, are like, ok @TorbenI @kathhayhoe