China records sharp drop in carbon emissions

The growth of carbon emissions in China slowed sharply in 2024, highlighting the country's progress toward its climate goals even as global greenhouse gas levels hit record highs, according to a report released by the China Meteorological Administration on Wednesday.

China's carbon emissions from human activities rose about 0.6 percent in 2023, a slower pace than the previous year and below the 0.8 percent global growth rate, said Zeng Qin, director of the administration's department of science and technology. "The figure demonstrates China's achievements in actively practicing the promise of carbon emission reduction," Zeng said.

The findings were included in the China Greenhouse Gas Bulletin (2024), the 14th annual national assessment based on the country's atmospheric monitoring records.

According to the report, carbon dioxide concentrations measured at the Waliguan global baseline station in Qinghai province climbed to 424.9 parts per million in 2024, up 3.5 ppm from the previous year — a rise consistent with the global average reported by the World Meteorological Organization.

Methane and nitrous oxide levels at Chinese monitoring sites also continued to increase, remaining slightly above global averages, Zeng said.

Since 2012, the China Meteorological Administration has used observations from major atmospheric baseline stations to assess regional greenhouse gas trends. So far, China has built one of the world's most extensive atmospheric monitoring systems, including Waliguan, seven regional stations, 11 pilot stations, and more than 120 monitoring sites nationwide.

"Waliguan is the only global station involved in the Global Atmosphere Watch Programme, providing data that represent atmospheric background conditions over the Eurasian interior and feeding directly into the WMO Greenhouse Gas Bulletin," Zeng said.

The latest WMO bulletin, released on Oct 16, reported that global levels of CO2, methane, and nitrous oxide all rose in 2024, with CO2 reaching 423.9 ppm, the largest annual increase (3.5 ppm) since modern measurements began in 1957.

Shao Nan, deputy head of the CMA Meteorological Observation Center, said the record increase was driven by factors including continued growth in fossil fuel emissions, weakened carbon sinks on land and in the ocean caused by extreme heat, and a surge in wildfire emissions, particularly in the Americas.

"Global carbon sinks dropped about 16 percent in 2023 due to global warming and El Nino-related temperature spikes," Shao said. She added that wildfires in 2024 pushed carbon emissions in parts of South America to historic highs, with the Amazon suffering from prolonged drought intensified by both El Nino and abnormal North Atlantic sea surface temperatures.

Meanwhile, China is steadily improving its ability to monitor and reduce emissions, Zeng said. "The administration will continue to expand its observation network, increase the precision of atmospheric greenhouse gas measurements, and enhance China's capacity to account for carbon sources and sinks," he said.