Emissions by Sector and Source

Roughly 50% of Chinese CO₂ emissions are from the industrial sector, 40% are from the power sector and 8% are from the transport sector. This sectoral composition of emissions is very different than in most developed countries. In the United States, for example, roughly 22% of heat-trapping gas emissions come from the industrial sector, 28% from the power sector and 29% from the transport sector.^[23]

Coal combustion is by far the leading source of heat-trapping gas emissions in China, with roughly 7.5 Gt in 2018.^[24]

Land use change and forestry in China are net sinks (meaning they absorb more CO₂ than they release). The most recent estimates are from the Biennial Update Reports submitted by the Chinese government to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. The Chinese government estimates that land use change and forestry in China sequestered 576 Mt CO₂ (roughly 6% of CO₂ emissions) in 2012 and 1,150 Mt CO₂ (roughly 11% of CO₂ emissions) in 2014. The first estimate is from China’s First Biennial Update Report (December 2016) and the second estimate is from China’s Second Biennial Update Report (December 2018). The reasons for the difference between the two figures are not clear.^[25]