China may struggle to cut carbon emissions to levels that prevent the worst effects of global warming, a United Nations study of 15 major emitters showed.
The U.N. said per capita emissions from burning fossil fuels needs to fall to 1.6 tons in 2050 from 5.4 tons now across the 15 nations in order to stand even half a chance of capping the global average temperature rise at a safe level.
It tasked research teams in each of the countries, including the U.S., India, Germany and Japan, to devise "deep decarbonization pathways" through to 2050. The Chinese team produced one that leads to 3.5 tons per capita, and the sum total of the 15 nations' efforts totaled 2.4 tons, according to the study by the U.N. Sustainable Development Solutions Network.