Because China’s push to burn more coal puts climate goals at risk

China, the world's largest fossil fuel user, has made great strides in recent days to address this fall's global energy shortage and fight inflation, but the measures come at a considerable cost in terms of efforts to stop climate change. Writes The New York Times .

The country has begun expanding coal production by more than Western Europe extracts in a year, in a campaign that will help the country end recent electricity shortages. And Beijing said distinctly on Sunday that it was releasing diesel from its strategic reserves to ensure refueling stations don't run short.

Diesel demand and prices have increased in China in recent weeks. Many factories started running diesel generators this fall because they can't get enough electricity from the grid to meet their rapidly growing energy needs.

China's extra coal production has helped drive world coal prices down over the past two weeks. Oil prices fell slightly in early trading in Asia on Monday following China's announcement of diesel supplies, although they then rose again. Rising fossil fuel prices have contributed to a rise in inflation around the world this year.

But burning coal, the world's leading cause of human-induced climate change, will increase China's climate gas emissions and toxic air pollution.

And as world leaders gather in Glasgow to discuss ways to stop climate change, China's extra coal alone would increase humanity's production of planet-warming carbon dioxide by a full percentage point, Jan Ivar Korsbakken said. , a senior researcher at the Center for International Climate and Environment Research in Oslo.

"The timing is awful," Korsbakken said. "We hope it is only a temporary measure to mitigate the current energy crisis."

Beijing leaders are determined to provide abundant coal this winter to power Chinese factories and heat homes. Widespread electricity shortages, caused in part by a lack of coal, nearly paralyzed many industrial cities three weeks ago.

But the potential costs go beyond the emissions of global warming. While China has made great strides towards cleaner air over the past decade, the extra use of coal and diesel could threaten some of these advances. In recent 2015, air pollution was believed to be the cause of 1.6 million premature deaths annually.