I am confused by this argument as it seems to be orthogonal to the point the GP was making, namely that coal does have a large impact on the global environment.

I am confused by this argument as it seems to be orthogonal to the point the GP was making, namely that coal does have a large impact on the global environment. Stating that China uses a lot of coal isn't exactly helping your case, considering that coal causes more air pollution deaths in China than any other source[1]. 1. https://www.google.com/amp/mobile.nytimes.com/2016/08/18/world/asia/china-coal-health-smog-pollution.amp.html?client=ms-android-google https://www.google.com/amp/mobile.nytimes.com/2016/08/18/wor...