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"Consistently falling for years": The current downward trend is just a blip in the general trend across all recorded data since ~1900 "Leader at reducing its o

"Consistently falling for years": The current downward trend is just a blip in the general trend across all recorded data since ~1900 "Leader at reducing its output": Down is easier when you're standing on a mountian instead of at sea level. "Per capital...": US per capita output is still higher than China's. It really is a matter of how you look at it, and which timespans you observe. Looking at the same data you could come to vastly different conclusions: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/06/01/climate/us-biggest-carbon-polluter-in-history-will-it-walk-away-from-the-paris-climate-deal.html https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/06/01/climate/us-bi...

adventured 9y ago
> It really is a matter of how you look at it, and which timespans you observe. No it's not. China is producing 2x the CO2 of the US, while the US has an economy 60% larger. China's emissions are still rapidly climbing and are set to continue to do so. > The current downward trend is just a blip in the general trend across all recorded data since ~1900 So you're predicting that the US is going to dramatically reverse course and begin producing a lot more energy with coal, soon? That's the only way the US CO2 decline trend is going to reverse course and consistently move higher. You must also be predicting that the US is going to entirely skip the inbound electric car change-over. As it looks now, the US is seeing the slow death of coal, with increasing electricity from natural gas and renewables, while simultaneously the US is about to adopt electric cars (like much of the developed world). Would you mind supporting your counter premise with some kind of data? > US per capita output is still higher than China's. It should be. US GDP per capita is five to six times that of China. China's CO2 output is 2x that of the US. That means the US is radically more efficient than China when it comes to economic output vs CO2 output. China's CO2 output has been climbing rapidly the last five and ten years. The US added $4 trillion to its economy while reducing its CO2 output. China is such an immense polluter when it comes to CO2, that within perhaps just 15 years that per capita CO2 imbalance will decline to near zero - with the US still possessing 3x to 4x the GDP per capita of China.
- chmod775 9y ago
  You may have a differing opinion, but to me "per capita" is the only fair metric there is, unless you can make a convincing argument Chinese are somehow worth less than Americans. And "per capita" still places the US solidly at the top of global polluters. "per GDP" is an useless metric to me. You don't get to have more of the pie just because you managed to figure out how to get fatter eating it.
  - fhood 9y ago
    > unless you can make a convincing argument Chinese are somehow worth less than Americans At the moment, if we are viewing people as a resource, in terms of economic production per individual, they are. That aside, I agree with you in general, but the point can also be made that It is not fair to compare the US and China per capita because in theory China is still a developing country, and only when the standards of living are similar between the two countries would the comparison be fair. This assumes that improving standard of living is more important to China than controlling emissions though.
    - PeachPlum 9y ago
      Per unit of production is a far better metric for export economies. Per capita is only meaningful without international trade.

adventured 9y ago

> It really is a matter of how you look at it, and which timespans you observe. No it's not. China is producing 2x the CO2 of the US, while the US has an economy 60% larger. China's emissions are still rapidly climbing and are set to continue to do so. > The current downward trend is just a blip in the general trend across all recorded data since ~1900 So you're predicting that the US is going to dramatically reverse course and begin producing a lot more energy with coal, soon? That's the only way the US CO2 decline trend is going to reverse course and consistently move higher. You must also be predicting that the US is going to entirely skip the inbound electric car change-over. As it looks now, the US is seeing the slow death of coal, with increasing electricity from natural gas and renewables, while simultaneously the US is about to adopt electric cars (like much of the developed world). Would you mind supporting your counter premise with some kind of data? > US per capita output is still higher than China's. It should be. US GDP per capita is five to six times that of China. China's CO2 output is 2x that of the US. That means the US is radically more efficient than China when it comes to economic output vs CO2 output. China's CO2 output has been climbing rapidly the last five and ten years. The US added $4 trillion to its economy while reducing its CO2 output. China is such an immense polluter when it comes to CO2, that within perhaps just 15 years that per capita CO2 imbalance will decline to near zero - with the US still possessing 3x to 4x the GDP per capita of China.

chmod775 9y ago
You may have a differing opinion, but to me "per capita" is the only fair metric there is, unless you can make a convincing argument Chinese are somehow worth less than Americans. And "per capita" still places the US solidly at the top of global polluters. "per GDP" is an useless metric to me. You don't get to have more of the pie just because you managed to figure out how to get fatter eating it.
- fhood 9y ago
  > unless you can make a convincing argument Chinese are somehow worth less than Americans At the moment, if we are viewing people as a resource, in terms of economic production per individual, they are. That aside, I agree with you in general, but the point can also be made that It is not fair to compare the US and China per capita because in theory China is still a developing country, and only when the standards of living are similar between the two countries would the comparison be fair. This assumes that improving standard of living is more important to China than controlling emissions though.
  - PeachPlum 9y ago
    Per unit of production is a far better metric for export economies. Per capita is only meaningful without international trade.