New research published in the journal Nature shows that coal burned in China actually produced 40 percent less carbon than had previously been assumed.

The study, based on an examination of more than 600 types of coal consumed across 4,200 coal mines in 2012 in China, drew the conclusion that the average Chinese coal burnt has produced 40 percent less carbon than figures used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Guan Dabo, a professor of Climate Change Economics at the University of East Anglia, who is one of the authors of the paper, says this research allows China to realize a more accurate estimate of its actual carbon emissions so future actions and policies could more appropriately solve climate change issues.

Guan says although carbon emissions from coal and other sources has been a topic of fierce academic debate and interest over the years, the large amount of capital and human resources required to conduct thorough research has been a burden, China is encouragingly moving to invest in accurate emissions research.

The paper, which Guan co-authored with other researchers both inside China and internationally, is a part of the work of China's strategic priority research program 'Climate Change: Carbon Budget and Relevant Issues' at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

This research program hopes to have a more accurate understanding of China's true emission quantity so China will have its own reliable estimates at international climate change negotiation tables.

The research by Guan and his colleagues has discovered that because China's coal quality is worse than international norm, its emission and energy produced is less than international standards.

Put into context, taking into account other fuels used, China's real CO2 emission level overall is 14 percent less than the emission calculated by IPCC in 2013. However, the revised number still puts China as the world's largest emitter of carbon emissions, with an amount of emission about 1.5 times that of the US emission in 2013.

Guan says the new research is not an attempt for China to shed its responsibility to reduce carbon emission, but purely an academic study to put the truth of China's emission into the public domain, and make it more accessible to other researchers.

In addition, he says China's low quality coal also produces less energy than international standards, so in the long term China should still work hard to move away from coal as a form of energy and increase renewable energy consumption.

Dave Reay, a Professor of Carbon Management at the University of Edinburgh, says this new research is credible from an academic perspective.

"It's an impressive piece of research. This study shows just how important assumptions about how much carbon is emitted for any given activity are," Reay says.

"Most nations still rely heavily on 'default' emission factors from the IPCC for their annual emissions accounts. Inevitably these broad averages can mean national estimates end up being under or overestimates of the real emissions. By developing updated, location-specific emission factors the uncertainties can be reduced and governments can better plan their climate change mitigation efforts," Reay says.

Michael Rea, Chief Operating Officer at the Carbon Trust, a London based non-profit organization, says the new research does not change the core issues that need to be addressed in Paris.

"China is still the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases, and based on current global trajectories we are well off track for meeting the international ambition of limiting global warming to within 2 degrees Celsius," Rea says.

"China has already demonstrated clear leadership in making progress to decarbonise its economy through its 12th 5-year plan, and 13th currently under preparation. From a Carbon Trust perspective we believe it is critical that China continues to show ambition and demonstrate action as China's decisions really matter at a global level," Rea says.

To contact the reporter: cecily.liu@mail.chinadailyuk.com