Build-up · 6 cards
Does cleaner mean fewer emissions?
The clean share of electricity, total emissions and electricity per person are three different numbers. A few countries show how far apart they can drift.
The cards, in order
- China: each kilowatt-hour is 18% cleaner, yet power plants emit 41% more
The clean share rises, and so do emissions: output grows faster.
- Pakistan: the share of power from clean sources rose from 36% to 52%, but coal’s share rose too, from 0.2% to 15%
More clean power and more coal: gas and oil made way.
- Colombia: more electricity, 35% lower power-sector emissions
The reverse happens too: more power, fewer emissions.
- Ethiopia: all its electricity is made without coal, gas or oil, but there is 18 times less of it per person than in a typical country
All the electricity is clean, but there is little per person.
- In China electric cars are 53% of new cars, and coal makes 55% of the electricity
Electric cars are not the same as a clean grid.
- In Norway 97% of new cars are electric, and it produces 17 tonnes of oil per resident a year
A clean grid and clean cars, alongside large oil output.
Share, total and amount are different things
In China each kilowatt-hour became 18% cleaner, while power-plant emissions rose 41%. Ethiopia makes all its electricity without coal, gas or oil, but has 18 times less of it per person than a typical country. In China electric cars are 53% of new cars while coal makes 55% of the power; Norway, with 97% electric cars, produces 17 tonnes of oil per resident a year. Which number matters most depends on the question.