World’s biggest polluters see success in cutting coal reliance

The world’s biggest polluters are making progress, albeit limited, in cutting their reliance on the dirtiest fossil fuel.

In China, months of heavy rain have replenished reservoirs and led to a surge in hydroelectric power: Electricity production is up 4.8% year-on-year, but coal-powered generation is down by 5.1%, a Bloomberg columnist noted. The country also recently outlined a new strategy to further curb emissions from coal, and approved a record number of new nuclear power plants.

The US, meanwhile, plans to take about 105,000 megawatts of coal-fired power offline by 2035, though that is a downgrade on earlier ambitions because of surging electricity demand after more than a decade of stagnation, The Wall Street Journal reported.