Guardian: China now burns nearly as much coal as the rest of the world combined.
The country's appetite for the carbon-intensive fuel rose by 9% in 2011, to 3.8bn tonnes, meaning it now accounts for 47% of worldwide coal consumption.
The growth, revealed by US government figures on Tuesday, was driven by China's booming economy, which has grown at an average rate of around 10% over the past decade. China overtook the US as the world's biggest carbon emitter in 2007, and became the world's biggest consumer...