Skip to main content

Buildout of new coal plants doesn't prove CO2 has no impact on climate | Fact check

Kate S. Petersen   Paste BN
play
Show Caption

The claim: Coal plant construction shows CO2 doesn't cause climate change

A Dec. 14 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) lists the purported number of "coal power stations" 10 different countries are "building."

"Because CO2 doesn't change the climate," reads text above the list.

The post was shared more than 4,000 times in more than two weeks.

More from the Fact-Check Team: How we pick and research claims | Email newsletter | Facebook page

Our rating: False

There is conclusive evidence that CO2 generated by human behavior is causing climate change, according to researchers. Whether or not new coal plants are under construction is a question of national energy policy and isn't proof of how CO2 molecules behave in the atmosphere.

'Overwhelming' evidence human CO2 causing climate change

By the mid-1800s researchers had demonstrated that CO2 is a greenhouse gas. These gases warm the planet by absorbing radiation destined for space and then releasing their own radiation − some of which is directed back down toward the Earth.

"The theory and mathematics of radiation passing through gases are clearly defined," Michael Roman, a planetary scientist at the University of Leicester, previously told Paste BN. The greenhouse effect has "been verified by laboratory experiments and meteorological observations."

Researchers have also documented a steady rise in atmospheric CO2 (and other greenhouse gas) concentrations alongside a rise in global average temperatures.

"The amount of warming we see matches what we expect based on the increased CO2 we've added," Josh Willis, a NASA climate scientist, previously told USA TODAY. "The timing of the warming matches the timing of the CO2 increase caused by people."

More: 'Green' energy needs metal. Can we combat climate change while reducing mining impacts?

Scientists have also documented the effects of this global warming trend, including:

Scientists know increasing CO2 levels are due to human activity because the excess CO2 in the atmosphere matches the amount released by humans after natural processes are accounted for. Additionally, Earth's atmosphere contains a disproportionately high amount of the type of carbon found in fossil fuels.

"There are many different 'fingerprints' that have been clearly identified by scientists as evidence that industrial pollution is the cause of recent global heating," Dargan Frierson, an atmospheric scientist at the University of Washington, previously told Paste BN. "This is not exactly a 'whodunit' situation. The evidence is overwhelming that fossil fuel burning is the culprit."

International coal plant construction

Vetting the purported coal plant construction numbers in the Facebook post is challenging, Carlos Fernandez Alvarez, senior analyst at the International Energy Agency, told Paste BN.

"First, you need to define what a 'coal power station' is," he said. "If someone mentions some metric − megawatts − you can double check. Even if they say 'utility-scale coal power plants.' But if they only say 'coal power stations,' it could include small industrial or residential boilers, which are difficult to track."

The post also doesn't clearly define what is meant by "building," Alvarez said. While it could refer to plants that are currently under construction, it could also potentially reference plants in the permit phase.

"The numbers look too high in a number of countries, but it is difficult to state with certainty that the numbers are wrong," he said.

The Global Energy Monitor Global Coal Plant Tracker keeps a tally of coal plants generating 30 megawatts of power or more. Christine Shearer, an energy data analyst at Global Energy Monitor, provided Paste BN with data that includes new 30-megawatt (or larger) coal plants and additions to existing facilities actively under construction as of June 30, 2024.

This data shows significantly fewer plants under construction than the Facebook post indicates. However, without knowing more about the purported data in the Facebook post, a true comparison is not possible. 

The Facebook user who posted the list did not respond when Paste BN asked where the coal plant figures came from.

Fact check: Coal does, in fact, 'quit.' No form of energy is 100% reliable

Regardless of the number of coal plants under construction, these build-outs are a reflection of national energy policy and do not provide information about the physical properties of the CO2 molecule. If they did, it would be unclear what conclusions should be drawn from, for instance, China's energy policy.

While China leads the world in coal plant build-out, the nation is also installing twice as much solar and wind power as the rest of the world combined, according to Global Energy Monitor. So the country's collective actions don't clearly align with the Facebook logic on power plants and climate change causes.

"These kinds of memes never seem to consider how much solar and wind power China is building," Shearer said.

Our fact-check sources

Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or e-newspaper here.

Paste BN is a verified signatory of the International Fact-Checking Network, which requires a demonstrated commitment to nonpartisanship, fairness and transparency. Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Meta.

Facebook Twitter Email