- Italian research found China’s emissions in making solar panels are not available
- China uses coal-burning facilities to make 80 percent of the world’s panels
DAILY MAIL
Solar panels release five times more carbon dioxide than previously thought, according to a new report.
An Italian researcher made the claims after finding a database that world institutions use to calculate global carbon footprint projections omits emissions from China, which produces 80 percent of solar panels worldwide.
China is known to use coal-burning plants in manufacturing, which has dropped the price of technology for Americans and other Western countries.
Without data from China, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) claims the solar photovoltaic (PV) industry emissions are 48 gCO2/kWh.
However, the new analysis suggests that the number is closer to 170 and 250 gCO2/kWh – 62.5 percent as much carbon dioxide emissions as natural gas electricity generation.
