China commits to cutting up to 10% of its climate pollution, short of the goal other countries sought of it

The Datang Tuoketuo Power Plant in Tuoketuo in China in 2005 -- one of the largest coal-fired power plants in the world. Natalie Behring/Bloomberg/Getty Images

In a consequential move for the global climate, China committed Wednesday to reduce its planet-warming pollution by 7% to 10% from peak levels over the next decade. China’s new economy-wide goal takes on outsized importance given the country is both the biggest emitter of global warming pollutants and by far the dominant player in renewable energy around the world.

The goal, announced in a pre-recorded video by Chinese President Xi Jinping at a UN General Assembly climate meeting, falls far short of the 30% cuts the Biden administration had been pressing for. But China’s growth in renewable energy manufacturing and domestic depl