Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) index shows rich countries not doing enough to reduce emissions. /Graphics by CGTN's Du Chenxin

Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) index shows rich countries not doing enough to reduce emissions. /Graphics by CGTN's Du Chenxin

China's effort to tackle climate change has witnessed marginal improvement over the past year. However, a large number of rich countries continue to emit climate harming gases, said a study.

China has moved up three spots to rank 30th from last year's 33rd on the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) rankings released during the ongoing Global Climate Change Summit in Madrid, Spain on Tuesday.

"China exerted huge efforts to cut fossil fuels and emissions in a coordinated way, however, due to the turbulence of economy and trade still performed under expectation from the international community," said a statement from the GermanWatch and Climate Action Network (CAN).

The rankings are based on greenhouse gas emissions, use of renewable energy, energy consumption and climate policies implemented by governments to curb global warming.

Researchers pointed out that the country scores with a very good performance for its increased share of renewables in the energy mix over recent years and relatively good policy ratings, but the poor performance in emissions and energy efficiency still weighs heavily.

"If China implements its extensive plans for new coal-fired power plants, there is a risk of a severe relapse to the bottom of the ranking," they warned.

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