In a new briefing paper released to coincide with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's meeting about the economic impacts of climate change, WWF shows that the short-term economics which are driving the use of coal to generate cheap power have created a issues in China and other areas that will lead to profound long-term problems.

The report, "Are the costs of using coal higher than the cost of cleaning it up?", says that in the last four years, coal use around the world grew by 22%, a major factor behind the record 3% per year rise in global CO2 emissions.

"Coal is an extremely dirty source of power, and imposes huge costs on people's health, the environment and the economy," said Keith Allott, head of WWF-UK's climate change programme. "Unless governments agree to clean up coal and promote clean alternatives, coal will remain the fuel of choice, particularly in the emerging economies of Asia-Pacific. It is not helpful to simply blame these countries for their use of coal. Governments and industry should recognize that there are high costs in the use of traditional coal use and instead invest in the deployment of pollution reduction technologies."

Reports on the impacts of climate change on China predict a 37% decline in wheat, rice and corn yields in the second half of the century. Rainfall may decline as much as 30% in three of China's seven major river basins. A rise in sea level of 1m will submerge an area the size of Portugal along China's eastern seaboard, home to more than half the country's population and 60% of its economic output.