Emissions in 2018 are projected to rise by more than 2 per cent due to an increase in the amount of coal being burned and the sustained use of oil and natural gas, researchers at the Global Carbon Project and University of East Anglia warned on Wednesday.

“The growing global demand for energy is outpacing decarbonisation for now,” lead researcher and UEA professor Corinne Le Quere said.

“This needs to change, and change quickly to address climate change.”

Carbon dioxide emissions rose by 1.6 per cent in 2017 after remaining at the same level for the three years prior.

Representatives from nearly 200 countries are currently holding talks at a UN Climate Change Conference in Katowice, Poland, focusing on the rules for implementing the Paris climate accord.

The pact provides an outline for countries working together to limit the Earth’s warming to between 1.5 and 2 degrees Celsius as compared with pre-industrial times in 1750.

According to the Global Carbon Project, global carbon dioxide emissions in 2017 were dominated by emissions from China (27 per cent), the US (15 per cent), the 28 member states of the EU (10 per cent) and India (7 per cent).

– DPA