Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in China in 2011 increased to their highest level since networked stations began collecting data in 1990, according to China's first Greenhouse Gas Bulletin.

Released by the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) on January 14, the bulletin showed carbon dioxide levels measured at 392.2 parts per million at Waliguan Station in sparsely populated Qinghai Province in northwest China, the highest since the station began operating in 1990.

The figures, revealed in Shenyang, capital of northeastern Liaoning Province, were also slightly higher than the global averages in all GHG components including atmospheric carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxides.

The bulletin was based on data collected by seven atmospheric background stations established and operated by the CMA. Four of the stations have been listed in the World Meteorological Organization's Global Atmosphere Watch Program directory.

The bulletin showed that the annual average GHG emissions observed by three regional stations set up in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, Beijing and eastern Zhejiang Province were all higher than figures collected at the Waliguan Station.