Countries With Highest CO2 Emissions
Until the final decades of the 18th century, before the human population explosion, global CO2 levels were controlled and maintained by the planet’s forests, wetlands and other ecosystems.
But by the end of the 18th century, this balance began to shift as mankind embarked on the first industrial revolution. Coal, railroads and land clearing all began to speed up the release of greenhouse gasses. At the same time, improved agriculture, sanitation and medicines allowed human population growth to accelerate.
Emissions of CO2 are now known to be predominantly anthropogenic, as manufacturing, heavy industry and large scale agriculture try to keep pace with a spiralling human population.
According to data from the Global Carbon Project, the following are the top five CO2 producing countries.
China: Population – 1.44 billion, CO2 emissions per year – 10,065 million tons.
United States: Population – 331 million, CO2 emissions per year – 5,416 million tons.
India: Population – 1.38 billion, CO2 emissions per year – 2,654 million tons.
Russia: Population – 146 million, CO2 emissions per year – 1,711 million tons.
Japan: Population – 126 million, CO2 emissions per year – 1,162 million tons.
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- This topic has 3 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 1 year, 5 months ago by
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According to data from the Global Carbon Project, China, USA, India, Russia and Japan are the top five CO2 producing countries. But should other nations also bear responsibility for this?
China’s manufacturing industry, for example, is one of the primary causes of CO2 emissions. Yet most of China’s manufactured goods are for export to other countries demanding cheaper products for growing populations.
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Apart from possibly small island nations, all countries must collectively bear responsibility for CO2 emissions. We can’t just point the finger at the top 5 and say that they are to blame. Where were your car and television manufactured? Add to that the CO2 emissions from international shipping.
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I’m sure shipping must be responsible for significant CO2 emissions. Look how much is shipped around the globe by air, sea and land. Most of the fresh fruit I look at in the supermarket comes from overseas, so it all requires international shipping. How much would we reduce emissions by if we bought more from local producers?
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This is very true. China manufactures for much of the world, because it can do so cheaply. Manufacturing is one of the primary causes of CO2 emissions, but there are really two issues here. Firstly there are too many of us. Secondly, most us live our lives constantly upgrading old for new. We consume too much. This both increases waste (the old goes in the trash) and necessitates more manufacturing (we want new to replace the old that we’ve discarded).
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