Climate Killer Carbon Dioxide

Climate Killer Carbon Dioxide

Despite all efforts, Germany is still among the top 10 countries with the highest energy-related emissions in 2023. Following the pandemic-related decline in 2020, record levels of global carbon dioxide emissions have been recorded again since 2021.

Overview

More than two thirds of global carbon dioxide emissions are caused by just 10 countries. Of these, China is the leader with over 30 %. It is followed by the USA with over 13 %. Despite all its efforts, Germany is still in the top 10 in the hit list of climate sinners.

Both the number of inhabitants and per capita emissions play a role in a country's total emissions. For example, one person in the USA produces around twice as much carbon dioxide as one person in Germany and almost seven times as much as one person in India. This also puts China's enormous emissions into perspective: due to its large population, its emissions of 7.9 tons per capita correspond to those of other industrialized countries such as Japan (8.2 t/capita) or Germany (6.9 t/capita) - and that despite the high proportion of export goods that appear in the Chinese emissions balance sheet.

Global carbon dioxide emissions and carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere are increasing continuously. Global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions have more than doubled since 1970 and have even increased more than fifteenfold since the beginning of the last century. Energy-related emissions account for 87 % of total emissions. This shows that the energy transition is a key component in reducing CO2 emissions. It is good that the share of renewable energies is increasing faster than energy demand worldwide.

Emissions hardly rose at all between 2013 and 2016. This gives some hope that a stabilisation and then a trend reversal can be achieved. Emissions last fell in 2020, but this was due to the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, the trend was not permanent: emissions records were set again in 2022 and 2023. Emissions are also expected to rise again in 2024.

The concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has risen from around 290 ppm in 1860 to over 420 ppm in 2024. A value of 450 ppm is widely regarded as the upper limit, which should not be exceeded if possible.

Germany has already used up its emissions budget, which makes the 1.5-degree target achievable, by 2024.

Countries with the highest carbon dioxide emissions from fuel combustion, 2023
No.CountryCO2 emissions in GtPer capita emissions in t
1China11,227,9
2USA4,6413,6
3India2,812,0
4Russia1,6111,2
5Japan1,018,2
6Indonesia0,702,5
7Iran0,687,7
8Saudi-Arabia0,6216,8
9Germany0,576,9
10South Korea0,5711,0

The top 10 countries with the highest emissions are together responsible for 70 % of global emissions.

Source: Energy Institute, Statistical Review of World Energy 2024

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Countries with the highest energy-related carbon dioxide emissions in 2023
Countries with the highest carbon dioxide emissions from fuel combustion, 2019
Source: IEA Key World Energy Statistics 2021, seen: 09/2021

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Development of CO2 emissions from different countries
Development of CO2 emissions from different countries

*Data on Russia from 1985, before that USSR.

Source: Energy Institute, Statistical Review of World Energy 2024

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Development of global CO2 emissions from fuel combustion and CO2 concentration in the atmosphere since 1860
Development of global CO2> emissions from fuel combustion
Sources:

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Development of global CO2 emissions from fuel combustion and CO2 concentration in the atmosphere since 1860
YearCO2 emissions1 in GtCO2 concentration in the atmosphere2 in ppm
202335.1419
202234.6417
202134.0415
202032.3412
201934.1410
201834.1408
201733.3405
201632.8403
201532.8400
201432.8397
201332.7395
201232.3393
201131.9391
201031.1389
200929.8387
200830.4385
200730.1383
200629.1381
200528.2379
200427.1377
200325.8375
200224.6373
200124.0371
200023.7369
199923.1368
199822.8366
199722.8363
199622.6362
199522.0360
199421.7358
199321.5357
199221.4356
199121.3355
199021.3354
198921.2353
198820.9351
198720.2349
198619.6347
198519.2346
198418.8344
198318.2343
198218.0341
198118.1340
198018.4339
197918.6337
197818.0333
197717.6332
197617.1331
197516.2330
197416.2328
197316.3327
197215.5326
197114.8325
197014.3324
196510.9319
19609.1316
19557.3313
19505.8311
19405.0310
19304.1307
19203.7303
19103.2299
19002.1296
18600.4286
Sources:

Creative Commons Lizenzvertrag Volker Quaschning, Jan 2025.

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