May 1, 2024

CO₂ accounted for 74% of global GHG emissions in 2022.

Global CO₂ emissions have been generally increasing year-over-year since 1990 and are up almost 60% from 23,200 Mt in 1990 to 36,800 Mt CO₂ in 2022.

The decline in 2020 was the direct result of the global slowdown resulting from the Covid pandemic.

China is the largest emitter of CO₂ with 10,700 Mt emissions in 2022 followed by US with just under 5,000 Mt CO₂.

Sources:

1. IEA. March 2023. CO₂ Emissions in 2022. Available at https://www.iea.org/reports/co2-emissions-in-2022

2. Global Carbon Budget (GCB). 2022. Available at https://globalcarbonbudget.org/wp-content/uploads/GCP_CarbonBudget_2022_slides_v1.0.pdf