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Emissions data and trends

International data on fossil fuel use and related emissions

Last updated 27 June 2005
Originally answered 18 June 2004

Full Question

How does energy use in the U.S. compare to that of other countries? How does the U.S. compare to other countries in terms of greenhouse gas emissions?

Answer

There are several key sources of information that permit international comparisons of energy use and emissions. Among these are:

International Energy Agency
Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
U.S. Energy Information Administration
Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (CDIAC)

The sources, discussed below, vary according to the levels of detail, time periods covered, methodologies, etc. Using these and other sources, there are many ways to compare the U.S. to other countries. You can compare total energy use or emissions, compare use of individual fuels, emissions from specific sectors (transportation for example), per capita energy use and emissions, etc. Using data from the International Energy Agency, we provide in the table below a sampling of comparisons between the U.S., the countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (the OECD, which includes most developed countries -- including the U.S.) and the world.

International Energy Agency

The International Energy Agency collects statistics on energy use from most countries and periodically issues reports that present and analyze the data. A lot of the information is available online. For a quick overview, see Key World Energy Statistics -- 2004 Edition (2004) [PDF]. Below are some of the data from that report for the US, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the world.

Selected Energy & CO₂ Emissions Indicators for 2002
	US	OECD	World
Population (million)	287.46	1,145.06	6,195.66
Gross Domestic Product or GDP (billion 95 US$)	9,196.40	28,435.02	35,317.65
GDP (Purchasing Power Parity or PPP) (billion 95 US$)	9,196.40	25,374.85	43,413.48
Total Primary Energy Supply or TPES (Mtoe)	2,290.41	5,345.72	10,230.67
TPES / Population (toe / capita)	7.97	4.67	1.65
TPES / GDP (toe / 000 95 US$)	0.25	0.19	0.29
TPES / GDP (PPP) (toe / 000 95 US$ PPP)	0.25	0.21	0.24
CO₂ Emissions from fuel combustion (Mt of CO₂)	5,652.30	12,554.03	24,101.83
CO₂ Emissions / TPES (t CO₂ / toe)	2.47	2.35	2.32
CO₂ Emissions / Population (t CO₂ / capita)	19.66	10.96	3.89
CO₂ Emissions / GDP (kg CO₂ 95 US$)	0.61	0.44	0.68
CO₂ Emissions / GDP (PPP) (kg CO₂ / 95 US$ PPP)	0.61	0.49	0.56
Definitions: GDP: Gross Domestic Product TPES: Total primary energy supply (TPES) is made up of indigenous production + imports - exports - international marine bunkers ± stock changes. For the World Total, international marine bunkers are not subtracted from TPES. Mtoe: Million metric tonnes of oil equivalent toe: metric tonnes of oil equivalent CO₂: Carbon dioxide PPP: Purchasing Power Parity kg: kilogram t: metric tonnes Mt: Million metric tonnes mt: 95 US$: U.S. dollars, 1995 OECD: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The IEA provides additional online access to Energy Statistics, Energy Balances and Graphs . For other items, see IEA Publications, CD Roms and Papers.

Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

The Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) maintains Greenhouse Gas Inventory Data, currently extending from 1990 through 2002. The information is available as both PDF and Microsoft Excel files. Unlike the IEA data, it includes not only CO₂ emissions but also:

CH₄ - Methane
N₂O - Nitrous oxide
PFCs - Perfluorocarbons
HFCs - Hydrofluorocarbons
SF₆ - Sulphur hexafluoride
CO - Carbon monoxide
NO_X - Nitrogen oxides
NMVOCs - Non-methane volatile organic compounds
SO_X - Sulphur oxides

The UNFCCC site also provides informative graphics such as:

U.S. Energy Information Administration

While the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) focuses primarily on the U.S., it also produces reports that facilitate comparisons between the U.S. and other countries. The International Energy Annual includes a set of Microsoft Excel files that provide country-by-country data on CO₂ emissions associated with fossil fuel use. The EIA's International Energy Outlook also is useful in assessing long-term prospects for energy use and related carbon emissions.

Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (CDIAC)

The Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (CDIAC) provides Carbon Dioxide Emissions from Fossil-Fuel Consumption for major countries and regions, and for the world. Unlike either the IEA or UNFCCC, the CDIAC data extends back for many years -- to the 18th century for some data sets.

The above entry is posted under the following topic(s): Emissions data and trends •

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Where is information on U.S. energy demand and related greenhouse gas emissions?

Last updated 16 June 2005
Originally answered 18 June 2004

Full Question

Where can I find information on U.S. energy demand and related greenhouse gas emissions?

Answer

The U.S. Energy Information Administration's (EIA) Annual Energy Review 2003 (2004) is a good basic source of information on U.S. energy demand. See especially the chapters on Energy Consumption by Sector and Environmental Indicators. For more detailed data on energy-related emissions, see the EIA's Emissions of Greenhouse Gases in the United States, 2003 [PDF] (published in 2004); or the Environmental Protection Agency's Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990 – 2003 (April 2005).

The above entry is posted under the following topic(s): Mitigation of Climate Change • Energy End-Use and Infrastructure • Emissions data and trends •

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Excluding fossil fuel combustion, how else do humans affect the carbon cycle?

Last updated 15 November 2001
Originally answered 15 November 2001

Full Question

Excluding fossil fuel combustion, how else do humans affect the carbon cycle?

Answer

Data on CO₂ emissions from all sources, including cement manufacture, can be found in the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) report “EPA Inventory (2002) of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions & Sinks: 1990-2000” http://www.epa.gov/oppeoee1/globalwarming/publications/emissions/us2002/index.html, especially Chapter 3. Industrial Processes
http://www.epa.gov/oppeoee1/globalwarming/publications/emissions/us2002/industrial_processes.pdf

These other sources also have CO₂ emissions data and information:

Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center.
http://cdiac.esd.ornl.gov/by_new/bysubjec.html#carbon

International Energy Agency, Greenhouse Gas Research & Development Programme.
A conference report- Emission Reduction of Greenhouse Gases from the Cement Industry
http://www.ieagreen.org.uk/prghgt42.htm

News report on an article in Science, Oct. 2000. “Humans Altered Global Carbon Cycle In Last 200 Years”
http://www.climateark.org/articles/2000/4th/hualglcc.htm

The above entry is posted under the following topic(s): Emissions data and trends • Global Carbon Cycle • Human Contributions and Responses •

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