U.S. Second to China in Carbon Emissions as Global Total Increased 3% in 2011

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Written by Richard Finlayson, Senior International Editor for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Although CO2 emissions in some of the regions that historically lead in emissions decreased in 2011, the overall global increase for the year was 3%, representing a record high of 34 billion tons.

China's average per capita CO2 emissions increased by 9% to 7.2 tons, according to a report published by the European Commission's joint research center, in conjunction with the Netherland's environmental assessment agency. If an uncertainty margin of 10% is taken into account, this is similar to the per capita emissions in the European Union (E.U.) of 7.5 million tons in 2011, a year in which the region saw a decrease of 3%.

China, which has the world's largest population, is now well within the 6- to 19-ton-per-capita range covered by the major industrialized countries. The U.S. remained one of the largest emitters. This was after a dramatic decline in U.S. emissions against the backdrop of the 2008/09 recession, since then the country has had high oil prices with low fuel taxes and an increased share of natural gas.

With an overall decrease in 2008 and a 5% surge in 2010, the past decade saw an average annual increase of 2.7%. The top five emitters are: China (with a 29% global share), the U.S. (16%), the E.U.'s 27 member countries (11%), India (6%), Russia (5%) and Japan (4%).

Global emissions continued their historical growth despite the fact that CO2 emissions actually decreased in many Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. The E.U. went down 3%, U.S. went down 2%. OECD countries now account for about 33% of the global total, equivalent to the share of China and India, where emissions increased 9% and 6%, respectively.

High fossil fuel consumption in China, driven by high economic growth, drove emissions. The increase in fuel consumption was led by the increase in building construction and infrastructure expansion, as reflected in the increase of cement and steel production. China's domestic coal consumption grew 9.7% and coal imports increased 10%, as China overtook Japan as the world's largest coal importer.

CO2 emissions from gas flaring have reduced overall by about 25% since 2003 but, according to satellite observation, increased by 50% in the U.S. in 2011. Flaring from gas production from hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in shale oil production is the major cause of this increase.

Emissions avoided by the increased use of renewables as an energy source in 2011 are estimated at about 1.7 billion tons of CO2. This includes hydropower added from 1992. China and Brazil are significantly part of these avoided emissions (33% and 12.5%, respectively), due largely to the increased use of hydropower.

An estimated total of 420 billion tons of CO2 is estimated to have been emitted due to human activities, including deforestation, since 2000. Scientific studies indicate that limiting the average rise in global temperatures to 2C above pre-industrial levels (as adopted at U.N. climate negotiations) is possible if cumulative emissions do not exceed 1,000 to 1,500 billion tons of CO2 in the 2000 to 2050 period. If the current rate of increase in global emissions continues, the total will be surpassed within the next two decades.

For related information, see July 27, 2012, article - U.S. Could Reduce CO2 Emissions to 1990 Levels in 2012, as Gas an Renewables Make Their Mark.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.