Trends in global CO2 and total greenhouse gas emissions: Summary of the 2017 report

Non-CO2 emisssions main cause increase global green house gas emissions

The increase in GHG emissions is mainly due to the rise of non-CO₂ emission levels in 2016, which was estimated at around 1%. With a share of about 28%, the non-CO₂ GHG emissions are a significant source of global GHG emissions. Of those, methane, constituting about 19% of global emissions, is by far the largest category. Its main sources are fossil fuel production (25%), cattle (23%) and rice production (10%).

The figures quoted above for total GHG emissions do not include net CO₂ emissions from land use change. Those land-use related emissions are much more uncertain and can show large interannual variations. Estimated at about 4.1 Gt CO₂ eq., they bring the total GHG emissions in 2016 to approximately 53.4 Gt CO₂ eq.

Global CO₂ emission level remains essentially flat in 2015 and 2016

Global CO₂ emission levels remained essentially flat in 2015 and 2016, with respective increases of -0.2% and 0.3% (±0.5%), especially when accounting for 2016 being a leap year and thus 0.3% longer. The recent slowdown in growth of CO₂ is mainly the result of lower coal consumption from fuel switches to gas for power generation and increased renewable power generation.

Emissions in largest countries stabilise or drop, India shows major increase

The five largest emitting countries plus the European Union, which together account for 51% of the world population, accounted for 68% of total global CO₂ emissions and about 63% of total global GHG emissions. Of those largest emitters, only India has shown a significantly rising trend of GHG emissions in 2016 (+4.7%). Russia and the United States have shown a decreasing trend (both -2.0%) as did Japan (-1.3%), whereas China, the European Union and the group of other G20 members have stayed virtually at the same level as in 2015. Other growth in global GHG emissions mainly occurs in other developing countries.