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- Last Updated: 08 January 2020 08 January 2020
Global carbon (C) emissions from fossil fuel use were 9.795 gigatonnes (Gt) in 2014 (or 35.9 GtCO2 of carbon dioxide). Fossil fuel emissions were 0.6% above emissions in 2013 and 60% above emissions in 1990 (the reference year in the Kyoto Protocol).
Based on a 2015 GDP forecast of 3.1% by the International Monetary Fund, the Global Carbon Project projects a 2015 decline of 0.6% in global emissions.
Annual Global Carbon Emissions
2015 Global Carbon Budget
| Global Emissions | |||||
Year |
Total
|
Fossil Fuel
|
Land-Use
|
||
| 2014 | 9.795 GtC | ~ 0.9 Gtc | |||
|
2013 |
|
9.735 GtC | |||
|
2012 |
|
9.575 GtC | |||
|
2011 |
|
9.449 GtC | |||
|
2010 |
9.995 Gtc |
9.140 GtC | 0.855 GtC | ||
|
2009 |
9.567 Gtc |
8.700 GtC | 0.867 GtC | ||
|
2008 |
9.666 Gtc |
8.740 GtC | 0.926 GtC | ||
|
2007 |
9.472 Gtc |
8.532 GtC | 0.940 GtC | ||
|
2006 |
9.355 Gtc |
8.363 GtC | 0.992 GtC | ||
Source Data Global Carbon Project [.xlxs]
*Convert carbon to carbon dioxide (CO2) by multiplying the numbers above by 3.67.
1 gigatonne of carbon (GtC) = 1 billion tonnes of carbon
Human Sources
Fossil fuel emissions (including cement production) accounted for about 91% of total CO2 emissions from human sources in 2014. This portion of emissions originates from coal (42%), oil (33%), gas (19%), cement (6%) and gas flaring (1%).
Changes in land use are responsible for about 9% of all global CO2 emissions.
In 2013, the largest national contributions to the net growth in total global emissions in 2013 were China (58% of the growth), USA (20% of the growth), India (17% of the growth), and EU28 (a decrease by 11% of the growth).
Natural Sinks
For the decade from 2005 to 2014, about 44% of CO2 emissions accumulated in the atmosphere, 26% in the ocean, and 30% on land.
Cumulative Emisions
From 1870 to 2014, cumulative carbon emissions totaled about 545 GtC. Emissions were partitioned among the atmosphere (approx. 230 GtC or 42%), ocean (approx. 155 GtC or 28%) and the land (approx. 160 GtC or 29%).
Atmospheric Accumulation
The 2014 level of CO2 in the atmospheric was 43% above the level when the Industrial Revolution started in 1750.
Quick Links
GCP 2015 global carbon budget highlights (compact)
CDIAC Data for Global Carbon Project (all years) [2015 .xlxs]
CDIAC DATA: Global CO2 emissions 1751-2011 [files] [more]
ESSD Le Quéré et al. | Global Carbon Budget 2015 [.pdf]
CO2 in Context Foley, 2020: 3 most important climate graphs [web]
IPCC Carbon Budget
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IPCC Carbon Budget
Countries that signed the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change adopted a target to stop the average global temperature from rising before it reaches 2°C above pre-industrial levels.
The Fifth Assessment Report of the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) quantifies the glboal maximum CO2 the world can still emit and also have a likely chance of keeping global average temperature rise below 2°C above pre-industrial temperatures. It reports that the goal is likely to be met if cumulative emissions (including the 535 GtC emitted by the end of 2013) do not exceeed 1 trillion tonnes of carbon (PgC). A gigatonne of carbon (1 GtC) is the same as a petagram of carbon (1 PgC).
If you accept the 2°C target, the world need to emit no more than 465 GtC by the time carbon emissions end. Many developing countries also support a reduction in the target to keep global average temperature increases below 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
Emissions Visual
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Visualize 1 Year of Earth's CO2 Emissions
NASA A Year in the Life of Earth's CO2
This 2014 video uses 2006 data and a high-resolution NASA computer model to simulate how natural and human emissions of CO2 traevel through the earth's atmosphere in one year starting January 1, 2006.Source Video NASA Goddard | YouTube
Links
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Links
Reports
GCP Previous Global Carbon Budgets
GCP 2013 Methane Budget (Sep. 23, 2013)
IPCC WEB | Climate Change 2014 Synthesis (AR5)
Data
CDIAC Global carbon budget data archive
Global Carbon Project Underlying data sources
University of East Anglia Primary data
Nature Geoscience Update on CO2 emissions
CarboEurope.org Global Carbon Budget 1958-2007 (Creating graphs from data files)
SkS Linking CO2 emissions and atmospheric CO2 concentrations
Resources & Analysis
Yale e360 2014 Pearce | What is the carbon limit? Depends who you ask
Climate Central 2013 Freedman | IPCC report has grave C budget
WRI Understanding the IPCC Reports (infographics)
Information is Beautiful How Much Carbon? (a visualization)
Climate Researches Sponsorship: USAA | 12M Loans | NASA
Woods Hole 2007 Balancing the global carbon budget
National Geographic CO2 Bathtub Info Graphic | Page 2
Climate Interactive C-Learn Climate Simulator
Global Carbon Cycle
GCP Science framework and implementation
EPA Video | All about carbon dioxide For Kids
NASA Earth Observatory 2011 The carbon cycle
UNESCO 2006 The global carbon cycle
Papers
Canadell, J. G., Quéré, C. L., Raupach, M. R., Field, C. B., Buitenhuis, E. T., Ciais, P., . . . Marland, G. (2007). Contributions to accelerating atmospheric CO₂ growth from economic activity, carbon intensity, and efficiency of natural sinks. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 104(47), 18866-18870. doi:10.2307/25450516
Keeling, C. D., Piper, S. C., Whorf, T. P., & Keeling, R. F. (2011). Evolution of natural and anthropogenic fluxes of atmospheric CO2 from 1957 to 2003. Tellus: Series B, 63(1), 1-22. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0889.2010.00507.x
Keeling, R. F. (2005). Comment on "The ocean sink for anthropogenic CO2". Science, 308(5729), 1743. doi:10.1126/science.1109620
Le Quéré, C., Moriarty, R., Andrew, R. M., Canadell, J. G., Sitch, S., Korsbakken, J. I., . . . Zeng, N. (2015). Global carbon budget 2015. Earth System Science Data, 7(2), 349-396. doi:10.5194/essd-7-349-2015 [.pdf]
Le Quéré, C., Raupach, M. R., Canadell, J. G., Marland, G., & et al. (2009). Trends in the sources and sinks of carbon dioxide. Nature Geoscience, 2(12), 831-836. doi:10.1038/ngeo689
Manning, A. C., & Keeling, R. F. (2006). Global oceanic and land biotic carbon sinks from the Scripps atmospheric oxygen flask sampling network. Tellus: Series B, 58(2), 95-116. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0889.2006.00175.x
Raupach, M. R. (2013). The exponential eigenmodes of the carbon-climate system, and their implications for ratios of responses to forcings. Earth System Dynamics, 4(1), 31-49. doi:10.5194/esd-4-31-2013
Sabine, C. L., Feely, R. A., Gruber, N., Key, R. M., Lee, K., Bullister, J. L., . . . Rios, A. F. (2004). The oceanic sink for anthropogenic CO2. Science, 305(5682), 367-371. doi:10.2307/3837507
