What is emissions of air pollutants in Italy?

Emissions of air pollutants in Italy was 748,652 tonnes in 2022, according to Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data.

What is the highest emissions of air pollutants recorded in Italy?

The highest recorded value was 2.39 million tonnes in 1992.

What is the lowest emissions of air pollutants recorded in Italy?

The lowest recorded value was 5,104 tonnes in 1750.

How does Italy rank for emissions of air pollutants?

Italy ranks 34th out of 220 countries with data for 2022.

Is emissions of air pollutants rising or falling in Italy?

Over the last ten years it is down 28.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.

Where does this Italy data come from?

The figures come from Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Emissions of air pollutants. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Emissions of air pollutants in Italy

Name: Emissions of air pollutants in Italy
Creator: Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Italy: Emissions of air pollutants was 748,652 tonnes in 2022. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2022)

748,652 tonnes

Change on year

up 0.6%

World rank

34th

of 220 countries

All-time high

2.39 million tonnes

in 1992

All-time low

5,104 tonnes

in 1750

Years of data

273

1750–2022

Emissions of air pollutants in Italy, 1750–2022

Source: Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.

Analysis

The most recent figure for emissions of air pollutants in Italy is 748,652 tonnes, measured in 2022.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.6% on the previous year and down 28.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, emissions of air pollutants in Italy peaked at 2.39 million tonnes in 1992 and was at its lowest, 5,104 tonnes, in 1750.

Italy ranks 34th of 220 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1750s	5,169 tonnes	5,104 tonnes	5,233 tonnes	10
1760s	5,314 tonnes	5,248 tonnes	5,381 tonnes	10
1770s	5,464 tonnes	5,396 tonnes	5,532 tonnes	10
1780s	5,618 tonnes	5,547 tonnes	5,688 tonnes	10
1790s	5,775 tonnes	5,703 tonnes	5,847 tonnes	10
1800s	5,943 tonnes	5,863 tonnes	6,023 tonnes	10
1810s	6,123 tonnes	6,041 tonnes	6,206 tonnes	10
1820s	6,398 tonnes	6,224 tonnes	6,571 tonnes	10
1830s	6,794 tonnes	6,609 tonnes	6,978 tonnes	10
1840s	7,215 tonnes	7,019 tonnes	7,410 tonnes	10
1850s	7,631 tonnes	7,474 tonnes	7,779 tonnes	10
1860s	10,727 tonnes	7,863 tonnes	13,179 tonnes	10
1870s	16,776 tonnes	14,740 tonnes	18,706 tonnes	10
1880s	26,155 tonnes	19,916 tonnes	32,567 tonnes	10
1890s	33,517 tonnes	30,973 tonnes	36,494 tonnes	10
1900s	48,566 tonnes	36,722 tonnes	65,633 tonnes	10
1910s	65,712 tonnes	51,724 tonnes	77,411 tonnes	10
1920s	85,900 tonnes	54,396 tonnes	117,241 tonnes	10
1930s	112,981 tonnes	85,940 tonnes	147,073 tonnes	10
1940s	87,804 tonnes	26,184 tonnes	137,619 tonnes	10
1950s	260,030 tonnes	149,991 tonnes	376,419 tonnes	10
1960s	1.36 million tonnes	795,799 tonnes	1.87 million tonnes	10
1970s	2.06 million tonnes	1.88 million tonnes	2.20 million tonnes	10
1980s	2.13 million tonnes	1.97 million tonnes	2.30 million tonnes	10
1990s	2.14 million tonnes	1.77 million tonnes	2.39 million tonnes	10
2000s	1.51 million tonnes	1.18 million tonnes	1.68 million tonnes	10
2010s	949,472 tonnes	834,524 tonnes	1.19 million tonnes	10
2020s	731,603 tonnes	701,731 tonnes	748,652 tonnes	3

Countries ranked near Italy

31 United Kingdom 833,456 tonnes compare
32 France 820,688 tonnes compare
33 Belgium 750,371 tonnes compare
35 Philippines 711,503 tonnes compare
36 Hong Kong 677,510 tonnes compare
37 Turkmenistan 676,311 tonnes compare

See the full ranking of 220 places →

More environment data for Italy

Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF 371.17 Mt CO2e (2024)
Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF per capita 6.3 t CO2e/capita (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture 21.92 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) 2.28 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) 4.49 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Industrial Combustion (Energy) 0.0558 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF 44.9 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) 0.1973 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Transport (Energy) 0.3495 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Waste 15.57 Mt CO2e (2024)

All data for Italy →

Frequently asked questions

What is emissions of air pollutants in Italy?: Emissions of air pollutants in Italy was 748,652 tonnes in 2022, according to Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest emissions of air pollutants recorded in Italy?: The highest recorded value was 2.39 million tonnes in 1992.
What is the lowest emissions of air pollutants recorded in Italy?: The lowest recorded value was 5,104 tonnes in 1750.
How does Italy rank for emissions of air pollutants?: Italy ranks 34th out of 220 countries with data for 2022.
Is emissions of air pollutants rising or falling in Italy?: Over the last ten years it is down 28.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Italy data come from?: The figures come from Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Emissions of air pollutants. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 273 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator: Emissions of air pollutants
Unit: tonnes
Source: Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 220 places, 60,060 data points, 1750–2022
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

Nitrogen oxides (NOₓ) are gases that are mainly formed during the burning of fossil fuels. Exposure to NOₓ gases can have negative impacts on respiratory health. NOₓ gases can also lead to the formation of ozone – another air pollutant.