What is emissions of air pollutants in New Zealand?

Emissions of air pollutants in New Zealand was 192,144 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 New Zealand?

The highest recorded value was 227,820 tonnes in 2005.

What is the lowest emissions of air pollutants recorded in New Zealand?

The lowest recorded value was 178.09 tonnes in 1750.

How does New Zealand rank for emissions of air pollutants?

New Zealand ranks 70th out of 220 countries with data for 2022.

Is emissions of air pollutants rising or falling in New Zealand?

Over the last ten years it is down 9.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.

Where does this New Zealand 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 New Zealand

Name: Emissions of air pollutants in New Zealand
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)

New Zealand: Emissions of air pollutants was 192,144 tonnes in 2022. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2022)

192,144 tonnes

Change on year

down 4.1%

World rank

70th

of 220 countries

All-time high

227,820 tonnes

in 2005

All-time low

178.09 tonnes

in 1750

Years of data

273

1750–2022

Emissions of air pollutants in New Zealand, 1750–2022

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

Analysis

New Zealand recorded 192,144 tonnes for emissions of air pollutants in 2022.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 4.1% on the previous year and down 9.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, emissions of air pollutants in New Zealand peaked at 227,820 tonnes in 2005 and was at its lowest, 178.09 tonnes, in 1750.

New Zealand ranks 70th of 220 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

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	191.44 tonnes	178.09 tonnes	204.79 tonnes	10
1760s	223.33 tonnes	207.75 tonnes	238.9 tonnes	10
1770s	260.53 tonnes	242.36 tonnes	278.7 tonnes	10
1780s	303.93 tonnes	282.74 tonnes	325.12 tonnes	10
1790s	354.55 tonnes	329.83 tonnes	379.27 tonnes	10
1800s	420.13 tonnes	384.76 tonnes	456.01 tonnes	10
1810s	506.56 tonnes	464.15 tonnes	549.56 tonnes	10
1820s	610.11 tonnes	559.31 tonnes	661.62 tonnes	10
1830s	734.1 tonnes	673.28 tonnes	795.73 tonnes	10
1840s	882.44 tonnes	809.69 tonnes	956.15 tonnes	10
1850s	1,068 tonnes	968.35 tonnes	1,172 tonnes	10
1860s	1,365 tonnes	1,196 tonnes	1,548 tonnes	10
1870s	1,959 tonnes	1,591 tonnes	2,878 tonnes	10
1880s	4,317 tonnes	3,324 tonnes	5,116 tonnes	10
1890s	6,085 tonnes	5,321 tonnes	7,309 tonnes	10
1900s	10,665 tonnes	7,915 tonnes	13,007 tonnes	10
1910s	14,239 tonnes	12,470 tonnes	15,419 tonnes	10
1920s	12,775 tonnes	11,210 tonnes	14,775 tonnes	10
1930s	14,498 tonnes	12,952 tonnes	15,525 tonnes	10
1940s	18,982 tonnes	16,125 tonnes	21,438 tonnes	10
1950s	44,287 tonnes	38,726 tonnes	49,878 tonnes	10
1960s	88,280 tonnes	68,349 tonnes	105,807 tonnes	10
1970s	132,335 tonnes	114,054 tonnes	149,541 tonnes	10
1980s	138,874 tonnes	130,494 tonnes	150,043 tonnes	10
1990s	178,157 tonnes	163,075 tonnes	191,691 tonnes	10
2000s	215,663 tonnes	197,037 tonnes	227,820 tonnes	10
2010s	211,037 tonnes	207,331 tonnes	214,094 tonnes	10
2020s	190,045 tonnes	177,724 tonnes	200,267 tonnes	3

Countries ranked near New Zealand

67 Norway 200,483 tonnes compare
68 Romania 198,247 tonnes compare
69 Cambodia 193,897 tonnes compare
71 Portugal 187,940 tonnes compare
72 Angola 183,271 tonnes compare
73 Tanzania 175,303 tonnes compare

See the full ranking of 220 places →

More environment data for New Zealand

Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF 77.84 Mt CO2e (2024)
Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF per capita 14.71 t CO2e/capita (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture 29.69 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) 0.0763 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) 0.671 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Industrial Combustion (Energy) 0.0207 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF 34.4 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) 0.0183 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Transport (Energy) 0.0794 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Waste 3.78 Mt CO2e (2024)

All data for New Zealand →

Frequently asked questions

What is emissions of air pollutants in New Zealand?: Emissions of air pollutants in New Zealand was 192,144 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 New Zealand?: The highest recorded value was 227,820 tonnes in 2005.
What is the lowest emissions of air pollutants recorded in New Zealand?: The lowest recorded value was 178.09 tonnes in 1750.
How does New Zealand rank for emissions of air pollutants?: New Zealand ranks 70th out of 220 countries with data for 2022.
Is emissions of air pollutants rising or falling in New Zealand?: Over the last ten years it is down 9.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this New Zealand 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.