Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from Waste in North America
North America: Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from Waste was 11.28 Mt CO2e in 2024. ▲ Rising
Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from Waste in North America, 1970–2024
Source: EDGAR (Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research) Community GHG Database, Joint Research Centre (JRC) - European Commission. Measured in Mt CO2e.
Analysis
In 2024, nitrous oxide (n2o) emissions from waste in North America stood at 11.28 Mt CO2e. That is the highest value across all 55 years on record.
The figure is up 1.0% on the previous year and up 15.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, nitrous oxide (n2o) emissions from waste in North America peaked at 11.28 Mt CO2e in 2024 and was at its lowest, 4.75 Mt CO2e, in 1970.
North America ranks 29th of 47 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 55 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 4.94 Mt CO2e | 4.75 Mt CO2e | 5.17 Mt CO2e | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.58 Mt CO2e | 5.12 Mt CO2e | 6.02 Mt CO2e | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.03 Mt CO2e | 6.14 Mt CO2e | 7.94 Mt CO2e | 10 |
| 2000s | 8.67 Mt CO2e | 8.09 Mt CO2e | 9.05 Mt CO2e | 10 |
| 2010s | 9.92 Mt CO2e | 9.14 Mt CO2e | 10.73 Mt CO2e | 10 |
| 2020s | 11.05 Mt CO2e | 10.81 Mt CO2e | 11.28 Mt CO2e | 5 |
Countries ranked near North America
More environment data for North America
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF 6,681 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF per capita 17.52 t CO2e/capita (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture 287.88 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) 10.28 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) 490.59 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Industrial Combustion (Energy) 1.79 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF 976.47 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) 2.16 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Transport (Energy) 4.17 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Waste 178.39 Mt CO2e (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is nitrous oxide (n2o) emissions from waste in North America?
- Nitrous oxide (n2o) emissions from waste in North America was 11.28 Mt CO2e in 2024, according to EDGAR (Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research) Community GHG Database, Joint Research Centre (JRC) - European Commission.
- What is the highest nitrous oxide (n2o) emissions from waste recorded in North America?
- The highest recorded value was 11.28 Mt CO2e in 2024.
- What is the lowest nitrous oxide (n2o) emissions from waste recorded in North America?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.75 Mt CO2e in 1970.
- How does North America rank for nitrous oxide (n2o) emissions from waste?
- North America ranks 29th out of 47 groups with data for 2024.
- Is nitrous oxide (n2o) emissions from waste rising or falling in North America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this North America data come from?
- The figures come from EDGAR (Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research) Community GHG Database, Joint Research Centre (JRC) - European Commission, published as part of Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from Waste (Mt CO2e). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 55 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
A measure of annual emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O), one of the six Kyoto greenhouse gases (GHG), from the waste sector. This includes emissions from solid waste (IPCC 2006 codes 4.A Solid Waste Disposal, 4.B Biological Treatment of Solid Waste, 4.C Incineration and Open Burning of Waste) and wastewater treatment (IPCC 2006 code 4.D Wastewater Treatment and Discharge). The measure is standardized to carbon dioxide equivalent values using the Global Warming Potential (GWP) factors of IPCC's 5th Assessment Report (AR5).