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by ceejayoz 289 days ago
Pot, meet kettle. Now do it per-capita.
1 comments

https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/co-emissions-per-capita

Sadly shows China going up, sharply until 2011, then more modestly. The latest 2023 data shows 8t/capita where the EU average is about 6 (not every EU country is rich, but sounds like that ought to be enough for a decent lifestyle) and US 14

> Sadly shows China going up, sharply until 2011, then more modestly.

And how does their current value compare to the US?

> And how does their current value compare to the US?

Read my comment?

Looks like the US is decreasing from the chart.
That's non-responsive to the question (and the article headline implies that's not even the case this year).

Which country currently produces more emissions per capita?

Canada. But there aren't that many of us, and the absolute number and political units also matter if you care about warming as a practical problem. There are two interesting things about per capita CO2eq in this graph.

1. China is still trending up and the US is still trending down. It's dangerous to make straight-line projections but they are on trend to meet at some point.

2. The US per capita emissions appear to be on a steady downward trend since 1850. This is even more obvious if you discount the anomalous periods of the civil war and the Great Depression. You have to admit, that's something that demands unpacking.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/s4fy286y7gwpqgmeltark/Screens...

Edit: Looks like Mongolia, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and the UAE have the honour of being at the top actually. Might not be a comprehensive list.

> The US per capita emissions appear to be on a steady downward trend since 1850. You have to admit, that's something that demands unpacking.

Indeed, because it's extremely wrong. In 1850 the US emitted 0.84 tons per capita. In 2023 it emitted around 14 tons. That is down from around 21 tons in 2000.