United States - Other greenhouse gas emissions, HFC, PFC and SF6 (thousand metric tons of CO2 equivalent)

The value for Other greenhouse gas emissions, HFC, PFC and SF6 (thousand metric tons of CO2 equivalent) in United States was 37,873 as of 2016. As the graph below shows, over the past 46 years this indicator reached a maximum value of 196,775 in 1988 and a minimum value of -90,111 in 1970.

Definition: Other greenhouse gas emissions are by-product emissions of hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride.

Source: World Bank staff estimates from original source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC)/Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL). Emission Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR): http://edgar.jrc.ec.europa.eu/.

See also:

Year Value
1970 -90,111
1971 92,015
1972 90,580
1973 92,329
1974 104,390
1975 89,819
1976 112,316
1977 129,745
1978 136,715
1979 143,937
1980 134,116
1981 140,749
1982 130,211
1983 157,171
1984 154,458
1985 159,184
1986 154,790
1987 -2,819
1988 196,775
1989 160,964
1990 -11,271
1991 -15,759
1992 -12,788
1993 -7,607
1994 -11,868
1995 5,925
1996 14,821
1997 118,951
1998 148,570
1999 141,874
2000 109,550
2001 118,678
2002 38,004
2003 26,839
2004 58,947
2005 64,438
2006 90,577
2007 102,611
2008 109,824
2009 114,028
2010 85,723
2011 2,914
2012 -1,687
2013 64,461
2014 3,349
2015 29,416
2016 37,873

Development Relevance: The addition of man-made greenhouse gases to the Atmosphere disturbs the earth's radiative balance. This is leading to an increase in the earth's surface temperature and to related effects on climate, sea level rise and world agriculture. Emissions of CO2 are from burning oil, coal and gas for energy use, burning wood and waste materials, and from industrial processes such as cement production. Emission intensity is the average emission rate of a given pollutant from a given source relative to the intensity of a specific activity. Emission intensities are also used to compare the environmental impact of different fuels or activities. The related terms - emission factor and carbon intensity - are often used interchangeably. The carbon dioxide emissions of a country are only an indicator of one greenhouse gas. For a more complete idea of how a country influences climate change, gases such as methane and nitrous oxide should be taken into account. This is particularly important in agricultural economies. The environmental effects of carbon dioxide are of significant interest. Carbon dioxide (CO2) makes up the largest share of the greenhouse gases contributing to global warming and climate change. Converting all other greenhouse gases (methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), Sulphur hexafluoride (SF6)) to carbon dioxide (or CO2) equivalents makes it possible to compare them and to determine their individual and total contributions to global warming. The Kyoto Protocol, an environmental agreement adopted in 1997 by many of the parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), is working towards curbing CO2 emissions globally.

Limitations and Exceptions: National reporting to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change that follows the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change guidelines is based on national emission inventories and covers all sources of anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions as well as carbon sinks (such as forests). To estimate emissions, the countries that are Parties to the Climate Change Convention (UNFCCC) use complex, state-of-the-art methodologies recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Statistical Concept and Methodology: Other greenhouse gas emissions are by-product emissions of hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride (F-gases (c-C4F8 GWP=8700, C2F6 GWP=9200, C3F8 GWP=7000, C4F10 GWP=7000, C5F12 GWP=7500, C6F14 GWP=7400, C7F16 GWP=7820, CF4 GWP=6500, HFC-125 GWP=2800, HFC-134a GWP=1300, HFC-143a GWP=3800, HFC-152a GWP=140, HFC-227ea GWP=2900, HFC-23 GWP=11700, HFC-236fa GWP=6300, HFC-245fa GWP=858, HFC-32 GWP=650, HFC-365mfc GWP=804, HFC-43-10-mee GWP=1300, SF6 GWP=23900). Derived as residuals from total GHG emissions, CO2 emissions, CH4 emissions, and N2O emissions in kt of CO equivalent. Other greenhouse gases covered under the Kyoto Protocol are hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride. Although emissions of these artificial gases are small, they are more powerful greenhouse gases than carbon dioxide, with much higher atmospheric lifetimes and high global warming potential. The emissions are usually expressed in carbon dioxide equivalents using the global warming potential, which allows the effective contributions of different gases to be compared.

Aggregation method: Sum

Periodicity: Annual

Classification

Topic: Environment Indicators

Sub-Topic: Emissions