Cumulative CO₂ emissions from coal in Greenland
Greenland: Cumulative CO₂ emissions from coal was 2.17 million tonnes in 1988. ▲ Rising
Cumulative CO₂ emissions from coal in Greenland, 1950–1988
Source: Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
Greenland recorded 2.17 million tonnes for cumulative co₂ emissions from coal in 1988. That is the highest value across all 39 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cumulative co₂ emissions from coal in Greenland peaked at 2.17 million tonnes in 1984 and was at its lowest, 80,608 tonnes, in 1950.
Greenland ranks 127th of 179 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 39 years of available data.
Cumulative CO₂ emissions from coal in Greenland, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 80,608 tonnes | — |
| 1951 | 153,888 tonnes | +90.9% |
| 1952 | 234,496 tonnes | +52.4% |
| 1953 | 315,104 tonnes | +34.4% |
| 1954 | 388,384 tonnes | +23.3% |
| 1955 | 476,320 tonnes | +22.6% |
| 1956 | 549,600 tonnes | +15.4% |
| 1957 | 628,417 tonnes | +14.3% |
| 1958 | 738,337 tonnes | +17.5% |
| 1959 | 829,937 tonnes | +12.4% |
| 1960 | 950,849 tonnes | +14.6% |
| 1961 | 1.07 million tonnes | +12.6% |
| 1962 | 1.18 million tonnes | +10.1% |
| 1963 | 1.32 million tonnes | +12.1% |
| 1964 | 1.41 million tonnes | +6.9% |
| 1965 | 1.49 million tonnes | +5.4% |
| 1966 | 1.60 million tonnes | +7.1% |
| 1967 | 1.72 million tonnes | +7.6% |
| 1968 | 1.82 million tonnes | +6.0% |
| 1969 | 1.90 million tonnes | +4.4% |
| 1970 | 1.98 million tonnes | +4.0% |
| 1971 | 2.05 million tonnes | +3.7% |
| 1972 | 2.07 million tonnes | +0.9% |
| 1973 | 2.11 million tonnes | +1.9% |
| 1974 | 2.13 million tonnes | +1.0% |
| 1975 | 2.13 million tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 2.14 million tonnes | +0.5% |
| 1977 | 2.14 million tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 2.15 million tonnes | +0.3% |
| 1979 | 2.16 million tonnes | +0.3% |
| 1980 | 2.16 million tonnes | +0.2% |
| 1981 | 2.16 million tonnes | +0.2% |
| 1982 | 2.17 million tonnes | +0.2% |
| 1983 | 2.17 million tonnes | +0.2% |
| 1984 | 2.17 million tonnes | +0.2% |
| 1985 | 2.17 million tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 2.17 million tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 2.17 million tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 2.17 million tonnes | +0.0% |
Greenland compared with similar countries
- Greenland's 2.17 million tonnes is below the median for high income countries, which is 374.74 million tonnes, 1% of the median. (68 countries reporting)
- Greenland's 2.17 million tonnes is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 736.72 million tonnes, 0% of the median. (52 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Cumulative CO₂ emissions from coal in Greenland changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | +90.9% | 80,608 tonnes | 153,888 tonnes |
| 1952 | +52.4% | 153,888 tonnes | 234,496 tonnes |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 439,509 tonnes | 80,608 tonnes | 829,937 tonnes | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.45 million tonnes | 950,849 tonnes | 1.90 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1970s | 2.11 million tonnes | 1.98 million tonnes | 2.16 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.17 million tonnes | 2.16 million tonnes | 2.17 million tonnes | 9 |
Countries ranked near Greenland
More climate change data for Greenland
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 148,208 kg (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 0.8215 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 0.8215 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 0.0031 kt (2050)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Emissions (CO2eq) 0.8215 kt (2050)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 0.8215 kt (2050)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Emissions 0.0031 kt (2050)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Direct emissions 0.0023 kt (2050)
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Indirect emissions (N2O that) 0.0002 kt (2050)
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Indirect emissions (N2O that leaches) 0.0005 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cumulative co₂ emissions from coal in Greenland?
- Cumulative co₂ emissions from coal in Greenland was 2.17 million tonnes in 1988, according to Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest cumulative co₂ emissions from coal recorded in Greenland?
- The highest recorded value was 2.17 million tonnes in 1984.
- What is the lowest cumulative co₂ emissions from coal recorded in Greenland?
- The lowest recorded value was 80,608 tonnes in 1950.
- How does Greenland rank for cumulative co₂ emissions from coal?
- Greenland ranks 127th out of 179 countries with data for 1988.
- Is cumulative co₂ emissions from coal rising or falling in Greenland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Greenland data come from?
- The figures come from Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Cumulative CO₂ emissions from coal. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 39 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Cumulative emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from coal since the first year of available data, measured in tonnes.