Cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring in United States

United States: Cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring was 2.47 billion tonnes in 2024. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2024)
2.47 billion tonnes
Change on year
up 2.6%
World rank
1st
of 215 countries
All-time high
2.47 billion tonnes
in 2024
All-time low
43.12 million tonnes
in 1950
Years of data
75
1950–2024

Cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring in United States, 1950–2024

0500.0M1.0B1.5B2.0B2.5B195019872024

Source: Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.

Analysis

The most recent figure for cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring in United States is 2.47 billion tonnes, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 75 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.6% on the previous year and up 34.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring in United States peaked at 2.47 billion tonnes in 2024 and was at its lowest, 43.12 million tonnes, in 1950.

That places United States 1st out of 215 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 234.40 million tonnes 43.12 million tonnes 410.66 million tonnes 10
1960s 543.19 million tonnes 440.98 million tonnes 651.10 million tonnes 10
1970s 727.48 million tonnes 677.35 million tonnes 766.70 million tonnes 10
1980s 798.06 million tonnes 773.39 million tonnes 826.71 million tonnes 10
1990s 1.05 billion tonnes 869.38 million tonnes 1.22 billion tonnes 10
2000s 1.42 billion tonnes 1.26 billion tonnes 1.59 billion tonnes 10
2010s 1.87 billion tonnes 1.63 billion tonnes 2.16 billion tonnes 10
2020s 2.34 billion tonnes 2.22 billion tonnes 2.47 billion tonnes 5

Countries ranked near United States

  1. 2 Iran 1.74 billion tonnes compare
  2. 3 Russia 1.74 billion tonnes compare
  3. 4 Nigeria 1.57 billion tonnes compare

See the full ranking of 215 places →

More climate change data for United States

All data for United States →

Frequently asked questions

What is cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring in United States?
Cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring in United States was 2.47 billion tonnes in 2024, according to Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring recorded in United States?
The highest recorded value was 2.47 billion tonnes in 2024.
What is the lowest cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring recorded in United States?
The lowest recorded value was 43.12 million tonnes in 1950.
How does United States rank for cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring?
United States ranks 1st out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
Is cumulative co₂ emissions from flaring rising or falling in United States?
Over the last ten years it is up 34.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this United States 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 flaring. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 75 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Cumulative CO₂ emissions from flaring
Unit
tonnes
Source
Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
215 places, 12,483 data points, 1750–2024
Last refreshed

Cumulative emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from flaring since the first year of available data, measured in tonnes.