Cumulative CO₂ emissions from land-use change in Australia
Australia: Cumulative CO₂ emissions from land-use change was 13.97 billion tonnes in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Cumulative CO₂ emissions from land-use change in Australia, 1850–2024
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 land-use change in Australia is 13.97 billion tonnes, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 175 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 4.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change in Australia peaked at 13.97 billion tonnes in 2024 and was at its lowest, 8.67 million tonnes, in 1850.
That places Australia 15th out of 197 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
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850s | 56.04 million tonnes | 8.67 million tonnes | 108.29 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1860s | 193.16 million tonnes | 122.00 million tonnes | 268.57 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1870s | 419.98 million tonnes | 290.50 million tonnes | 558.67 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1880s | 708.67 million tonnes | 587.76 million tonnes | 828.05 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1890s | 1.06 billion tonnes | 864.09 million tonnes | 1.28 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 1900s | 1.54 billion tonnes | 1.33 billion tonnes | 1.76 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 1910s | 2.00 billion tonnes | 1.81 billion tonnes | 2.19 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 1920s | 2.93 billion tonnes | 2.28 billion tonnes | 3.67 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 1930s | 4.14 billion tonnes | 3.79 billion tonnes | 4.42 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 1940s | 4.70 billion tonnes | 4.47 billion tonnes | 4.92 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 1950s | 5.68 billion tonnes | 5.02 billion tonnes | 6.47 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 1960s | 7.60 billion tonnes | 6.64 billion tonnes | 8.60 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 1970s | 8.80 billion tonnes | 8.66 billion tonnes | 9.13 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 9.70 billion tonnes | 9.23 billion tonnes | 9.91 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 1990s | 10.10 billion tonnes | 9.76 billion tonnes | 10.74 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 11.53 billion tonnes | 10.96 billion tonnes | 12.13 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.33 billion tonnes | 12.68 billion tonnes | 13.69 billion tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.88 billion tonnes | 13.79 billion tonnes | 13.97 billion tonnes | 5 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More climate change data for Australia
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 0.4% (2100)
- Population growth 1.5% (2025)
- Population, total 27.61 million (2025)
- Urban population growth 1.7% (2025)
- Urban population 24.22 million (2025)
- Urban population 87.7% (2025)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. GDP per capita 14.48 tonnes per person (2024)
- Cumulative CO₂ emissions 20.04 billion tonnes (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita 14.48 tonnes per person (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. share of electricity generation from renewables 14.48 tonnes per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change in Australia?
- Cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change in Australia was 13.97 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 land-use change recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 13.97 billion tonnes in 2024.
- What is the lowest cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.67 million tonnes in 1850.
- How does Australia rank for cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change?
- Australia ranks 15th out of 197 countries with data for 2024.
- Is cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Australia 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 land-use change. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 175 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Cumulative emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from land-use change since the first year of available data, measured in tonnes.