What is the highest cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change recorded in China?

The highest recorded value was 84.08 billion tonnes in 2013.

What is the lowest cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change recorded in China?

The lowest recorded value was 194.76 million tonnes in 1850.

How does China rank for cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change?

China ranks 4th out of 197 countries with data for 2024.

Is cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change rising or falling in China?

Over the last ten years it is down 2.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.

Where does this China 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.

Cumulative CO₂ emissions from land-use change in China

Name: Cumulative CO₂ emissions from land-use change in China
Creator: Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

China: Cumulative CO₂ emissions from land-use change was 81.69 billion tonnes in 2024. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2024)

81.69 billion tonnes

Change on year

down 0.4%

World rank

4th

of 197 countries

All-time high

84.08 billion tonnes

in 2013

All-time low

194.76 million tonnes

in 1850

Years of data

175

1850–2024

Cumulative CO₂ emissions from land-use change in China, 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 China is 81.69 billion tonnes, measured in 2024.

The figure is down 0.4% on the previous year and down 2.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change in China peaked at 84.08 billion tonnes in 2013 and was at its lowest, 194.76 million tonnes, in 1850.

That places China 4th 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	979.21 million tonnes	194.76 million tonnes	1.70 billion tonnes	10
1860s	2.21 billion tonnes	1.83 billion tonnes	2.46 billion tonnes	10
1870s	2.67 billion tonnes	2.50 billion tonnes	2.83 billion tonnes	10
1880s	3.28 billion tonnes	2.88 billion tonnes	3.75 billion tonnes	10
1890s	4.61 billion tonnes	3.89 billion tonnes	5.40 billion tonnes	10
1900s	6.76 billion tonnes	5.61 billion tonnes	7.99 billion tonnes	10
1910s	9.88 billion tonnes	8.30 billion tonnes	11.56 billion tonnes	10
1920s	13.60 billion tonnes	11.93 billion tonnes	15.31 billion tonnes	10
1930s	18.16 billion tonnes	15.76 billion tonnes	20.71 billion tonnes	10
1940s	24.76 billion tonnes	21.37 billion tonnes	28.34 billion tonnes	10
1950s	34.62 billion tonnes	29.47 billion tonnes	38.74 billion tonnes	10
1960s	44.08 billion tonnes	39.20 billion tonnes	49.16 billion tonnes	10
1970s	56.32 billion tonnes	50.50 billion tonnes	62.53 billion tonnes	10
1980s	67.71 billion tonnes	63.63 billion tonnes	71.38 billion tonnes	10
1990s	76.00 billion tonnes	72.19 billion tonnes	79.94 billion tonnes	10
2000s	82.40 billion tonnes	80.57 billion tonnes	84.03 billion tonnes	10
2010s	83.80 billion tonnes	83.17 billion tonnes	84.08 billion tonnes	10
2020s	82.31 billion tonnes	81.69 billion tonnes	82.91 billion tonnes	5

Countries ranked near China

1 United States 125.85 billion tonnes compare
2 Brazil 121.45 billion tonnes compare
3 Russia 107.70 billion tonnes compare
5 Indonesia 78.57 billion tonnes compare
6 India 42.04 billion tonnes compare
7 Canada 40.40 billion tonnes compare

See the full ranking of 197 places →

More climate change data for China

Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 6.2% (2100)
Population growth -0.2% (2025)
Population, total 1.41 billion (2025)
Urban population growth 0.5% (2025)
Urban population 933.17 million (2025)
Urban population 66.3% (2025)
CO₂ emissions per capita vs. GDP per capita 8.66 tonnes per person (2024)
Cumulative CO₂ emissions 285.09 billion tonnes (2024)
CO₂ emissions per capita 8.66 tonnes per person (2024)
CO₂ emissions per capita vs. share of electricity generation from renewables 8.66 tonnes per person (2024)

All data for China →

Frequently asked questions

What is cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change in China?: Cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change in China was 81.69 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 China?: The highest recorded value was 84.08 billion tonnes in 2013.
What is the lowest cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change recorded in China?: The lowest recorded value was 194.76 million tonnes in 1850.
How does China rank for cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change?: China ranks 4th out of 197 countries with data for 2024.
Is cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change rising or falling in China?: Over the last ten years it is down 2.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this China 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

Indicator: Cumulative CO₂ emissions from land-use change
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: 197 places, 34,475 data points, 1850–2024
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

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