Nitrous oxide emissions by sector in Canada

Canada: Nitrous oxide emissions by sector was 37.60 million tonnes in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
37.60 million tonnes
Change on year
up 11.1%
World rank
11th
of 193 countries
All-time high
37.60 million tonnes
in 2023
All-time low
23.88 million tonnes
in 1990
Years of data
34
1990–2023

Nitrous oxide emissions by sector in Canada, 1990–2023

010.0M20.0M30.0M40.0M1990200620231990: 23.9M tonnes1991: 24.3M tonnes1992: 24.7M tonnes1993: 25.3M tonnes1994: 25.3M tonnes1995: 26.6M tonnes1996: 27.9M tonnes1997: 27.3M tonnes1998: 28.2M tonnes1999: 28.0M tonnes2000: 27.0M tonnes2001: 26.5M tonnes2002: 27.1M tonnes2003: 27.7M tonnes2004: 27.9M tonnes2005: 29.1M tonnes2006: 26.7M tonnes2007: 30.1M tonnes2008: 29.4M tonnes2009: 28.6M tonnes2010: 29.3M tonnes2011: 31.5M tonnes2012: 33.4M tonnes2013: 33.0M tonnes2014: 32.5M tonnes2015: 32.4M tonnes2016: 31.7M tonnes2017: 32.1M tonnes2018: 33.7M tonnes2019: 32.7M tonnes2020: 35.3M tonnes2021: 33.6M tonnes2022: 33.9M tonnes2023: 37.6M tonnes

Source: Climate Watch (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.

Analysis

In 2023, nitrous oxide emissions by sector in Canada stood at 37.60 million tonnes. That is the highest value across all 34 years on record.

The figure is up 11.1% on the previous year and up 14.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, nitrous oxide emissions by sector in Canada peaked at 37.60 million tonnes in 2023 and was at its lowest, 23.88 million tonnes, in 1990.

That places Canada 11th out of 193 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 26.16 million tonnes 23.88 million tonnes 28.19 million tonnes 10
2000s 28.03 million tonnes 26.53 million tonnes 30.05 million tonnes 10
2010s 32.23 million tonnes 29.31 million tonnes 33.72 million tonnes 10
2020s 35.11 million tonnes 33.65 million tonnes 37.60 million tonnes 4

Countries ranked near Canada

  1. 8 Russia 47.91 million tonnes compare
  2. 9 Ethiopia 46.03 million tonnes compare
  3. 10 Argentina 38.79 million tonnes compare
  4. 12 Mexico 34.04 million tonnes compare
  5. 13 Chad 28.21 million tonnes compare
  6. 14 Turkey 27.77 million tonnes compare

See the full ranking of 193 places →

More climate change data for Canada

All data for Canada →

Frequently asked questions

What is nitrous oxide emissions by sector in Canada?
Nitrous oxide emissions by sector in Canada was 37.60 million tonnes in 2023, according to Climate Watch (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest nitrous oxide emissions by sector recorded in Canada?
The highest recorded value was 37.60 million tonnes in 2023.
What is the lowest nitrous oxide emissions by sector recorded in Canada?
The lowest recorded value was 23.88 million tonnes in 1990.
How does Canada rank for nitrous oxide emissions by sector?
Canada ranks 11th out of 193 countries with data for 2023.
Is nitrous oxide emissions by sector rising or falling in Canada?
Over the last ten years it is up 14.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Canada data come from?
The figures come from Climate Watch (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Nitrous oxide emissions by sector. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Nitrous oxide emissions by sector
Unit
tonnes
Source
Climate Watch (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
193 places, 6,559 data points, 1990–2023
Last refreshed

Emissions are measured in tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalents.