Nitrous oxide emissions by sector in New Zealand

New Zealand: Nitrous oxide emissions by sector was 11.65 million tonnes in 2023. ▬ Flat

Latest (2023)
11.65 million tonnes
Change on year
down 4.2%
World rank
39th
of 193 countries
All-time high
13.37 million tonnes
in 2005
All-time low
11.65 million tonnes
in 2023
Years of data
34
1990–2023

Nitrous oxide emissions by sector in New Zealand, 1990–2023

05.0M10.0M15.0M1990200620231990: 12.9M tonnes1991: 12.7M tonnes1992: 12.5M tonnes1993: 12.4M tonnes1994: 12.8M tonnes1995: 13.1M tonnes1996: 12.7M tonnes1997: 12.6M tonnes1998: 12.3M tonnes1999: 12.7M tonnes2000: 12.6M tonnes2001: 12.7M tonnes2002: 13.0M tonnes2003: 13.3M tonnes2004: 13.3M tonnes2005: 13.4M tonnes2006: 13.2M tonnes2007: 13.1M tonnes2008: 12.7M tonnes2009: 12.5M tonnes2010: 12.7M tonnes2011: 12.8M tonnes2012: 12.9M tonnes2013: 12.8M tonnes2014: 13.1M tonnes2015: 12.9M tonnes2016: 12.8M tonnes2017: 12.8M tonnes2018: 12.9M tonnes2019: 12.8M tonnes2020: 12.8M tonnes2021: 12.6M tonnes2022: 12.2M tonnes2023: 11.7M tonnes

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for nitrous oxide emissions by sector in New Zealand is 11.65 million tonnes, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 34 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 4.2% on the previous year and down 9.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, nitrous oxide emissions by sector in New Zealand peaked at 13.37 million tonnes in 2005 and was at its lowest, 11.65 million tonnes, in 2023.

New Zealand ranks 39th of 193 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 12.67 million tonnes 12.35 million tonnes 13.11 million tonnes 10
2000s 12.97 million tonnes 12.48 million tonnes 13.37 million tonnes 10
2010s 12.85 million tonnes 12.68 million tonnes 13.06 million tonnes 10
2020s 12.30 million tonnes 11.65 million tonnes 12.77 million tonnes 4

Countries ranked near New Zealand

  1. 36 Democratic Republic of Congo 12.16 million tonnes compare
  2. 37 Egypt 12.10 million tonnes compare
  3. 38 Spain 12.03 million tonnes compare
  4. 40 Niger 11.47 million tonnes compare
  5. 41 Zambia 11.30 million tonnes compare
  6. 42 Uganda 10.87 million tonnes compare

See the full ranking of 193 places →

More climate change data for New Zealand

All data for New Zealand →

Frequently asked questions

What is nitrous oxide emissions by sector in New Zealand?
Nitrous oxide emissions by sector in New Zealand was 11.65 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 New Zealand?
The highest recorded value was 13.37 million tonnes in 2005.
What is the lowest nitrous oxide emissions by sector recorded in New Zealand?
The lowest recorded value was 11.65 million tonnes in 2023.
How does New Zealand rank for nitrous oxide emissions by sector?
New Zealand ranks 39th out of 193 countries with data for 2023.
Is nitrous oxide emissions by sector rising or falling in New Zealand?
Over the last ten years it is down 9.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this New Zealand 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.