Waste — Emissions in China

China: Waste — Emissions was 13,254 kt in 2023. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2023)
13,254 kt
Change on year
up 3.1%
World rank
2nd
of 218 countries
All-time high
13,254 kt
in 2023
All-time low
2,660 kt
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023

Waste — Emissions in China, 1961–2023

2.5k5.0k7.5k10.0k12.5k196119922023

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in kt.

Analysis

In 2023, waste — emissions in China stood at 13,254 kt. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.

The figure is up 3.1% on the previous year and up 36.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, waste — emissions in China peaked at 13,254 kt in 2023 and was at its lowest, 2,660 kt, in 1961.

China ranks 2nd of 218 countries on this measure, 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
1960s 2,846 kt 2,660 kt 3,082 kt 9
1970s 3,401 kt 3,012 kt 3,771 kt 10
1980s 4,024 kt 3,882 kt 4,199 kt 10
1990s 4,818 kt 4,256 kt 5,458 kt 10
2000s 6,657 kt 5,607 kt 7,905 kt 10
2010s 10,222 kt 8,416 kt 11,845 kt 10
2020s 12,680 kt 12,144 kt 13,254 kt 4

Countries ranked near China

  1. 1 OECD 16,440 kt compare
  2. 3 China, mainland 12,700 kt compare
  3. 4 Russian Federation 4,770 kt compare
  4. 5 Brazil 4,450 kt compare
  5. 5 India 4,450 kt compare

See the full ranking of 253 places →

More climate change data for China

All data for China →

Frequently asked questions

What is waste — emissions in China?
Waste — emissions in China was 13,254 kt in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest waste — emissions recorded in China?
The highest recorded value was 13,254 kt in 2023.
What is the lowest waste — emissions recorded in China?
The lowest recorded value was 2,660 kt in 1961.
How does China rank for waste — emissions?
China ranks 2nd out of 218 countries with data for 2023.
Is waste — emissions rising or falling in China?
Over the last ten years it is up 36.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this China data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Waste — Emissions (CH4). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).

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Waste — Emissions in China. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 16 August 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/waste-emissions-ch4-fao-tier-1/china/

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About this data

Indicator
Waste — Emissions (CH4)
Unit
kt
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
253 places, 14,574 data points, 1961–2023
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT domain on Emissions Totals summarizes the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions disseminated in the FAOSTAT Climate Change domains of emissions from agrifood systems. Data are computed following the Tier 1 methods of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Guidelines for National greenhouse gas (GHG) Inventories (IPCC, 1996; 1997; 2000; 2002; 2006; 2014). Emissions from other economic sectors as defined by the IPCC are also disseminated in the domain for completeness. Methodological details can be found at: https://files-faostat.fao.org/production/GT/GT_en.pdf