Waste — Emissions in South America

South America: Waste — Emissions was 6,875 kt in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
6,875 kt
Change on year
up 0.6%
Rank
10th
of 32 groups
All-time high
6,875 kt
in 2023
All-time low
1,170 kt
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023

Waste — Emissions in South America, 1961–2023

2.0k4.0k6.0k196119922023

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for waste — emissions in South America is 6,875 kt, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.6% on the previous year and up 15.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, waste — emissions in South America peaked at 6,875 kt in 2023 and was at its lowest, 1,170 kt, in 1961.

South America ranks 10th of 32 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.

Waste — Emissions in South America, year by year

Annual values for Waste — Emissions (CH4) in South America, 1961 to 2023.
Year kt Change
1961 1,170 kt
1962 1,208 kt +3.2%
1963 1,246 kt +3.2%
1964 1,285 kt +3.2%
1965 1,323 kt +3.0%
1966 1,364 kt +3.1%
1967 1,403 kt +2.9%
1968 1,443 kt +2.8%
1969 1,484 kt +2.9%
1970 1,544 kt +4.0%
1971 1,750 kt +13.4%
1972 1,835 kt +4.8%
1973 1,919 kt +4.6%
1974 2,004 kt +4.4%
1975 2,093 kt +4.5%
1976 2,188 kt +4.5%
1977 2,288 kt +4.5%
1978 2,411 kt +5.4%
1979 2,539 kt +5.3%
1980 2,678 kt +5.5%
1981 2,756 kt +2.9%
1982 2,899 kt +5.2%
1983 2,994 kt +3.3%
1984 3,118 kt +4.1%
1985 3,227 kt +3.5%
1986 3,304 kt +2.4%
1987 3,476 kt +5.2%
1988 3,575 kt +2.8%
1989 3,690 kt +3.2%
1990 3,755 kt +1.8%
1991 3,896 kt +3.7%
1992 4,043 kt +3.8%
1993 4,183 kt +3.5%
1994 4,339 kt +3.7%
1995 4,473 kt +3.1%
1996 4,603 kt +2.9%
1997 4,745 kt +3.1%
1998 4,831 kt +1.8%
1999 4,911 kt +1.6%
2000 4,944 kt +0.7%
2001 5,056 kt +2.3%
2002 5,199 kt +2.8%
2003 5,398 kt +3.8%
2004 5,608 kt +3.9%
2005 5,387 kt -3.9%
2006 5,605 kt +4.0%
2007 5,536 kt -1.2%
2008 5,423 kt -2.0%
2009 5,489 kt +1.2%
2010 5,602 kt +2.1%
2011 5,629 kt +0.5%
2012 5,733 kt +1.9%
2013 5,934 kt +3.5%
2014 6,058 kt +2.1%
2015 6,225 kt +2.8%
2016 6,331 kt +1.7%
2017 6,392 kt +1.0%
2018 6,567 kt +2.7%
2019 6,582 kt +0.2%
2020 6,639 kt +0.9%
2021 6,690 kt +0.8%
2022 6,834 kt +2.2%
2023 6,875 kt +0.6%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 1,325 kt 1,170 kt 1,484 kt 9
1970s 2,057 kt 1,544 kt 2,539 kt 10
1980s 3,172 kt 2,678 kt 3,690 kt 10
1990s 4,378 kt 3,755 kt 4,911 kt 10
2000s 5,364 kt 4,944 kt 5,608 kt 10
2010s 6,105 kt 5,602 kt 6,582 kt 10
2020s 6,760 kt 6,639 kt 6,875 kt 4

Countries ranked near South America

  1. 7 USSR 3,560 kt compare
  2. 8 Mexico 2,220 kt compare
  3. 9 Indonesia 1,730 kt compare
  4. 10 Saudi Arabia 1,110 kt compare
  5. 11 Nigeria 1,060 kt compare
  6. 12 Thailand 906 kt compare
  7. 13 Pakistan 820 kt compare

See the full ranking of 253 places →

More climate change data for South America

All data for South America →

Frequently asked questions

What is waste — emissions in South America?
Waste — emissions in South America was 6,875 kt in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest waste — emissions recorded in South America?
The highest recorded value was 6,875 kt in 2023.
What is the lowest waste — emissions recorded in South America?
The lowest recorded value was 1,170 kt in 1961.
How does South America rank for waste — emissions?
South America ranks 10th out of 32 groups with data for 2023.
Is waste — emissions rising or falling in South America?
Over the last ten years it is up 15.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this South America 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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Waste — Emissions in South America. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 25 August 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/waste-emissions-ch4-fao-tier-1/south-america/

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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