Waste — Emissions in United States

United States: Waste — Emissions was 4,940 kt in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
4,940 kt
Change on year
up 0.4%
World rank
4th
of 232 countries
All-time high
8,570 kt
in 1983
All-time low
4,540 kt
in 2012
Years of data
63
1961–2023

Waste — Emissions in United States, 1961–2023

02.0k4.0k6.0k8.0k196119922023

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

Analysis

United States recorded 4,940 kt for waste — emissions in 2023.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.4% on the previous year and up 8.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, waste — emissions in United States peaked at 8,570 kt in 1983 and was at its lowest, 4,540 kt, in 2012.

That places United States 4th out of 232 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.

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

Waste — Emissions in United States, year by year

Annual values for Waste — Emissions (CH4) in United States, 1961 to 2023.
Year kt Change
1961 4,800 kt
1962 5,150 kt +7.3%
1963 5,510 kt +7.0%
1964 5,880 kt +6.7%
1965 6,260 kt +6.5%
1966 6,650 kt +6.2%
1967 7,040 kt +5.9%
1968 7,450 kt +5.8%
1969 7,870 kt +5.6%
1970 7,470 kt -5.1%
1971 8,040 kt +7.6%
1972 8,100 kt +0.7%
1973 8,150 kt +0.6%
1974 8,180 kt +0.4%
1975 8,200 kt +0.2%
1976 8,300 kt +1.2%
1977 8,370 kt +0.8%
1978 8,430 kt +0.7%
1979 8,480 kt +0.6%
1980 8,530 kt +0.6%
1981 8,550 kt +0.2%
1982 8,550 kt +0.0%
1983 8,570 kt +0.2%
1984 8,550 kt -0.2%
1985 8,530 kt -0.2%
1986 8,540 kt +0.1%
1987 8,560 kt +0.2%
1988 8,560 kt +0.0%
1989 8,560 kt +0.0%
1990 8,250 kt -3.6%
1991 8,260 kt +0.1%
1992 8,290 kt +0.4%
1993 8,220 kt -0.8%
1994 8,160 kt -0.7%
1995 7,810 kt -4.3%
1996 7,590 kt -2.8%
1997 7,160 kt -5.7%
1998 6,820 kt -4.7%
1999 6,560 kt -3.8%
2000 6,390 kt -2.6%
2001 5,390 kt -15.6%
2002 5,090 kt -5.6%
2003 5,250 kt +3.1%
2004 5,100 kt -2.9%
2005 5,370 kt +5.3%
2006 5,490 kt +2.2%
2007 5,660 kt +3.1%
2008 5,920 kt +4.6%
2009 5,430 kt -8.3%
2010 4,860 kt -10.5%
2011 4,690 kt -3.5%
2012 4,540 kt -3.2%
2013 4,570 kt +0.7%
2014 4,610 kt +0.9%
2015 4,720 kt +2.4%
2016 4,760 kt +0.8%
2017 4,810 kt +1.1%
2018 4,850 kt +0.8%
2019 4,870 kt +0.4%
2020 4,870 kt +0.0%
2021 4,880 kt +0.2%
2022 4,920 kt +0.8%
2023 4,940 kt +0.4%

United States compared with similar countries

  • United States's 4,940 kt is above the median for high income countries, which is 85.3 kt, 57.9× the median. (65 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 6,290 kt 4,800 kt 7,870 kt 9
1970s 8,172 kt 7,470 kt 8,480 kt 10
1980s 8,550 kt 8,530 kt 8,570 kt 10
1990s 7,712 kt 6,560 kt 8,290 kt 10
2000s 5,509 kt 5,090 kt 6,390 kt 10
2010s 4,728 kt 4,540 kt 4,870 kt 10
2020s 4,902 kt 4,870 kt 4,940 kt 4

Countries ranked near United States

  1. 1 OECD 16,440 kt compare
  2. 2 China 13,254 kt compare
  3. 3 China, mainland 12,700 kt compare
  4. 5 Russian Federation 4,770 kt compare
  5. 5 Russia 4,770 kt compare
  6. 7 Brazil 4,450 kt compare
  7. 7 India 4,450 kt compare

See the full ranking of 265 places →

More climate change data for United States

All data for United States →

Frequently asked questions

What is waste — emissions in United States?
Waste — emissions in United States was 4,940 kt in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest waste — emissions recorded in United States?
The highest recorded value was 8,570 kt in 1983.
What is the lowest waste — emissions recorded in United States?
The lowest recorded value was 4,540 kt in 2012.
How does United States rank for waste — emissions?
United States ranks 4th out of 232 countries with data for 2023.
Is waste — emissions rising or falling in United States?
Over the last ten years it is up 8.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United States 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 United States. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 21 September 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/waste-emissions-ch4-fao-tier-1/united-states/

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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
265 places, 15,268 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