Waste — Emissions per capita in United States of America

United States of America: Waste — Emissions per capita was 0.43 t CO2eq/cap in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
0.43 t CO2eq/cap
Change on year
unchanged
Rank
7th
of 31 groups
All-time high
0.93 t CO2eq/cap
in 1990
All-time low
0.43 t CO2eq/cap
in 2012
Years of data
34
1990–2023

Waste — Emissions per capita in United States of America, 1990–2023

00.20.40.60.811990200620231990: 0.93 t CO2eq/cap1991: 0.92 t CO2eq/cap1992: 0.92 t CO2eq/cap1993: 0.9 t CO2eq/cap1994: 0.88 t CO2eq/cap1995: 0.84 t CO2eq/cap1996: 0.81 t CO2eq/cap1997: 0.76 t CO2eq/cap1998: 0.72 t CO2eq/cap1999: 0.68 t CO2eq/cap2000: 0.66 t CO2eq/cap2001: 0.56 t CO2eq/cap2002: 0.52 t CO2eq/cap2003: 0.53 t CO2eq/cap2004: 0.51 t CO2eq/cap2005: 0.54 t CO2eq/cap2006: 0.54 t CO2eq/cap2007: 0.55 t CO2eq/cap2008: 0.57 t CO2eq/cap2009: 0.52 t CO2eq/cap2010: 0.46 t CO2eq/cap2011: 0.44 t CO2eq/cap2012: 0.43 t CO2eq/cap2013: 0.43 t CO2eq/cap2014: 0.43 t CO2eq/cap2015: 0.43 t CO2eq/cap2016: 0.43 t CO2eq/cap2017: 0.43 t CO2eq/cap2018: 0.43 t CO2eq/cap2019: 0.43 t CO2eq/cap2020: 0.43 t CO2eq/cap2021: 0.43 t CO2eq/cap2022: 0.43 t CO2eq/cap2023: 0.43 t CO2eq/cap

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in t CO2eq/cap.

Analysis

In 2023, waste — emissions per capita in United States of America stood at 0.43 t CO2eq/cap. That is the lowest value across all 34 years on record.

The figure is unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, waste — emissions per capita in United States of America peaked at 0.93 t CO2eq/cap in 1990 and was at its lowest, 0.43 t CO2eq/cap, in 2012.

That places United States of America 7th out of 31 groups with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.

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

Waste — Emissions per capita in United States of America, year by year

Annual values for Waste — Emissions per capita in United States of America, 1990 to 2023.
Year t CO2eq/cap Change
1990 0.93 t CO2eq/cap
1991 0.92 t CO2eq/cap -1.1%
1992 0.92 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%
1993 0.9 t CO2eq/cap -2.2%
1994 0.88 t CO2eq/cap -2.2%
1995 0.84 t CO2eq/cap -4.5%
1996 0.81 t CO2eq/cap -3.6%
1997 0.76 t CO2eq/cap -6.2%
1998 0.72 t CO2eq/cap -5.3%
1999 0.68 t CO2eq/cap -5.6%
2000 0.66 t CO2eq/cap -2.9%
2001 0.56 t CO2eq/cap -15.2%
2002 0.52 t CO2eq/cap -7.1%
2003 0.53 t CO2eq/cap +1.9%
2004 0.51 t CO2eq/cap -3.8%
2005 0.54 t CO2eq/cap +5.9%
2006 0.54 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%
2007 0.55 t CO2eq/cap +1.9%
2008 0.57 t CO2eq/cap +3.6%
2009 0.52 t CO2eq/cap -8.8%
2010 0.46 t CO2eq/cap -11.5%
2011 0.44 t CO2eq/cap -4.3%
2012 0.43 t CO2eq/cap -2.3%
2013 0.43 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%
2014 0.43 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%
2015 0.43 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%
2016 0.43 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%
2017 0.43 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%
2018 0.43 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%
2019 0.43 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%
2020 0.43 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%
2021 0.43 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%
2022 0.43 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%
2023 0.43 t CO2eq/cap +0.0%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 0.836 t CO2eq/cap 0.68 t CO2eq/cap 0.93 t CO2eq/cap 10
2000s 0.55 t CO2eq/cap 0.51 t CO2eq/cap 0.66 t CO2eq/cap 10
2010s 0.434 t CO2eq/cap 0.43 t CO2eq/cap 0.46 t CO2eq/cap 10
2020s 0.43 t CO2eq/cap 0.43 t CO2eq/cap 0.43 t CO2eq/cap 4

Countries ranked near United States of America

  1. 4 Uruguay 1.24 t CO2eq/cap compare
  2. 5 Qatar 1.12 t CO2eq/cap compare
  3. 6 Saudi Arabia 0.95 t CO2eq/cap compare
  4. 6 Viet Nam 0.17 t CO2eq/cap compare
  5. 7 Russian Federation 0.94 t CO2eq/cap compare
  6. 8 New Zealand 0.93 t CO2eq/cap compare
  7. 9 Singapore 0.86 t CO2eq/cap compare
  8. 10 Democratic Republic of the Congo 0.12 t CO2eq/cap compare
  9. 10 Israel 0.8 t CO2eq/cap compare

See the full ranking of 242 places →

More climate change data for United States of America

All data for United States of America →

Frequently asked questions

What is waste — emissions per capita in United States of America?
Waste — emissions per capita in United States of America was 0.43 t CO2eq/cap in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest waste — emissions per capita recorded in United States of America?
The highest recorded value was 0.93 t CO2eq/cap in 1990.
What is the lowest waste — emissions per capita recorded in United States of America?
The lowest recorded value was 0.43 t CO2eq/cap in 2012.
How does United States of America rank for waste — emissions per capita?
United States of America ranks 7th out of 31 groups with data for 2023.
Is waste — emissions per capita rising or falling in United States of America?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United States of America data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Waste — Emissions per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Waste — Emissions per capita in United States of America. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 01 September 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/waste-emissions-per-capita/united-states-of-america/

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About this data

Indicator
Waste — Emissions per capita
Unit
t CO2eq/cap
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
242 places, 8,008 data points, 1990–2023
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT domain on Emissions indicators disseminates indicators on sectoral shares of total national greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as well as three indicators of emissions intensity: per capita emissions; emissions per value of agricultural production; and emissions per area of agricultural land.