GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS PER CAPITA

Australia continues to emit a large volume of greenhouse gases per capita in comparison to other OECD countries.

Although Australia's annual greenhouse gas emissions (excluding the land use, land use change and forestry sector) rose 31% between 1990 and 2008, per capita emissions increased by only 4% from 24.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent gas in 1990 to 25.6 tonnes in 2008.

Australia's relatively high per capita emissions reflect a number of factors, including:

• the dominance of coal as a fuel in producing electricity
• the production of many goods in Australia (with high associated emission levels such as agricultural products) which are exported.