| Sourced From |
Australia, the United States and the United Arab Emirates have topped the list of carbon emitters.
An index published on Wednesday reported the combined historic and current emissions. The United States, United Arab Emirates and Australia were found to be the worst overall countries for emitting greenhouse gases.
The ranking included 183 nations and was compiled by Maplecroft, a British consultancy. The overall list was dominated by OPEC members and rich countries.
The purpose of the published study was to alert potential investors to countries who were vulnerable to the climate talks led by the UN which could agree to press wider penalties on carbon emissions. The UAE, whose economy is almost completely dependent upon the use of fossil fuels, topped the list overall. The UAE saw a huge increase in emissions in recent years due mostly to desalination plants.
Desalination plants are used to address water security and are high emissions creators. Maplecroft reported that while Desalination is a positive way to tackle water security, more energy-efficient methods need to be implemented.
Australia is highly dependent upon coal and ranked second in the list of overall emitters just in front of the United States. Both Americans and Australians are guilty of very high per capita rates of emissions. China followed in the list trailed by the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Russia, Belgium and Kazakhstan filling out the overall top 10.
Maplecroft reported that while the world is continuing to move towards a low carbon economy, stricter environmental policies could leave companies subject to high cost operating expenses and new investment requirements. Chad, a country where only 2 percent of the population have access to electricity, came in last place on the list of emitters ranking 183rd.
Related posts: