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Biogeosciences Discuss., 9, 1299-1376, 2012
www.biogeosciences-discuss.net/9/1299/2012/ doi:10.5194/bgd-9-1299-2012 © Author(s) 2012. This work is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. |
A synthesis of carbon dioxide emissions from fossil-fuel combustion
1Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6290, USA
2CEA/DSM/LSCE, Gif sur Yvette, France
3IPSL-LSCE, Gif sur Yvette, France
4Carnegie Institution of Washington, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
5Computational Earth Sciences Group, Computer Science and Mathematics Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
6Risø DTU National Laboratory for Sustainable Energy, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
7NOAA Earth System Research Lab, Boulder, Colorado 80305, USA
8Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Science, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80303, USA
9Research Institute for Environment, Energy, and Economics, Appalachian State University, Boone, NC 28608, USA
10Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado 80523, USA
11PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, Bilthoven, The Netherlands
12CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research, Australia
13School of Earth Sciences, University of Melbourne, Australia
14Energy Statistics Division, International Energy Agency, Paris, France
Abstract. This synthesis discusses the emissions of carbon dioxide from fossil-fuel combustion and cement production. While much is known about these emissions, there is still much that is unknown about the details surrounding these emissions. This synthesis explores our knowledge of these emissions in terms of why there is concern about them; how they are calculated; the major global efforts on inventorying them; their global, regional, and national totals at different spatial and temporal scales; how they are distributed on global grids (i.e. maps); how they are transported in models; and the uncertainties associated with these different aspects of the emissions. The magnitude of emissions from the combustion of fossil fuels has been almost continuously increasing with time since fossil fuels were first used by humans. Despite events in some nations specifically designed to reduce emissions, or which have had emissions reduction as a byproduct of other events, global total emissions continue their general increase with time. Global total fossil-fuel carbon dioxide emissions are known to within 10% uncertainty (95% confidence interval). Uncertainty on individual national total fossil-fuel carbon dioxide emissions range from a few percent to more than 50%. The information discussed in this manuscript synthesizes global, regional and national fossil-fuel carbon dioxide emissions, their distributions, their transport, and the associated uncertainties.
Citation: Andres, R. J., Boden, T. A., Bréon, F.-M., Ciais, P., Davis, S., Erickson, D., Gregg, J. S., Jacobson, A., Marland, G., Miller, J., Oda, T., Olivier, J. G. J., Raupach, M. R., Rayner, P., and Treanton, K.: A synthesis of carbon dioxide emissions from fossil-fuel combustion, Biogeosciences Discuss., 9, 1299-1376, doi:10.5194/bgd-9-1299-2012, 2012.