Environmental science: Where greenhouse gases start

Abstract

Household consumption is responsible for 72% of global greenhouse-gas emissions, according to work by Edgar Hertwich and Glen Peters at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim. Another 10% is a result of government consumption, with the remainder due to activities such as building construction.The authors analysed emissions using a model of goods and services consumption and trade across 73 nations. The analysis suggests that food, including agricultural production, is the largest component of consumption, accounting for 20% of all emissions worldwide. Residential energy consumption and building maintenance comes in second at 19%, with private household transportation contributing 17%.