New data released Friday at COP29 reveals Shanghai as the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases among cities, surpassing even some entire nations in its contribution to climate change, The Associated Press reports.
The findings, from Climate Trace – an organization co-founded by former US Vice President Al Gore – combine satellite and ground observations with artificial intelligence to provide a comprehensive global picture of emissions.
The data paints a stark picture of the ongoing climate crisis, highlighting the significant contributions of both Asian and American cities. Tokyo’s emissions alone would rank among the world’s top 40 nations if it were a country, while New York City and Houston also feature prominently in the top 50. Other major cities such as Seoul further emphasize the urban contribution to global warming. Seven regions – six in China and Texas – each emit over 1 billion metric tons of greenhouse gases annually.
Climate Trace’s analysis quantifies carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and other pollutants across 9,000 urban areas globally. Overall, Earth’s total carbon dioxide and methane pollution increased by 0.7% to 61.2 billion metric tons in 2023, with methane showing a 0.2% rise. Co-founder Gavin McCormick attributes these higher figures to the dataset’s comprehensive coverage and ability to observe emissions across more sectors than previous studies.
Al Gore highlighted the alarming pollution levels in the Permian Basin of Texas. He contrasted this with pollution levels in countries like Russia and China, emphasizing the scale of US emissions.
While some nations experienced emission reductions – including the United States, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Venezuela – China, India, Iran, Indonesia, and Russia saw significant increases from 2022 to 2023.
The data also underscores the health implications of air pollution, with Gore calling it “the single biggest health threat facing humanity.” He criticized the selection of oil-producing nations, Azerbaijan and the UAE, as COP hosts, stating that the fossil fuel industry has exerted “an unhealthy degree” of control over the climate talks. This sentiment was echoed in a letter signed by former UN officials and leading scientists calling for an urgent overhaul of the climate process. The letter directly addresses Azerbaijan’s president’s description of oil and gas as a “gift of the gods”. Furthermore, a coalition report highlights the presence of at least 1,770 fossil fuel lobbyists at COP29.
