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A Map of History's Biggest Greenhouse Gas Polluters
A select few countries have been responsible for the majority of the world's CO2 emissions since the '70s.
Scientists predicted long ago that CO2 emissions would pervert the atmosphere. Now, in a decade with sea levels rising at twice the rate of the 20th century average – and 10 of the warmest years on record landing in the past 12 years – how has humankind responded to the threat?
Not well, generally speaking. Emissions of CO2 have ticked up by 105 percent since the early 1970s, or about 2 percent a year, according to data from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, an international coalition of 34 countries. And the levels of this potent greenhouse gas are only expected to rise in the coming years, hitting a nearly 40 percent increase by 2030, predicts the OECD.