Articles | Volume 10, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-10-195-2018
https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-10-195-2018
Review article
 | 
26 Jan 2018
Review article |  | 26 Jan 2018

Global CO2 emissions from cement production

Robbie M. Andrew

Abstract. The global production of cement has grown very rapidly in recent years, and after fossil fuels and land-use change, it is the third-largest source of anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide. The required data for estimating emissions from global cement production are poor, and it has been recognised that some global estimates are significantly inflated. Here we assemble a large variety of available datasets and prioritise official data and emission factors, including estimates submitted to the UNFCCC plus new estimates for China and India, to present a new analysis of global process emissions from cement production. We show that global process emissions in 2016 were 1.45±0.20 Gt CO2, equivalent to about 4 % of emissions from fossil fuels. Cumulative emissions from 1928 to 2016 were 39.3±2.4 Gt CO2, 66 % of which have occurred since 1990. Emissions in 2015 were 30 % lower than those recently reported by the Global Carbon Project. The data associated with this article can be found at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.831455.

Short summary
The production of cement releases large quantities of carbon dioxide and is the third-largest anthropogenic source after fossil fuel combustion and land-use change. Global estimates of these emissions have varied considerably. Here we present a new database of country-level process emissions of CO2 from the production of cement, combining the best available sources. The global data series covers the period 1928–2016. Emissions in 2016 were 1.45 ± 0.20 Gt CO2.