The chart presents the average CO2 emissions per person in four European nations from 1967 to 2007.
Overall, average CO2 emissions of individuals in the UK and Sweden generally dropped, whereas emissions per person in Italy and Portugal rose significantly. Despite the steady reduction, average emissions in the UK were the highest in the given period.
Among the selected countries, the CO2 emissions per person in the UK were the highest throughout the four decades, yet said emissions were on the decline. In 1967, the average emissions per person were nearly 11 metric tonnes. But by 2007, that had fallen to roughly 9 metric tonnes. Somewhat similarly, the average CO2 emissions in Sweden were almost 9 metric tonnes per person in 1967. The emissions spiked, however, to nearly 11 metric tonnes in 1977 though from there, emissions continuously fell, dropping to just 5.5 metric tonnes in 2007.
Conversely, both Italy’s and Portugal’s carbon dioxide emissions per person increased between 1967 and 2007. Italy’s CO2 emissions nearly doubled, starting at just above 4 metric tonnes in 1967 and ending at almost 8 metric tonnes four decades later. Portugal’s CO2 emissions, however, nearly quadrupled. The per capita average in 1967 was just 1.5 metric tonnes. But in 2007, the emissions had reached 5.5 metric tonnes, matching Sweden’s average.