The line graph illustrates the mean of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions per person in four countries—the United Kingdom, Sweden, Italy, and Portugal—over a 40-year period from 1967 to 2007. Overall, while the United Kingdom and Sweden saw a reduction of Co2 emissions throughout the given period, Italy and Portugal experienced a significant increase.
In 1967, the UK discharged around 11 tonnes of CO2 per person, which gradually declined after 1977 to around 9 tonnes in 2007. Sweden, which started at 8.5 tonnes in the beginning and reached the highest with over 10 tonnes in 1977, then experienced a sharp decline to approximately 5.5 tonnes in the last year.
Italy and Portugal, however, followed an upward trend in CO2 emissions. Italy’s discharges rose steadily from just over 4 tonnes in 1967 to nearly 8 tonnes by the end of the period. Portugal, which started with the lowest emissions at about 1.5 tonnes, saw the most dramatic increase, reaching nearly 6 tonnes in 2007. Notably, by 2007, Portugal ended at the same level as Sweden.