Cameroon's Sources of N2O Emissions
Key Insights
2024 N2O Emissions Profile
Cameroon's anthropogenic N2O emissions totalled around 6.5 megatonnes CO2e in 2024. Agriculture dominated, at roughly 5.5 megatonnes CO2e or 84% of national emissions, rising by about 0.04 megatonnes CO2e per year over the ten years to 2024. Energy and waste each contributed about 0.35 megatonnes CO2e, or 5% each, and were rising. Other sources accounted for around 0.33 megatonnes CO2e, also about 5%, with a smaller upward trend.
Historic Agriculture Emissions
Agricultural emissions began at around 0.1 megatonnes CO2e in the early 1850s and rose gradually to roughly 0.5 by the mid-1920s. Growth then accelerated, reaching more than 5 megatonnes by the early 2000s. Emissions subsequently varied around this level, peaking at roughly 5.8 megatonnes CO2e in 2005, before ending at around 5.5 in 2024.
Historic Energy Emissions
Energy emissions started near zero, at around 0.004 megatonnes CO2e in the early 1850s, and remained small through the first half of the twentieth century. They rose gradually from about 0.03 megatonnes CO2e in the mid-1930s to around 0.11 in 1970, then continued upward. Energy emissions reached their peak of around 0.36 megatonnes CO2e in 2024.
Historic Waste Emissions
Waste emissions were about 0.005 megatonnes CO2e in the early 1850s and increased slowly to roughly 0.02 by 1940. They continued rising through the late twentieth century, reaching around 0.13 megatonnes CO2e in 1996. Growth strengthened thereafter, and waste emissions peaked at around 0.34 megatonnes CO2e in 2024.
Historic Other Emissions
Other emissions began at around 0.03 megatonnes CO2e in the early 1850s and remained below 0.1 through the late 1970s. They then climbed sharply, reaching roughly 0.64 by 1989 and peaking at around 0.76 megatonnes CO2e in 1996. Emissions later declined and fluctuated, falling to about 0.28 in 2015 before ending at around 0.33 in 2024.
Background
The chart shows a national breakdown by source of the yearly nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from human activities and processes, expressed as weight in megatonnes (Mt). Human-induced emissions are the main driver of the increasing atmospheric nitrous oxide that is warming our planet. The sources of human nitrous oxide emissions are
- Agriculture
- Energy
- Industry
- Waste
- Other
Agriculture
Emissions related to agriculture are mainly from the use of synthetic fertilizers and manure management.
Synthetic fertilizer, used for agricultural processes, contains a lot of nitrogen. That nitrogen in the soil reacts and causes considerable N2O emissions. The use of excess fertilizer, meaning more fertilizer than the plants can use to grow, causes even higher relative emissions. Applying the right amount of fertilizer at the right time can reduce N2O emissions. There are many technical solutions to reduce emissions while keeping, or even increasing, agricultural yields.
When manure is left on the field or otherwise managed in dry processes, it emits considerable amounts of nitrous oxide. Manure can be managed by wet processes, which reduces nitrous oxide emissions but increases methane emissions. Some technical solutions focus on modifying the animal feed to reduce the nitrogen in the manure, thereby reducing nitrous oxide emissions.
Energy, Industry, Waste, and Other
All non-agricultural categories together have much lower emissions than agricultural emissions alone.
N2O emissions related to energy are almost all from the combustion of fossil fuels. For example, the combustion of fossil fuels in power plants, cars, and airplanes not only causes CO2 emissions but also emits nitrous oxide (N2O). Any advances to reducing fossil fuel dependency will thus also reduce nitrous oxide emissions.
Most industry-related emissions are from the chemical industry for producing fertilizer, nylon, and similar products. Technologies are available to reduce emissions in these processes.
Nitrous oxide emissions from waste come from, for example, wastewater treatment and landfills.
Wikipedia: Nitrous oxideIPCC: AR6, 5.16 Anthropogenic nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions
Units and Measures
N2O emissions are expressed in the total weight in megatonnes per year. 1 Megatonne is equal to 1 million tonnes.
Wikipedia: MegatonneWikipedia: Global warming potential
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via DonorboxAbout the Data
National N2O emissions data through 2024 is from the PRIMAP-hist dataset, which combines several published sources into a historical emissions time series.
The Key Insights paragraph was created using a large language model (LLM) in combination with our data, historic events, and a structured approach for best accuracy by separating the context generation from the interpretation and narrative.
Data Sources
PRIMAP-hist The PRIMAP-hist national historical emissions time series (1750-2024)
Update cycle: Every few monthsDelay: Less than 1 yearCredits: Gütschow, J.; Busch, D.; Pflüger, M. (2025): The PRIMAP-hist national historical emissions time series v2.7 (1750-2024). zenodo. doi:10.5281/zenodo.17090760