Statistics Canada
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Earth Day... by the numbers
April 19, 2006
Earth
Day, April 22, 2006 marks the launch of a three year global campaign
focusing on solutions
to climate change.
The first Earth Day was celebrated around the world on April 22, 1970.
Source: Earth Day Network, www.earthday.net
Greenhouse gas emissions
24% - The percentage rise in Greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 to 2003.
Energy production and consumption accounted for 81% of total Canadian greenhouse gas emissions in 2003 and 91% of the growth in emissions from 1990 to 2003. Road transportation, thermal-electric power generation and fossil fuel production were the principal sources of the increase in emissions.
19% - The percentage share of total emissions contributed by road transportation in 2003.
23% - The contribution of road transportation to the total growth in emissions since 1990.
In part, this reflects a shift in the types of vehicles used for personal transportation from automobiles to vans, sport utility vehicles and light-duty trucks. These heavier vehicles emit on average 40% more greenhouse gases per kilometre than do automobiles.
18% - The percentage share of total emissions created by thermal-electric power generation in 2003.
27% - The contribution of thermal-electric power generation to the growth in total emissions since 1990.
This growth was driven by the rising demand for electricity and the relative increase in the use of fossil fuels, particularly coal, for electricity generation.
10% - The contribution of fossil fuel production to total greenhouse gas emissions in 2003.
13% - The contribution of fossil fuel production to the total growth in emissions since 1990.
From 1990 to 2003, exports of crude oil increased nearly six-fold, while exports of natural gas more than doubled. These increases explain about one-half the total emissions increase for this category.
Source: The Daily, Friday, December 14, 2005, "Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators".
350 kilotonnes - The amount of greenhouse gas emissions from waste incineration (including solid waste and sewage sludge) in 2002.
Incinerate or Recycle? - One potential benefit of incinerating waste is energy production. Waste-to-energy systems use the heat produced through the combustion of solid waste to power operations, heat buildings or generate electricity.
However, incineration-and waste-to-energy combustion in particular-requires waste with sufficient heating value that it will burn without using additional fuel. Diverting highly combustible materials from incineration, such as paper and plastics, lowers incinerator performance and can reduce energy output.
90% - The percentage of pollutants (including such criteria air contaminants as sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds and particulate matter) released by industrial facilities to air in 2003.
Source: The Daily, Friday, December 2, 2005, "Human Activity and the Environment: Solid waste".
678,817 kilotonnes - Total greenhouse gas emissions, all industry sectors, 2000.
555,016 kilotonnes - Greenhouse gas emissions of the Business sector.
16,138 kilotonnes - Greenhouse gas emissions of the Non-business sector.
107,662 kilotonnes - Greenhouse gas emissions of the Household sector.
Source: Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators: Socio-economic Information.
Ground-level ozone
16% - The increase in the national concentration of ground-level ozone from 1990 to 2003.
Ground-level ozone is one of the most common and harmful air pollutants to which people are exposed. The highest levels in 2003 were all recorded at stations in Southern Ontario; concentrations in this region also grew most quickly from 1990 to 2003.
Source: The Daily, Wednesday December 14, 2005, "Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators".
Household garbage
Household garbage accounts for 40% of the solid waste generated in Canada.
383 kg - The amount of waste generated in Canada, per person, by the residential component of solid waste in 2002.
30 - The number of green garbage bags this represents, per person.
12 million tonnes - The weight of solid waste generated by the residential component in Canada in 2002.
2.5 million tonnes - The amount of residential waste that was recycled or otherwise diverted in 2002.
$1.5 billion-plus - The cost of waste management services to municipal governments in 2002.
More than 40% of this money was spent collecting waste and recyclable material. A further 25% was spent operating disposal facilities, and 10% was spent running recycling and composting facilities.
Source: The Daily, Friday, December 2, 2005, "Human Activity and the Environment: Solid waste".
Solid Waste
30.4 million tonnes - The amount of solid waste produced in 2002 from all sources (residential, industrial, commercial, institutional, construction and demolition), or 971 kg per person.
1.6 million tonnes - The amount of waste transported out of Canada in 2002.
196,177 tonnes - The amount of hazardous wastes imported in the first six months of 2004. This was 21% more hazardous waste than Canada exported during that time.
$4.1 billion - The value of revenues for the waste management industry in 2002.
Source: The Daily, Friday, December 2, 2005, "Human Activity and the Environment: Solid waste".
E-waste
140,000 tonnes - According to Environment Canada, the estimated weight of obsolete and unwanted electronics components, computers, television sets, stereos and cell phones discarded annually in Canadian landfills.
E-wastes contain toxic materials such as lead, mercury, arsenic and chromium.
14 - The number of companies in Ontario that recycled information technology equipment in 2004.
Source: The Daily, Friday, December 2, 2005, "Human Activity and the Environment: Solid waste".
Recycling
6.6 million tonnes - The amount of non-hazardous waste materials prepared for recycling by local waste management organizations and companies in 2002.
46% - The proportion of all recycled material that was paper and cardboard.
18% - The proportion of all recycled material that was organic.
39% - The proportion of all recyclables that was provided by households.
2.8 million tonnes- The amount of waste paper recycled by Canadian paper mills in 2002. About 40% of waste paper has been recycled each year since 1995.
351 - The number of centralized facilities that composted organic waste in 2002, up from 255 in 2000.
Source: The Daily, Friday, December 2, 2005, "Human Activity and the Environment: Solid waste".
Environment industry
$15.8 billion - The value of revenues of Canada's environment industry in 2002. These revenues-up 8% from 2000- were earned from environmental goods, environmental services and environment-related construction projects.
7,967 - The number of firms in the environment industry in Canada in 2002, some 500 more than just two years earlier.
Firms that sell "eco-efficiency" technologies that decrease material inputs, recover valuable byproducts and reduce energy consumption continue to grow at a faster rate than average within the industry.
Source: The Daily, Tuesday, September 21, 2004, "Environment industry: business sector".
Environmental protection
$6.8 billion - The amount spent by Canadian industries on environmental protection in 2002.
172 - The number of endangered plants and animals in Canada in 2004. A further 120 were listed as "threatened", and 141 listed of "special concern".
82 million hectares - The total protected land area in Canada in 2003. That's significantly more than existed in 1989, when only 29 million hectares were protected. Provincial proportions of protected land as a share of total land ranged from 2.6% in Prince Edward Island to 13.0% in British Columbia.
14 - The number of convictions in Canada in 2003/04 for offences in violation of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA). There were 2,334 on-site inspections that same year and 32 investigations.
Source: The Daily, Friday, December 2, 2005, "Human Activity and the Environment: Solid waste".
Freshwater habitats
The water quality indicator provides a preliminary assessment of surface freshwater quality regarding the protection of aquatic life such as plants, invertebrates and fish. It does not assess the quality of water for human consumption.
44% - The percentage of the 345 sites selected across the country at which water quality was rated as "excellent" or "good."
100,000 tonnes - The total amount of the hundreds of different toxic substances and pollutants directly discharged by industries, institutions and households to Canada's rivers and lakes in 2003.
Source: The Daily, Wednesday December 14, 2005, "Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators".
See also: World water day...by the numbers.
Energy consumption
Canada was nearly equal to the United States for top energy consumption per capita among G8 countries in 2002.
We consume three times as much as last-placed Italy because of our long travel distances, long winters, and an economy based partly on high energy consuming industries.
Source: The Daily, Wednesday, March 23, 2005, "Study: A regional perspective on energy consumption in Canada".
362.3 gigajoules - Energy consumption per capita in Canada, 2004.
The energy content of a 30-litre tank of gasoline equals about one gigajoule.
Source: Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators: Socio-economic Information.
2 638 974 terajoules - The amount of energy consumed by manufacturers in 2004.
One thousand terajoules equal roughly the amount of energy required to operate the Montréal subway system for one year.
3.2% - The rise in energy consumption in the manufacturing sector in 2004.
As energy consumption increased, economic output in manufacturing as measured by gross domestic product (GDP) also rose, climbing 4.6%.
Source: The Daily, Wednesday, October 12, 2005, "Energy consumption by manufacturers".
2.21 gigajoules per square metre - The energy consumption rate of hotels and restaurants in 2004, a rate higher than other commercial businesses, institutions and organizations.
Source: The Daily, Wednesday, February 22, 2006, "Commercial and Institutional Consumption of Energy Survey".
See also: The Daily, Tuesday, April 4, 2006, "Survey of Household Energy Use".
For more information about this page or for help finding more data, contact Media Relations.
