Emissions data

The higher dotted line represents Queensland’s emissions reduction target of at least 30% below 2005 levels by 2030.

Queensland’s 2022 emissions were 35% below 2005 levels, meaning this target was achieved 8 years ahead of schedule.

The lower dotted line represents Queensland's new 75% by 2035 emissions reduction target.

The transport sector is Queensland’s third largest source of emissions overall, reflecting Queensland’s economic growth and the importance of motor vehicles for passenger cars and freight.

The long-term trends indicate increasing transport emissions, however, emissions decreased by approximately 9% from 2019 to 2022, likely due to the short-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Road transport was the main source of this sector’s greenhouse gas emissions, contributing 85.4% of the sector’s total emissions in 2022.

Fugitive emissions are emissions that are lost to the atmosphere during coal and gas mining activities.

The emissions are mostly methane, a greenhouse gas with a global warming potential 28 times higher than carbon dioxide over a 100-year period.

The coal mining sector is the primary driver of fugitive emissions, contributing approximately 85.5% of 2022 emissions with the remainder from natural gas extraction, oil and other mining.

The National Greenhouse Accounts reports emissions from Public electricity, Stationary and Industrial energy, Transport, Agriculture, Fugitive emissions, Industrial processes, Land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF), and Waste.

For further information, refer to Australia's National Greenhouse Accounts.

Stationary and industrial energy sector includes the generation of electricity for fuel combustion for use by industry, businesses, households, mining, manufacturing and construction.

In 2022, most of the emissions data from specific activities in this sector was confidential, but comprised of emissions produced from, petroleum refining, manufacturing industries and construction, and other sectors, including residential and commercial and carbon dioxide transport and storage.

Greenhouse gas emissions from this sector have remained virtually static since 2018 but rose from 25.2 MtCO2-e to 25.8 MtCO2-e in 2022. This increase was likely driven by the recovering economy and the return of resurgence in industrial and commercial industries production as the economy recovered following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Emissions from agriculture include:

• enteric fermentation
• manure management
• rice cultivation
• agricultural soils
• field burning of agricultural residues
• liming
• the application of urea as a fertiliser.

The largest source of Queensland’s agriculture emissions is enteric fermentation representing 78% of the sector’s total emissions. This is primarily due to methane emissions produced from Queensland’s large livestock numbers including beef cattle and sheep.

Manure management and agricultural soils are the next largest sources of agriculture emissions in Queensland representing around 11.5% and 8.7% of total emissions respectively.

Greenhouse gas emissions from rice cultivation, field burning of agricultural residues, liming and urea application are low, collectively representing 1.5% of Queensland’s agricultural emissions.

Industrial processes involve activities from a range of production processes such as the mineral industry, through cement and glass production and from the chemical industry.

Greenhouse gas emissions from halocarbons, a replacement for ozone-depleting substances used in refrigeration and air-conditioning are over 3 times greater than the 2005 baseline.

ODS represents 39% of the greenhouse gas emissions produced by industrial processes in 2022.

The subsectors include mineral industry (22%), chemical industry (22%), non-energy products from fuels and solvent use (1%), other product manufacture and use (0.6%), and other (16%).

Land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF) is made up of 6 subsectors comprising both greenhouse gas emissions and removals (also known as sequestration).

In 2022, emissions from wetlands contributed 0.3 MtCO₂-e, emissions from croplands contributed 0.07 MtCO₂-e, and emissions from settlements contributed 0.8 MtCO₂-e.

In 2022, forest land, grassland and harvested wood products were a source of sequestration, representing a removal of 11, 5.4 and 0.8 MtCO₂-e respectively.

Forest land

Forest land comprises emissions and sequestration from forest land remaining forest land and land converted to forest land. Forest land remaining forest land includes plantations, harvested native forests and other native forests. Emissions from fuelwood consumption and biomass burning in forests (controlled burning and wildfire) are also included as is the sequestration associated with post-fire recovery. Land converted to forest land includes grassland, croplands, settlements and wetlands (tidal marsh) on which forest is identified to emerge.

Cropland

Cropland comprises emissions and sequestration from cropland remaining cropland and forest land and wetlands converted to cropland.

Grassland

Grassland comprises emissions and sequestration from grassland remaining grassland and forest land and wetlands converted to grassland.

Wetland

Wetland comprises emissions and sequestration from wetlands remaining wetlands and forest land converted to wetlands. Wetlands remaining wetlands estimates represent nitrous oxides emissions from aquaculture use in tidal wetlands, net CO₂ emissions from removal of seagrass due to capital dredging and net emissions due to human-induced changes in the area of sparse woody vegetation.

Settlements

Settlements comprises emissions and sequestration from settlements remaining settlements and forest land and wetlands converted to settlements.

Harvested wood products

Harvested wood products are represented as a sink as most timber is used, for example, in the construction industry in the form of buildings and furniture, where it often stays for decades.

Queensland’s waste sector greenhouse gas emissions come from 4 key subsectors:

• solid waste disposal
• biological treatment of solid waste
• incineration and open burning of waste
• wastewater treatment and discharge.

Landfill (solid waste disposal) is the largest source of waste-related emissions at just under 72% of the sector's total emissions in 2022.

Approximately 26% of waste sector emissions come from wastewater treatment and discharge, while a very small contribution is made by the treatment of solid waste and incineration.