More than half of all carbon pollution released into the
atmosphere comes from five countries, according to a national
ranking of greenhouse gas emissions released Thursday. The first
10 countries on the list, made available during UN climate talks
in Durban, South Africa, account for two-thirds of global
emissions, said the report, compiled by British-based firm
Maplecroft, specialists in risk analysis. China, the United
States, India, Russia and Japan top the ranking, with Brazil,
Germany, Canada, Mexico and Iran just behind. Three of the top
six nations are energy-hungry emerging giants developing their
economies at breakneck speed. China, which eclipsed the United
States several years ago to head the list, produced 9,441
megatons of CO2 equivalent (CO2e), a measure that combines C02
with other heat-trapping gases such as methane and nitrous
oxide. The method of calculation used combines 2009 figures for
energy consumption with estimated numbers for 2010. The majority
of the countries' emissions are carbon