LOCATED IN THE Persian Gulf, the State of Qatar has a land area of 4,416 sq. mi. (11,437 sq. km.), with a population of 841,000 (2006 est.), and a population density of 192 people per sq. mi. (74 people per sq. km.). With massive prosperity from the petroleum industry and from the production of natural gas, some 90 percent of Qatar’s population lives in urban areas. Only one percent of the country is arable, with a further five percent used for meadows and pasture, with the country having no forests or woodland.
Qatar has the highest rate of carbon dioxide emissions per capita, and one of the highest in the world as far back as 1950. In 1990, it was measured at 22.5 metric tons per person, rising dramatically to 37.4 metric tons per person, dramatically increasing to 55.3 metric tons in 1992. It rose steadily, reaching 69.2 percent in 2004, considerably more than the second highest per capita emitter, Kuwait, which reached a peak of 38 metric tons in 2004. This high level comes from the use of natural gas for electricity generation, all electricity coming from the use of fossil fuels. Electricity usage remains high, with heavy use of air conditioning, and also the running of a large desalination plant.
Gaseous fuels account for 80 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions, with liquid fuels making up a further 19 percent. The generation of electricity contributes 28 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions, with other energy industries making up 32 percent, and manufacturing and construction another 32 percent. In spite of its small size, transportation accounts for 8 percent of the emissions, a result of a wealthy economy that has a large private ownership of automobiles, and gasoline is cheap.
The Qatar government took part in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change signed in Rio de Janeiro in May 1992. They accepted the Kyoto Protocol to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change on January 11, 2005, with it entering into force on April 11, 2005.
