Countries with more manure emissions also burn more crop residues
Comparing Burning - Crop residues — Emissions (CH4) with Manure applied to Soils — Emissions (N2O) across 159 countries, 2023–2050.
- Rank correlation
- +0.81
- Holding size constant
- +0.43
- Countries compared
- 159
- Period
- 2023–2050
What might link these
Both indicators reflect agricultural intensity, but the partial correlation suggests other factors (e.g., farming practices) may drive the link beyond population and GDP. A careful reader should avoid assuming causation.
Why this is not proof of anything
This is a correlation across countries, not an experiment. It cannot show that either indicator causes the other, and both may simply follow a third thing. The high initial correlation may overstate the relationship after controlling for key economic factors.
The second figure above repeats the measurement with national population and income held constant. It is the more conservative number: a relationship that largely disappears there was mostly telling you that larger, richer countries have more of most things.
How this was measured
Both indicators were ranked across every country reporting each, and the two rankings compared — ranks rather than raw values, because a handful of very large countries can otherwise manufacture a relationship on their own. The calculation is arithmetic over figures already published on this site; the commentary above is drafted from the two indicator names and the resulting coefficients.