Countries with higher manure emissions also tend to have higher enteric fermentation emissions.
Comparing Emission Totals - Emissions (CH4) - Enteric Fermentation with Manure Management — Emissions (CH4) across 167 countries, 2023–2050.
- Rank correlation
- +0.89
- Holding size constant
- +0.66
- Countries compared
- 167
- Period
- 2023–2050
What might link these
Both indicators measure methane emissions from livestock-related sources, suggesting agricultural intensity may drive both. However, the partial correlation remains strong after controlling for population and GDP, hinting at deeper structural factors like farming practices or livestock density.
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. Without controlling for agricultural sector size or livestock counts, the link could reflect shared underlying drivers rather than a direct relationship.
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.