Enflamed CO2 emissions from cement production in Nepal

Cement industry is one of the main contributors to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, specifically carbon dioxide (CO2). This paper presents the cement production and the CO2 emissions from the cement industry in Nepal. We compute emissions for the process-related, combustion-related (fuel use), and electricity-related activities during the cement production. We used eight emission factors (EFs) for the process-related, two EFs for the combustion or fuel-related, and two for the electricity-related activities using the previous researches. We computed the emissions as a product of the activities and the EFs. The estimated CO2 emission in 2019 from the cement production is 3.45 +/- 0.50 million metric tons (mMt) for Nepal. In 2019, the emissions are 1.87 +/- 0.16 mMt from the process-related, 1.52 +/- 0.34 mMt from the combustion-related, and 0.062 +/- 0.004 mMt from the electricity use activities during the cement production in Nepal. Cumulative CO2 emission was 22.73 +/- 3.82 mMt from 1987 to 2019. Per capita CO2 emission is 0.12 mMt for Nepal in 2019. Nepal contributes about 0.06% CO2 emission from cement production to the global CO2 emission (2.08 Gt) from the cement industry. By evaluating per capita gross domestic product (GDP) (from 1987/1988 to 2019/2020) and the human development index (HDI) (from 1990 to 2019) with the cement production, the result shows that cement production increases significantly (p < 0.01) with an increase in the GDP and the HDI. We emphasize that the study's outputs are directly relevant to the country's emission inventory, mitigation planning, and developing a strategy for cleaner production.

Automated summary

This study examines the CO2 emissions from the cement industry in Nepal, highlighting its contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions. The research also reveals a significant positive correlation between cement production levels and the country's gross domestic product and human development index.