Which energy source has the lowest carbon emissions and is the safest?

As of 2021, nearly 90% of global CO₂ emissions came from fossil fuels. But energy production not only leads to carbon emissions, but also to accidents and air pollution, causing significant losses to human life.

Today, all energy sources produce greenhouse gases, either directly or indirectly. However, the top three energy sources for greenhouse gas emissions are all fossil fuels.

Energy carbon emissions (CO₂e/GWh)

• Coal: 820 tons

• Oil: 720 tons

• Natural gas: 490 tons

• Biomass: 78-230 tons

• Hydropower: 34 tons

• Solar: 5 tons

• Wind power: 4 tons

• Nuclear energy: 3 tons

Coal produces 820 tonnes of CO₂equivalent (CO₂e)/GWh. It is followed by oil, which produces 720 tonnes of CO₂e/GWh. At the same time, natural gas produces 490 tonnes of CO₂e/GWh. These three energy sources account for more than 60% of the world's energy carbon emissions.

The production and use of various energy sources can have other side effects, including air pollution leading to fatal or fatal accidents.

Energy-induced mortality (deaths/TWh)

• Coal: 24.6 people

• Oil: 18.4 people

• Natural gas: 2.8 people

• Biomass: 4.6 people

• Hydropower: 1.3 people

• Wind power: 0.04

• Nuclear: 0.03

• Solar: 0.02

Air pollution and accidents from mining and burning coal fuels kill about 25 people per terawatt hour (equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of 150,000 people in the European Union). By the same measure, oil kills 18 people a year, gas kills three a year, and hydropower kills one.

By far the safest energy sources are wind, solar, and nuclear, with annual deaths of less than 0.1 per terawatt hour. Despite widespread concerns about nuclear safety, nuclear energy is one of the safest energy sources in the world due to its large amount of electricity generation and low associated deaths.