Gold: Emissions
Why each tonne of gold carries a huge footprint
What this tab covers The greenhouse-gas footprint of the commodity at a global level, split by lifecycle phase: extraction (or farming), refining and processing, movement, usage, and recycling or end of life. Intensities are per unit of product; the global total combines intensity with world output. Also covers other environmental impacts and the main levers to cut emissions. Emission intensity 33k t CO2e per t range about 12,500 (Nuss & Eckelman 2014) to about 33,000 (WGC 2018) · cradle-to-gate, global sector average, mostly mine Scope 1 and 2 Global emissions per year 105 Mt CO2e per year 2018 · WGC states its 2,013 Mt carbon budget equals 19 years of current emissions, implying about 105 Mt a year; 3,300 t x 32,689 t CO2e/t gives about 108 Mt for 2025Per t of mined gold (refined bar); cradle-to-gate, sector average. Intensity: World Gold Council estimate for 2018 (as reported by Mining.com); Nuss & Eckelman 2014, PLoS ONE (indicative). Global total: WGC, Gold and climate change: current and future impacts, appendices (2019).
Share of footprint by lifecycle phase
Extraction 97% Refining / processing 2%Footprint by lifecycle phase
| Phase | Intensity | Share | Main sources of emissions | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Extraction | about 32,000 t CO2e/t (indicative: nearly all of the total) | 97% | grid electricity for crushing, grinding and ventilation; diesel haul trucks; cyanide, lime and explosives | Each tonne of gold needs hundreds of thousands of tonnes of ore at grades of 1-5 g/t, so intensity rises as grades fall. WGC estimates industry electricity use at 50-100 million MWh a year. | WGC 2019 appendices; share indicative |
| Refining / processing | small: melting dore and chemical or electrolytic refining | 2% | furnace fuel, chlorine and acid reagents | Refining of dore and scrap to 99.99% is a minor share of the footprint (indicative). | WGC 2019 (qualitative); share indicative |
| Movement | about 6 t CO2e/t (indicative calculation: 10,000 km by air at about 0.6 kg CO2 per t-km) | 0% | air freight between mine, refinery and vaults | Well under 0.1% of the total; gold's value density makes transport emissions trivial. | Indicative calculation using DEFRA freight factors |
| Usage | none directly | – | storage in vaults and jewellery wearing emit nothing | Gold in electronics enables devices but its emissions are not counted here. | Not applicable |
| Recycling / end of life | a small fraction of mined gold's footprint (indicative); no global figure published | – | melting, assaying and refining of jewellery and electronic scrap | Recycling supplied 28% of 2025 supply. Gold is almost never lost, so end of life means resale or remelt. | WGC FY2025; no published global LCA value found |
Other environmental impacts
Artisanal and small-scale gold mining is the largest source of man-made mercury emissions, about 38% of the total (UNEP Global Mercury Assessment 2018). Large mines leave cyanide-bearing tailings, use much water and clear land, including in the Amazon.
Levers to cut emissions
- Renewable power purchase agreements and on-site solar for mines: Barrick's Loulo solar plant saved 1,593 t CO2e in one quarter of 2020
- Battery-electric underground fleets and trolley-assisted haulage to cut diesel
- Ore sorting and better grinding efficiency, since comminution is the largest electricity use
- Higher use of recycled gold, which needs only refining rather than moving ore
India
India mines little gold, so its footprint is embedded in imports: 721 t imported in FY2025-26 at about 32,700 t CO2e/t implies roughly 24 Mt CO2e (indicative calculation). Domestic recycling (21.7 t in 2025, WGC) is far lower-carbon.
Emission figures are indicative global averages from the life-cycle studies named; actual footprints vary widely by site, energy mix and method.