Venezuela: Environment
Climate
tropical; characterized by heat and humidity; more temperate in mountainous regions
Land use
other
22.1% (2023 est.)
forest
53.5% (2023 est.)
agricultural land
24.4% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: arable land
arable land: 2.9% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent crops
permanent crops: 0.8% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent pasture
permanent pasture: 20.6% (2023 est.)
Urbanization
urban population
88.4% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization
1.16% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Methane emissions
other
7 kt (2019-2021 est.)
waste
328.3 kt (2019-2021 est.)
energy
3,595.7 kt (2022-2024 est.)
agriculture
1,007.8 kt (2019-2021 est.)
Waste and recycling
municipal solid waste generated annually
9.779 million tons (2024 est.)
percent of municipal solid waste recycled
21.3% (2022 est.)
Environmental issues
sewage contamination of Lago de Valencia; oil and municipal pollution in Lago de Maracaibo; deforestation; degradation of soil; urban and industrial pollution, particularly along the Caribbean coastline; risk to the rainforest ecosystem due to mining activities
Total water withdrawal
municipal
5.123 billion cubic meters (2022 est.)
industrial
793.3 million cubic meters (2022 est.)
agricultural
16.71 billion cubic meters (2022 est.)
Carbon dioxide emissions
total emissions
76.73 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)
from consumed natural gas
48.623 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)
from coal and metallurgical coke
179,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)
from petroleum and other liquids
27.928 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)
Particulate matter emissions
16.1 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)
Total renewable water resources
1.325 trillion cubic meters (2022 est.)
International environmental agreements
party to
Antarctic-Environmental Protection, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 2006, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified
none of the selected agreements