Corrects date of Kyoto ratification in paragraph three from November to December.
CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australians have become a nation of waste recyclers and water misers but continue to be among the world's highest per-person carbon emitters, a snapshot of the country found on Thursday.
But Australia, which signed the Kyoto Protocol on climate change last December, continues to rely on coal for electricity, and fossil fuel for transport, making Australians high per person emitters of greenhouse gases, blamed for global warming.
It said 17.5 tonnes of carbon gas were emitted for every Australian, compared to an average 11.1 tonnes per person in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries.
The Year Book said in 2005, carbon emissions from the energy sector, which accounts for about 70 percent of the nation's emissions, had increased by 36 percent on 1990 levels, while industrial processing emissions had increased 16.6 percent.
The Book found despite the growth in recycling, the amount of waste was growing, with about 1,600 kg (3,500 lb) of waste for each of Australia's 21 million people, up 32 percent since 1997.
Much of the country remains in drought and water restrictions are in place in most cities, increasing awareness of water shortages and leading to an eight percent drop in household water use over the first four years of drought to mid-2005.