Which countries are the world's biggest polluters?

Some of the answers may surprise you. China has overtaken the United States as far as most total emissions go, as the Asian country has seen its emissions double in the last 10 years.

The biggest surprise, however, may be that Australia has passed the United States as far as highest emissions per capita. It is very surprising to see them higher on the list than countries such as the United States and Canada, which are colder and use much more fossil fuels for heating homes and businesses.

Both the United States and China pledged to address global warming and work on reducing their emissions at a recent U.N. meeting in New York. Both of these countries, as well as many other countries from around the world, will be meeting in Copenhagen next month for the U.N.'s Climate Change Conference. Representatives from countries around the world will work on negotiating a successor to the Kyoto Protocol, which is set to expire.

For more information on which countries are the biggest polluters, check out this post from The New Ecologist.