Canada's top earners leave the largest ecological footprint, according to a study released Tuesday correlating income levels with consumption.

The study, conducted by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, evaluates consumption of food, housing, mobility, goods and services. Canada's top earners, those with a disposable household income of above $155,000, have an ecological footprint measuring 12.4 hectares per capita — 66 per cent larger than the average Canadian household.

"When we look at where the environmental impact of human activity comes from, we see that size really does matter," said CCPA researcher Hugh Mackenzie in a release.

The report noted that in all categories except for food, high-income Canadians had a larger ecological footprint. In the mobility category, consumption patterns were notably pronounced, with the footprint of top earners measuring almost nine times the size of the lowest-income households. The report said richer households relied more on private cars, vans, trucks and passenger air travel.

"At the low end of the income scale, motor vehicles are either not needed, not affordable or used sparingly," the report said. "At the high end of the income spectrum, there are not only more motor vehicles per capita, but also more expensive vehicles that require a larger footprint to produce, maintain and operate."

In terms of housing, the report noted richer households tend to have a higher footprint because they purchase larger, detached homes that consume substantial amounts of energy for heating, cooling and lighting.

The study said that Canada as a country produces a considerable ecological footprint at 7.6 hectares per capita — behind only the United States and the United Arab Emirates.