Published: 23 Nov 2007
- Emissions of sulphur (SOx) have been reduced
by almost 70 % since 11000, says a new report
recently released by the European Environment
Agency (EEA). The report, 'Annual European
Community LRTAP Convention emission inventory
report 11000–2005' also shows that levels
of nitrogen oxides (NOx), as reported by
the EU-27 Member States, are down by 35
%.
SOx and NOx are harmful to human health
and the environment. Emissions of both pollutants
were approximately 3.5 % lower in 2005 compared
to 2004. Emissions reductions have taken
place across many sectors including transport,
energy, agriculture and waste.
At the EU-27 level, large emission reductions
were also recorded for other key air pollutants
including carbon monoxide (– 51 %) and non-methane
volatile organic compounds (– 42 %).
The inventory report shows emission trends
and data availability for the EU-27, and
is published annually. Data from Member
States are compiled by the EEA on behalf
of the European Commission, as part of the
Community's legal reporting obligations
for the United Nations Economic Commission
for Europe Convention on Long-range Transboundary
Air Pollution (UNECE LRTAP Convention).
This report therefore documents the emissions
data officially reported by Member States.
Other EEA publications such as the Core
set of indicators and the recently released
EEA report 'Air Pollution in Europe 11000–2004'
provide detailed assessments of why changes
in the reported emissions have occurred.
The report does highlight a lack of data
from Member States. As a result emissions
of some pollutants cannot be calculated.
The report recommends ways in which reporting
can be improved.
+ More
IPCC report calls for immediate action
on climate change
Published: 19 Nov 2007 - The latest report
from the Nobel-winning Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) underlines
the need for immediate mitigation and adaptation
measures according to Professor Jacqueline
Mc Glade, Executive Director of the EEA.
The report, the fourth in a series this
year, was presented in Valencia, Spain after
a week of intense negotiations. It pulls
no punches in terms of the possibly catastrophic
impacts of climate change, underlining in
particular the impacts on poorer nations,
who are wholly unprepared.
'While the worst effects of climate change
may not hit for many years we must prepare
now. Climate change will have profound effects
on our natural resources and will also change
the way we go about our daily lives. We
will not only lose biodiversity but also
large parts of our territory, for example
low-lying coastal areas and river basins
as sea levels rise and the number of river
floods increase,' Professor McGlade said.
This report provides an integrated view
of climate change, its causes, its effects,
as well as adaptation and mitigation options,
focusing on issues particularly relevant
for policymakers. The report provides a
more systematic understanding of the timing
and magnitude of the impacts of climate
change and clearly points out that greenhouse
gas emissions from human activities are
the main cause.
The IPCC report says that:
observations of climate change, its impacts
and causes, are alarming;
without additional mitigation (by reducing
greenhouse gas emissions) climate change
will lead to significant risks;
adaptation to climate change must start
now;
reducing the risks of climate change is
urgent, possible and affordable.
The latest IPCC report is seen as the main
input for a key United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) conference
in Bali this December. The meeting will
discuss a follow-up to the Kyoto Protocol
to cut emissions of greenhouse gases, which
was agreed by the UNFCCC in 1997 and came
into force in 2005.
'This report further underlines the importance
of agreeing on a next step, a post-Kyoto
global emission reduction scheme. The Bali
meeting should be a watershed — if we don't
achieve a global agreement to cut future
emissions there — it may be too late, Professor
McGlade said.
+ More
Beyond GDP — Brussels Conference
Published: 23 Nov 2007 - 'Gross domestic
product, regularly used as an indicator
of the size of a country's economy, does
not factor in the benefits from nor the
costs to the ecosystem,' said EEA Executive
Director Prof. Jacqueline McGlade in her
presentation at the expert workshop preceding
the 'Beyond GDP' conference in Brussels
this week.
'The free services that the ecosystem provides
such as, air and water should be measured,
valued and added to the GDP for computing
a more inclusive aggregated measure, which
we call inclusive domestic product (IDP),'
Prof. McGlade said.
Many negative impacts on the ecosystem
such as over-harvesting, waste disposal,
fragmentation by dams, and sealing of soil
for development had no direct counterpart
in GDP. As a result, the full cost of producing
and consuming goods and services is not
reflected in their ultimate market price.
These ignored costs should be added to the
current production output and imports of
countries, sectors and companies enabling
us to calculate the full cost of goods and
services (FCGS), she said.
These two additional measures could be
a valuable tool for policy-makers, enabling
them to take more informed decisions on
the costs of action versus inaction, on
environmental costs and where to target
ecological tax reform. However, such additional
measures would supplement GDP, not replace
or adjust it, the EEA director stressed.
