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Press release
Published: 02 Jun 2010
The European Union's
greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory report, compiled
by the European Environment Agency (EEA),
shows that emissions have not only continued
their downward trend in 2008, but have also
picked up pace. The EU-27's emissions stood
11.3 % below their 11000 levels, while EU-15
achieved a reduction of 6.9 % compared to
Kyoto base-year levels.
Themes Climate change
'The GHG inventory report shows that the
EU is well on track to meet its emission
reduction targets with domestic policy measures
only. Our policies and tools seem to be
working' said Professor Jacqueline McGlade,
Executive Director of the EEA. 'Although
we are expecting an even sharper decline
in 2009, caused mainly by the recession,
we need to ensure that the downward trend
in emissions continues and that Europe boosts
its climate investments, with the ultimate
aim of achieving a more resource-efficient
economy.'
The combination of high
coal and carbon prices accompanied by a
drop in natural gas prices in 2008 induced
heat and electricity producers to replace
more polluting coal by gas and as a result,
reduce their GHG emissions. The use of biomass
and other renewable sources (wind and hydroelectric
power) has also increased significantly
in 2008. The economic recession, which started
during the second half of the year, also
contributed to emission reductions from
several sectors including the manufacturing
and construction, and road transport sectors.
Road transport emissions were also affected
by high oil prices, the continued decline
in gasoline consumption and a reversal of
the upward trend in diesel sales.
The annual reductions
for EU-15 and EU-27 revealed in the inventory
report fall within the brackets of the 2008
preliminary estimates, published by the
Agency in August 2009.
Key findings
The EU-27's emissions have been declining
steadily since 2003 to reach 4 940 billion
tonnes CO2 equivalents in 2008. Compared
to the 2007 emissions, this represents a
reduction of 99 million tonnes or 2 %. With
the 2008 emissions 11.3 % below its 11000
levels, EU-27 has already achieved more
than half of its unilateral reduction target
of 20 % by 2020 through domestic emission
reductions alone.
In this first year of
the Kyoto Protocol's commitment period,
EU-15 cut its emissions by 76 million tonnes
CO2 equivalents, corresponding to a drop
of 1.9 % from 2007. This brought the EU-15
emissions 6.9 %, or 295 million tonnes,
below Kyoto base-year levels, already in
2008, not accounting for carbon sinks and
the use of Kyoto flexible mechanisms.
For the first time since
1992, emissions from international aviation
and maritime transport fell in EU-27, partly
due to the economic recession. These two
sectors account for about 5.9 % of total
greenhouse gas emissions in EU-27 but are
not accounted for in relation to measuring
progress towards Kyoto targets.
Spain accounted for
one third of the net reduction in EU-27,
mainly due to a substantial replacement
of coal by natural gas and a sharp decline
in gasoline consumption in road transport,
complemented by an increase in renewable
energy generation.
The EU Emission Trading
Scheme (EU ETS) covered 43 % of total EU-27
greenhouse gas emissions in 2008. In 2008,
emission levels under the EU ETS were about
3 % lower than 2007 levels. The recently
published 2009 EU ETS data, reveal that
verified emissions in 2009 decreased by
11.6 % compared to 2008 levels, and reflects
the impact of the economic recession.
What next?
At the end of the summer 2010, the Agency
will publish preliminary estimates for the
2009 total EU emissions. This will be followed
in the autumn by more comprehensive reports
analysing emission trends, policy effectiveness
and progress towards meeting the Kyoto and
other EU emission targets.
Background on the inventory
report
The EEA report 'Annual European Union greenhouse
gas inventory 11000–2008 and inventory report
2010' was submitted to the Secretariat of
the United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change (UNFCCC) as the European
Union’s official submission. The report
was prepared on behalf of the European Commission
(DG CLIMA) by the European Environment Agency
(EEA) and its European Topic Centre for
Air and Climate Change (ETC/ACC), with substantial
input by the Joint Research Centre (JRC)
and Eurostat.
The UNFCCC, with 194
Parties, is the parent treaty of the 1997
Kyoto Protocol. The ultimate objective is
to achieve stabilization of greenhouse gas
concentrations in the atmosphere at a level
that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic
interference with the climate system.
EU-27: Austria, Belgium,
Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark,
Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece,
Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania,
Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland,
Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain,
Sweden, the United Kingdom.
EU-15: Austria, Belgium,
Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece,
Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands,
Portugal, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom.
