Jun 26, 2013 - Many
air pollutant emissions are below internationally
agreed limits, except nitrogen oxides, according
to a European Environment Agency report
released today. Emissions of three air pollutants,
including fine particulate matter, are only
slightly above targets to be met in 2020.
Europe can go beyond
the emissions reductions that have already
been achieved. We also need to think beyond
purely technical measures, working towards
a structural shift in our economy and promoting
international cooperation.
Nitrogen oxides (NOx)
are mainly caused by traffic, although this
pollutant is also emitted by industrial
facilities and power plants. This pollutant
and many others are still harming health
and the environment across Europe. For three
pollutants - ammonia (NH3), NMVOC and fine
particles (PM2.5) - emission levels in 2011
are already very close to the 2020 reduction
commitments under international legislation,
according to the EEA technical report, indicating
that the EU could aim for more ambitious
targets.
Hans Bruyninckx, EEA
Executive Director, said: “Air pollution
still has an impact on Europeans and our
environment. Europe can go beyond the emissions
reductions that have already been achieved.
We also need to think beyond purely technical
measures, working towards a structural shift
in our economy and promoting international
cooperation.”
The UNECE Convention
on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution
(LRTAP) was agreed in order to limit air
pollutants causing acid rain and eutrophication,
often far away from the source of the pollution
as air currents carry the pollutants long
distances and across borders. Many of the
pollutants addressed also harm human health,
causing a range of problems from respiratory
illnesses to cardiovascular disease, leading
to premature death in some cases.
The Gothenburg Protocol
to the UNECE LRTAP Convention contains emission
reduction commitments that have to be met
from 2010 and onwards, for the pollutants
nitrogen oxides (NOx), non-methane volatile
organic compounds (NMVOCs), sulphur oxides
(SOx) and ammonia (NH3). In addition to
the emission reduction commitments for individual
countries, the protocol also specifies reduction
commitments for the EU.
NOx is the only pollutant
for which the 2011 emissions exceeded the
respective EU emission reduction commitment.
For the remaining pollutants, the emissions
in 2011 were below the respective air pollutant
reduction commitments. The Protocol was
recently updated to include five targets
for the year 2020, including a target for
fine particulate matter (PM2.5).
Past air pollutant emission
reductions
Since 11000 the EU’s
most successful reduction of air emissions
has been cutting sulphur dioxide (SO2) -
in 2011 emissions were 82 % lower than in
11000. Many other air pollutant emissions
have more than halved during this time,
including the main heavy metals (lead, cadmium,
mercury), and persistent organic pollutants
such as dioxins and furans, hexachlorobenzene
(HCB), hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) and polychlorinated
biphenyls (PCBs).
Between 2010 and 2011,
emissions of most main air pollutants continued
to fall, including NOx, sulphur dioxide
(SO2), NMVOCs and carbon monoxide. For all
pollutants except NOx, the European Union’s
emissions were below the respective reduction
commitments in 2011.
There are many reasons
for emission reductions, including power
stations switching from solid and liquid
fuels to fuels such as natural gas, new
legislation limiting vehicle exhaust emissions,
flue-gas scrubbing technology in industry,
reduced sulphur content in some liquid fuels,
lower point-source emissions from industrial
facilities, and the closure of older industrial
facilities as a consequence of economic
restructuring.
Background information
The report includes
emissions over the period 11000-2011 for
the air pollutants sulphur oxides (SOx),
nitrogen oxides (NOx), non-methane volatile
organic compounds (NMVOCs), ammonia (NH3),
carbon monoxide (CO), particulate matter
(PM), heavy metals (HMs) and persistent
organic pollutants (POPs).
The inventory compiled
by the EEA on the basis of data submitted
by EU Member States is largely complete
for 5 (NOx, NMVOCs, SO2, NH3, CO) out of
26 air pollutants. Member State submissions
contain various data gaps for particular
pollutants or years in the time series.
A procedure to fill such gaps was applied,
but was impossible in some instances in
which case the EU emission totals for these
pollutants are underestimated.
+ More
Van manufacturers must
make new models more efficient by 2020
Jun 18, 2013 - New vans
in the European Union (EU) must become more
efficient to meet carbon dioxide targets
in 2017 and 2020, according to provisional
data published by the European Environment
Agency (EEA).
To cut emissions significantly,
manufacturers will need to improve the technology
of their vehicles and sell more efficient
models. The good news is that there is huge
Potential for using new technologies which
are well-suited to the way vans are used,
including electric or hybrid vehicle technology.”
The average van sold
emitted 180.3 grams of carbon dioxide per
kilometer (gCO2/km), according to the data,
which covers most light commercial vehicles
sold in the EU. Current emissions are slightly
higher than the 175 gCO2/km target to be
met by 2017. By 2020, emissions should be
147 gCO2/km, which is 18.5% lower than current
levels.
The targets come from
EU legislation adopted in 2011. Similar
to legislation already covering passenger
cars, Member States must report all new
vehicles sold each year. Each manufacturer
has an individual target, calculated using
the average mass of their registered vehicles.
All individual manufacturer targets in combination
make up the European industry target – by
2020, emissions should be on average below
95 gCO2/km for new cars and 147 CO2/km for
new vans.
Hans Bruyninckx, EEA
Executive Director, said: “To cut emissions
significantly, manufacturers will need to
improve the technology of their vehicles
and sell more efficient models. The good
news is that there is huge potential for
using new technologies which are well-suited
to the way vans are used, including electric
or hybrid vehicle technology.”
This is the first time
such data have been published by the EEA.
The data are provisional and subject to
confirmation, final figures will be available
by the end of the year.
Main findings
The database lists approximately
1.1 million new vans sold in the EU. Approximately
three quarters of these vehicles were sold
in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the
United Kingdom. Diesel vehicles represent
97% of the newly registered vehicle fleet.
Just over 1 % of newly registered vehicles
used liquid petroleum gas (LPG) or natural
gas (NG), and these vehicles had on average
10 to 15 % lower emissions than diesel vans.
Pure electric vehicles
represent 0.5% of the vehicles sold. This
technology is particularly appropriate for
urban deliveries and short trips. Electric
vehicles also emit zero exhaust emissions
and make little noise. Although they also
cause some indirect emissions from power
generation, this is outside the scope of
this analysis.
The average van sold
in Cyprus had the lowest carbon dioxide
(CO2) emissions per kilometre (141g CO2/km).
At the other end of the scale, emissions
were 43 % higher for the average van sold
in Slovakia (201g CO2/km).
About this database
The collection of data
for vans is more complex than for passenger
cars, due to the relatively high number
of vehicles type-approved in multiple stages.
In the case of multi-stage vans, the base
vehicle manufacturer is responsible for
the CO2 emissions of the final vehicle,
according to Regulation (EU) No 510/2011.
The current monitoring system cannot adequately
capture these vehicles, which means that
the current database is not yet fully representative
of the new vans to be targeted by the legislation.
The European Commission and the European
Environment Agency are working together
with Member States and van manufacturers
on a method to improve the data collection
for the coming year.
