SCIENCE DISCOVERY : Warmer winters play important role in EU emissions drop

 

 

Significantly warmer winters have played an important role in the ongoing decline in EU greenhouse gas emissions.According to a new report, the use of CO2 and other gases across the bloc dropped by almost a quarter between 1990 and 2014.

A switch from coal to natural gas, the recession and the rise of renewable energy all contributed to the fall.The latest figures, from 2014, show that a milder winter was the major factor in the reduction that year.
Overall from 1990 to 2014 emissions across the member states of the European Union fell by 24.4%, easily beating the 2020 target of 20% put forward as part of the first international agreement on climate change, the Kyoto Protocol.

Importantly, the EU managed to reduce emissions in this period while economic output rose by 47%.
The keys to cutting warming emissions over the period have been a big switch from coal to gas for electricity production, the rise of renewable energy, better home insulation and the economic recession of 2008.

"If you look at the 24 year period, there is some warming in Europe and this has contributed to lower heat demand and lower greenhouse gas emissions," said Ricardo Fernandez from the European Environment Agency who compiled the figures.

But despite the gains, there are some areas where progress is not being made as quickly. The use of hydrofluorocarbon gases, primarily in air conditioning and refrigerators, has increased.
Emissions from road transport have grown by 124 million tonnes between 1990 and 2014, now accounting for around 20% of all emissions in 2014.

The EU has agreed that it will cut overall emissions to 40% below the 1990 level by 2030 but it will probably be the end of this year before the 28 members can agree on how much each state will contribute.

Source : BBC