Press
release - Published: 16 Oct 2008 - The EU-15
should meet its collective target of cutting
greenhouse gas emissions by 8 % for the
period 2008–2012. Part of this decrease
will come from emission reduction projects
that EU countries will finance in other
countries, according to a new report by
the European Environment Agency (EEA).
The report, "Greenhouse
gas emission trends and projections in Europe
2008" evaluates historic emissions
from 11000–2006. It also looks at projections
of future emissions during the Kyoto Protocol
commitment period (2008–2012).
Overall, projections
from Member States for the Kyoto period
indicate that the EU-15 could cut emissions
by more than 11 % compared to the base-year.
This could be achieved by a combination
of domestic policies and measures (in force
and planned), carbon sink activities and
credits for emission reductions outside
EU.
"Emission performance
remains mixed in the EU-15. A few Member
States are still off their Kyoto track.
However, if the expected outstanding performance
of other Member States is taken into account,
the EU-15 as a whole should meet its Kyoto
commitment," said Professor Jacqueline
McGlade, Executive Director of the European
Environment Agency. "In addition, the
situation would look better for some Member
States if their projections took full account
of the emission restrictions facing their
industries covered by the EU Emission Trading
Scheme."
The report also gives
a long-term estimate of the emissions situation
in Europe. Although emissions are projected
to continue decreasing until 2020 in the
EU-27, the 20 % reduction target compared
to 11000, endorsed by European leaders in
2007, will remain out of reach without the
implementation of additional measures, such
as the EU energy and climate change package
proposed by the European Commission in January
2008.
Data show that the 15
EU Member States sharing a common target
under the Kyoto Protocol (EU-15) achieved
a reduction of their greenhouse gases by
2.7 % between the base year and 2006. The
policies and measures in place as of today
will not be sufficient for the EU-15 to
meet its Kyoto target, as they are expected
to push down emissions between 2006 and
2010 to an average level only 3.6 % below
the base-year emissions. If the additional
measures planned by 10 Member States were
fully implemented and on time, a further
reduction of 3.3 % could be obtained. The
full effect of the EU Emission Trading Scheme
is not reflected in all Member States' projections.
Most EU-15 Member States
intend to use carbon sinks — such as planting
forests that absorb CO2 — to achieve their
Kyoto target. The total amount of carbon
dioxide that could be removed annually between
2008 and 2012 is relatively small (1.4 %
compared to 11000), although it is somewhat
higher than the projections made in 2007.
Ten EU-15 Member States
have planned to use the Kyoto Mechanisms
(see notes to the editor below) to achieve
their targets. This is expected to reduce
emissions by a further 3.0 %.
The EEA report singles
out the case of those countries that have
promised "significant emission reductions
in a limited time frame (2006–2010) from
policies and measures that have not been
implemented yet". In addition, countries
which project significant emission reductions
from 2006 to meet their target by 2010 will
actually have to sustain their efforts and
further reduce emissions until 2012. In
the end, some Member States might make use
of Kyoto mechanisms more intensively than
they are currently planning.
The overall EU-15 Kyoto
target of – 8 % corresponds to differentiated
emission targets for each Member State.
In 2006, four EU-15 Member States (France,
Greece, Sweden and the United Kingdom) had
already reached a level below their Kyoto
target. Eight additional EU-15 Member States
(Austria, Belgium, Finland, Germany, Ireland,
Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Portugal)
project that they will achieve their targets,
but projections from three Member States
(Denmark, Italy and Spain) indicate that
they will not meet their emission reduction
goals. However, the report notes that gaps
between targets and predictions are much
narrower than the projections made in 2007.
Ten of the 12 Member
States that joined the EU in 2004 and 2007
have individual reduction targets of 6 or
8 %. Only Cyprus and Malta do not have a
target. In the EU-12, the Member States
project that they will achieve their Kyoto
targets despite projected increases in emissions
between 2006 and 2010. Slovenia is the only
one of these Member States planning to use
the Kyoto mechanisms to meet its target.
to the editor
1. EU Kyoto Targets:
The EU-15 has a Kyoto target to cut greenhouse
gas emissions by 8 % from base-year levels
(see below) by 2012. Within this overall
target, each EU-15 member state has a differentiated
reduction target; some should reduce emissions
while others are allowed a limited increase.
New Member States have individual targets
except Cyprus and Malta, which have no targets.
Countries can achieve these targets by various
means.
2. Base-year emissions: Under the Kyoto
Protocol the GHG emission level in the 'base
year' is the relevant starting point for
tracking progress of domestic emissions
for EU-15 and all Member States which have
a Kyoto target. The EU-27 does not have
a Kyoto target and an aggregated base year
for the EU-27 is therefore not applicable
in any discussion of progress towards Kyoto
targets. It is important to clarify that
the base year is not a 'year' per se, but
the emission level from which emission reductions
will take place. For carbon dioxide, methane
and nitrous oxide, 11000 is used as the
'base year' for all EU-15 Member States.
But for fluorinated gases, the EU-15 Member
States can choose to use the emission levels
in 1995 instead. Twelve of the 15 Member
States have chosen to use 1995 as their
base year for fluorinated gas emissions.
In practice, EU-15 base-year emissions can
be considered close to 11000 emissions.
3. EU Emissions Trading Scheme: The EU Emissions
Trading Scheme is the European Union's climate
change policy tool, which helps industries
to cut their CO2 emissions in a cost-effective
way. It requires a cap on emissions for
all large CO2 emission sources. In the EU-15,
the ETS is estimated to cut 3.4 % from base-year
emissions.
4. Domestic policies and measures: Domestic
policies and measures take place within
the national boundaries of the country and
include: the promotion of electricity from
renewable energy; improvements in energy
efficiency; promotion of biofuels in transport;
reduction of carbon dioxide emissions from
cars; recovery of gases from landfills and
reduction of fluorinated gases.
5. Kyoto mechanisms: The Kyoto Protocol
envisages market-based mechanisms that allow
industrialised countries to meet their targets
by benefiting from emission reductions in
other countries. Under these mechanisms,
Member States can trade emissions between
themselves or acquire credits from emission-cutting
projects they finance abroad. These mechanisms
also help the transfer of low-carbon technologies
to other countries and promote sustainable
development. Greenhouse gas emissions are
a global problem and reductions can be made
where costs are lowest —— at least in the
initial phase of combating climate change.
The projected use of Kyoto mechanisms by
ten of the EU-15 Member States will reduce
emissions by 2010 by 3.0 % from base-year
levels. These countries are Austria, Belgium,
Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,
the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain. For
more information on Kyoto mechanisms, see
the UNFCCC website.
Òscar Romero:
