Published: Dec 16, 2011
Last modified: Dec 16, 2011
At the Eye on Earth summit in Abu Dhabi
this week, many different global and national
organisations committed to contributing
large volumes of environmental data to the
new Eye on Earth global public information
service developed by the European Environment
Agency (EEA) and partners.
The Abu Dhabi Summit
was an enormous success. The launch of the
Eye on Earth global public information service
and network demonstrated how important sharing
information will be in the future. We are
now actively working with governments, industry
and citizens to build an ever-more comprehensive
and accurate picture of our world. We will
continue to take this forward at the UN
sustainable development summit in Rio next
year.
The EEA has already
uploaded hundreds of theme-specific map
and data viewers into the service. Examples
of other data contributors include UNEP
and the US, providing datasets on diverse
topics such as streets, mountains, water
quality, watersheds and eco-regions. During
the Summit, both UNEP and the US announced
their continued support and use of the service
in the future.
At the end of the four-day summit, a declaration
was signed which will lead to increased
sharing of economic, environmental and social
information. It was supported by numerous
global, national and non-governmental organisations.
The declaration will feed into the global
United Nations Conference on Sustainable
Development to be held in Rio de Janeiro,
Brazil, in June 2012. Principle 10 of the
1992 Rio Declaration states the importance
of public authorities facilitating and encouraging
public access to environmental information.
The Summit was dedicated to the critical
issue of greater access to open and shared
environmental and societal data for enhanced
decision making. It brought together the
global leadership of the environmental information
movement, a group dedicated to bringing
the benefits of better information to people
and decision-makers around the planet.
“The Abu Dhabi Summit was an enormous success,”
said EEA Executive Director Jacqueline McGlade.
“The launch of the Eye on Earth global public
information service and network demonstrated
how important sharing information will be
in the future. We are now actively working
with governments, industry and citizens
to build an ever-more comprehensive and
accurate picture of our world. We will take
this forward at the UN sustainable development
summit in Rio next year.”
Noteworthy speakers included Achim Steiner,
Executive Director of the United Nations
Environmental Programme (UNEP), Chief Almir
Surui, Leader of the Surui people of the
Brazilian Amazon, Rebecca Moore, from Google
Outreach, former US President Bill Clinton,
Dr. Jane Goodall, UN Messenger of Peace,
H.E. Raz Kahlifa Al Mubarrak, Secretary
General, Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi
and Professor McGlade.
The new version of the Eye on Earth global
public information service, showcased by
EEA and its partners during the Summit,
also received widespread recognition. The
service hosts information from a wide variety
of sources – from citizens to national and
global institutions. It further allows for
the integration and sharing of data and
information, the creation of new environmental
knowledge and networking.
Participants also agreed to create eight
‘Special Initiatives’ in several areas,
such as a global network of networks, water
security, sustainable communities and biodiversity.
The initiatives will be the main vehicles
for delivering results through concrete
projects and partnerships. The EEA was significantly
involved in promoting the ‘Global Network
of Networks’ (GNON) initiative. At the end
of the meeting, H.E. Raz Kahlifa Al Mubarrak
announced a follow-up Summit in Abu Dhabi
for 2014 which will take stock of progress
made.
+ More
Most carmakers must
further improve carbon efficiency by 2015
Published: Dec 20, 2011
Last modified: Dec 20, 2011
Several carmakers need to make their fleets
even more carbon-efficient in order to meet
2012 carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions target,
according to updated data published today
by the European Environment Agency (EEA).
The data also show that almost all manufacturers
must reduce emissions to meet 2015 targets
under European legislation for new passenger
cars, based on average CO2 emissions for
each manufacturer.
Today people use many
forms of transport, but cars still represent
a big part of everyday life. The data show
that most car manufacturers have already
met their individual 2012 targets. However,
several others need to continue their current
trend of year-on-year efficiency improvements.
Road transport is responsible
for 17.5 % of overall greenhouse gas emissions
in Europe and its emissions increased by
23 % between 11000 and 2009. To reduce the
CO2 emissions of the road transport sector,
European legislation has introduced mandatory
CO2 emissions limits for new passenger cars.
The average emission level of a new car
registered in the European Union in 2010
was 140.3 gCO2/km. Overall, car manufacturers
must achieve a CO2 emission target of 130
g CO2/km by 2015 as an average value for
the fleet of new cars registered in the
EU. This target will be gradually phased
in from 2012.
Specific emission targets (expressed as
an amount of CO2 emissions per vehicle kilometre)
are assigned to each car manufacturer (or
pools of manufacturers) depending on the
average mass of the fleet. A manufacturer
(or pools of manufacturers) producing on
average larger new cars has a higher target.
The new data published by the EEA today
considers the distance to the 2012 and 2015
targets for the vehicles sold in 2010, showing
which manufacturers must make further progress
towards the targets. Fines for failing to
meet the target (also known as ‘excess emissions
premiums’) will be calculated on a progressive
scale for each additional gram of CO2 above
the target, multiplied by the number of
cars sold.
“Today people use many forms of transport,
but cars still represent a big part of everyday
life,” EEA Executive Director Prof. Jacqueline
McGlade said. “The data show that most car
manufacturers have already met their individual
2012 targets. However, several others need
to continue their current trend of year-on-year
efficiency improvements.”
Key findings:
Thirty-two manufacturers, representing almost
80 % of 2010 registrations in the EU, already
achieve their 2012 specific emissions targets
two years in advance.
If car manufacturers make no further improvements
in carbon efficiency of new cars between
2010 and 2012, non-compliant manufacturers
could face fines which in total would add
up to €10 billion.
Toyota Motor Europe
is already compliant with its 2012 target,
and also less than 1g CO2/km from the more
stringent 2015 target. Automobiles Peugeot
and Automobiles Citroën are also both
close to reaching their 2015 target already.
These manufacturers need to cut their emissions
by less than 5g CO2/km to meet the target,
a value corresponding to the average reduction
of emissions from new passenger cars between
2009 and 2010 in Europe.
Among the larger manufacturers,
Daimler AG, Honda Motor Co, Nissan International
SA, General Motors Company, Mazda Motor
Corporation and Dacia will have to reduce
the average emissions of their fleets by
more than 14 g CO2/km over the next five
years.
There are three manufacturers which produce
only electric vehicles – so their emissions
are listed as zero. Of the manufacturers
producing some conventional-fuelled cars,
Maruti Suzuki India Ltd had the lowest CO2
emission level overall (104 g CO2/Km). The
average mass of its fleet is the lowest
among all the car manufacturers registering
vehicles in Europe. Among the larger manufacturers,
Fiat Group Automobiles Spa had the lowest
average CO2 emissions in 2010 (125 g CO2/km).
At the other end of
the spectrum, some carmakers will need to
halve emissions in the next four years in
order to comply with the legislation.
The legislation provides for incentives
to car manufacturers to reduce the CO2 emissions
of their vehicles. For calculating average
emissions, certain types of vehicles receive
additional incentives, including super credits
for low emitting vehicles (<50g CO2/km)
and other credits for biofuels and certain
efficiency measures. Manufacturers' progress
will be monitored each year by the European
Commission and the EEA in order to track
the performance against individual targets.
+ More
Economic growth must
be decoupled from environmental harm – the
EEA evaluates findings from 2011
Published: Dec 21, 2011
Last modified: Dec 21, 2011
Europe’s impact on the environment is still
very much linked to the economy. This message
was clear in many of the reports and datasets
published by the European Environment Agency
(EEA) in 2011, as analysts were able to
clearly see a decrease in various emissions
and types of environmental damage during
the 2009 recession.
Many different environmental
analyses carried out in 2011 once again
demonstrated that environmental harm falls
when economic growth slows down. We need
to break this link between environmental
damage and economic growth if we are to
achieve continued prosperity, without destroying
the natural systems that sustain us.
European Union Member
States often take a year or more to fully
collect and collate environmental data –
so many reports published in 2011 considered
data from 2009 and 2010. This means that
EEA experts in many cases were not able
to see the full effect of the 2009 recession
on the environment until now.
“Many different environmental analyses carried
out in 2011 once again demonstrated that
environmental harm falls when economic growth
slows down,” EEA Executive Director Jacqueline
McGlade said. “We need to break this link
between environmental damage and economic
growth if we are to achieve continued prosperity,
without destroying the natural systems that
sustain us. “
The shift to a ‘green economy’ which does
not damage the environment looks set to
dominate environmental discussions next
year. In June 2012, government representatives
from around the world will meet in Rio de
Janeiro, 20 years after the first historic
Earth Summit – and the EEA will support
the negotiations with the latest environmental
information. To support better information
sharing, the EEA has launched a new version
of the Eye on Earth global public information
service.
Information sharing is becoming an increasingly
important part of modern life. Eye on Earth
allows anyone to make maps and other visualisations
using data from many different global, national
and local organisations. Once new data or
information is entered into the system in
one place, it has a potentially global reach,
combining with new information across different
networks to build an ever-more detailed
and accurate picture of our world.
Pollution rebounds with the economy
In 2009, transport demand fell, leading
to lower emissions from cars, trucks and
planes. Greenhouse gas emissions fell by
7.1 % in 2009, while air pollution was also
reduced. For example, sulphur dioxide (SOx)
emissions fell by 21 %.
Air pollution and carbon dioxide from industrial
plants in the EU caused €102-169 billion
health costs in 2009, according to analysis
carried out by the EEA. This cost would
likely be much higher in a non-recession
year.
Recession also hit other ‘eco sectors’ of
the economy – for example, revenues from
recycling almost doubled between 2004 and
2008 to become a €60 billion industry in
the EU. But growth took a hit during the
recession as demand for recycled materials
fell.
Pollution and emissions increased in many
cases in 2010, as economic growth returned.
According to an early estimate from the
EEA, greenhouse gas emissions increased
2.4 % in 2010, although analysis shows that
renewable energy and other policies have
helped to curb this emissions increase.
Air pollution was also a major problem in
2010. There were many cases where ground-level
ozone (O3) levels exceeded predefined limit
values, while another report showed 95%
of Europeans living in urban areas were
exposed to O3 levels above World Health
Organisation guidelines. An early estimate
of nitrous oxide (NOx) pollution showed
that the target ceiling was exceeded by
17 % in the EU.
Other findings from the EEA in 2011
Renewable energy is set to grow fast, according
to countries’ plans for meeting the 20%
renewable energy targets for 2020. Member
States collectively forecast the fastest
growth for offshore wind, where capacity
looks set to multiply 17 times.
Roads, railways and towns are cutting natural
habitats into ever smaller pieces – and
the potentially disastrous results for animals
may continue to emerge, as ‘landscape fragmentation’
has a delayed effect on wildlife.
More than 90% of bathing water sites in
the EU met the minimum requirements in 2010.
Cyprus was the only country where all bathing
sites met the strict guide values.
