EEA reports on progress in greenhouse gas emissions reductions in 2006

20 Jun 2008

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the European Union decreased slightly between 2005 and 2006 according to the official inventory report prepared by the European Environment Agency (EEA). Overall emissions within the EU-27 fell by 14 million tonnes (0.3 %) and now stand 7.7 % below 1990 levels. Total emissions in the European Union were slightly more than 5.1 billion tonnes in 2006.

The Annual European Community Greenhouse gas inventory 1990–2006 and inventory report 2008, includes the following key findings:

The net reduction in GHG emissions observed for EU-27 was mainly due to reduced emission of nitrous oxide (12 million tonnes CO₂-equivalents) from chemical plants;
Overall emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂), the most important greenhouse gas, remained stable in the period 2005–2006;
Heavier use of coal for power and heat production resulted in an increase of 15.4 million tonnes CO₂ from this sector in 2006. Poland alone accounted for an increment of 7.6 million tonnes of emissions from this sector;
Denmark and Finland experienced the biggest relative increase in GHG emissions (with 10.9 and 16.3 % respectively), due to heavier use of solid fossil fuels for power generation;
EU-15 Member States cut emissions by 0.8 % (or 35 million tones) in 2006 and account for 81 % of the EU total. In 2006, EU-15 emissions were 2.7 % below their levels in the base year (1990 in most cases).