Brussels, 15/05/2009 (Agence Europe) - According to the most recent data, greenhouse gas emissions generated by industrial plants involved in the EU's carbon trading system (ETS, emissions trading system) fell by 3.6% in 2008 on 2007. These figures have been complied from Member States' national registers and were published by the European Commission on Friday 15 May 2009. They show that verified emissions from all the plants covered by ETS in 2008 (except plants in Bulgaria, Liechtenstein and Norway, where 2007 figures are unavailable or incomplete and therefore cannot be compared year-on-year) totalled 2,118 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent.
The European Commission welcomed the news particularly because 'emissions were reduced despite GDP growth in the EU-27 of 0.8% last year' in the second trading period (2008-2012), demonstrating a clear dis-connect between pollution and economic growth. EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas explained in a press release: "The 3 percent reduction was partly due to businesses taking measures to cut their emissions in response to the strong carbon price that prevailed until the economic downturn started. It confirms that the EU has a well functioning trading system, with a robust cap, a clear price signal and a liquid market, which is helping us to cut emissions cost-effectively. This should encourage other countries in their efforts to set up comparable domestic cap-and-trade systems, which we would like to see linked up with the EU ETS to create a stronger international carbon market.”
Belgium, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands are the only three Member States whose greenhouse gas emissions were higher in 2008 than 2007.
“Of all the plants participating in the scheme last year, 0,9% did not surrender the required quantity of allowances by the deadline of 1 May 2009. These plants are typically small and together they account for less than 0.5% of all emission allocations in the EU,” commented the Commission. Some 2,2% of the plants, accounting for 0,1% of all emission allocations in the EU failed to submit verified emissions for the year 2008 before 1 May 2009.
The number of plants with open accounts, i.e. those participating in the system, was 11,359 in 2008, which is 213 fewer than in 2007. This reduction resulted from the application of a rule that took many smaller plants out of the system. Despite this, the volume of emissions covered by the EU ETS expanded to activities with emissions amounting to around 50 million tons of CO2-equivalent last year due to Member States adopting a more harmonised interpretation of definitions of activities covered. In addition, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway joined the EU ETS in 2008 (although at present no plants in Iceland are covered).
Last year it was possible for the first time for plants to surrender emission credits generated through the Kyoto Protocol's flexible mechanisms in order to offset part of their emissions. Certified emissions reductions (CERs) accounted for 3.9% of all surrenders. ERUs accounted for only 0.002% of all surrenders. The combined CER and ERU (emission reduction units or credits) surrenders in 2008 used up only roughly 6% of the approximately 1.4 billion credits that are allowed over the 2008-2012 trading period.
The Commission points out that until 2007 (when the experimental phase of the carbon trading system came to a close), the EU ETS only covered emissions of carbon dioxide, but from 2008 onwards it also includes emissions of nitrous oxide from the production of nitric acid in the Netherlands and Norway..
Barbara Helfferich, Commissioner Dimas' spokesperson, commented that detailed figures and a full analysis of the total EU verified emissions in 2007 under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, will be published on 29 May 2009. (A.N. trans fl)