Country Review

UNITED KINGDOM

Under the December 1997 Kyoto Protocol, the EU is obligated to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions 8% from 1990 levels by 2008-2012. All EU member states signed the Kyoto Protocol on April 29, 1998 and subsequently ratified it on May 31, 2002. Under a burden-sharing agreement, member states agreed on different emission limitations and/or reduction targets according to economic circumstances.

According to the European Commission Press Release on 15th July 2004, emissions were thus in 2002 almost 3% lower than the base year of the Kyoto Protocol of 1990. The main reasons for the decrease include policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gases such as a shift from coal to gas and also reduced emissions from manufacturing industry and from heating due to warm weather in many EU countries. However, this decrease still leaves the EU15 with a long way to go to meet its commitment under the Kyoto Protocol.

The goal is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 8% from 1990 levels by 2008-2012. In the medium and long-term much greater reductions in emissions will be needed to prevent climate change. Assuming the 8% reduction between the base year and 2008-2012 were to follow a linear path, emissions should have fallen by 4.8% by 2002. Instead, the EU15 is 1.9 percentage points above the Kyoto track. Only four countries (France, Germany, Sweden and the UK) are on track, without use of the Kyoto Protocol’s trading mechanisms, which allow reductions to be made in other countries to comply with the national targets.

Clear increases in emissions of 10% from 2001 to 2002 occurred in Luxembourg and of around 4% in Spain and Portugal. The reason for the large increase in Luxembourg was the construction of power plants and thus the reduction of electricity imports. In Spain and Portugal, dry weather conditions caused lower production of hydro power.

Initial analysis indicates that Spain, Portugal and Ireland are the furthest away from their target. Portugal’s emissions in 2002 stood 41% higher than in 1990 (its Kyoto target allows for an increase of 27% only). Spain stood 39 % higher (more than double the 15% increase it is allowed between 1990 and 2008-2012) and Ireland at 28.9% higher (allowed increase 13%).