A dramatic fall in greenhouse gas emissions following the recession has brought the UK's climate change targets for the next five years within easy reach, taking the pressure off Government and businesses to comply.
Government estimates released in February show greenhouse gas emissions fell by 8.7% in the period 2008/2009, the biggest drop since records began in 1990. Carbon dioxide levels plunged 9.8%, a fall only matched in 1980. The unexpected slump in emissions mirrors the fall in industrial output in the recession, with high-emitting sectors such as construction and transport hit particularly hard. However, it also means that Government-set climate change targets of cutting emissions by 35% by 2020, compared with 1990 levels, now look much easier to meet. The UK has already met the targets for 2016, providing emissions stay at 2009 levels.
This raises the prospect that businesses could effectively take an "emissions holiday", meaning they will not need to invest in energy efficiency and renewable power for several years. Green experts have however warned that such inactivity would make it more expensive to achieve the further falls in the UK's emissions needed after 2020.
In other emissions news, a draft report has revealed Europe's new energy strategy could lead to a 25% cut in greenhouse gases by the end of the decade, which would see fuel import bills roughly halved.
The document was leaked amid renewed debate about whether the EU should extend the planned cuts to greenhouse gases beyond the current 20% goal. Environmentalists have commented that the goal has become too soft after the economic crisis cut emissions to 17% below the baseline. However, with Europe's older industries, such as steel, openly hostile to raising climate ambitions, politicians are shying away from setting any new targets and instead focusing on actions and financing to ensure existing plans are carried out.
European Union leaders agreed last month to tighten their enforcement of energy-savings targets, and Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger is preparing an ambitious plan for upgrading power grids to absorb more green power. Further details on this strategy are expected to be presented next month.
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