Greenhouse gases, decreasing trend but growing national levels

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֎The latest edition of the Ispra publication is online: «Greenhouse gas emissions in Italy. Reduction objectives for 2030″. The constant increase in the transport sector is decisive, over 90% of whose emissions come from road transport, which compared to the previous year marks a +5% and confirms a trend that knows no pauses and exceeds 7% since 1990.

The trend in greenhouse gas emissions is decreasing and, thanks to the growth in recent years of energy production from renewable sources (hydroelectric and wind) and the transition to the use of fuels with lower carbon content, in 2022 they will be -21 % since 1990.

Despite the positive trend, greenhouse gas emissions in Italy in the last two years continue to grow and reach a total of 413 million tonnes of CO in 2022₂ equivalent (+0.4% compared to 2021). The constant increase in the transport sector is decisive, over 90% of whose emissions come from road transport, which compared to the previous year marks a +5% and confirms a trend that knows no pauses and exceeds 7% since 1990, a value in contrast to those of all other economic sectors which on the contrary recorded marked reductions, with the exception of waste which represents approximately 5% of the national total.

These are the official ISPRA data emerging from the latest edition of the ISPRA Report «Greenhouse gas emissions in Italy. Reduction objectives for 2030″, presented this morning, which provides the national emissions framework and an assessment of the trend in greenhouse gas emissions.

In addition to transport (26% of the national total), the sectors of energy production (23%), residential (18%) and manufacturing industry (13%) are, in the reference period, those which contribute to approximately half of national emissions of climate-changing gases.

Also with regard to the national objectives established by the Effort Sharing regulation (which provides for a 43.7% reduction compared to 2005 in emissions produced by transport, residential, building heating, agriculture, waste and non-Emission Trading System – Ets industry) , the failure to reduce transport and residential emissions has led to a progressive approach of Italian emission levels to the maximum permitted limits, until they were exceeded both in 2021 (4.6 MtCO_2eq) than in 2022 (5.5 MtCO_2eq).

For previous periods, Italy has always respected the reduction objectives assigned, both for the adoption of mitigation policies and measures, and for the various economic crisis cycles of 2008 and 2013 connected to global economic dynamics. The emission reductions required for the period 2013 – 2020 have not only been achieved, but largely exceeded (for the period in question a total “overachievement” is calculated in terms of reduction of 190 MtCO_2eq).

Preliminary estimates for 2023, while observing a drop in total emissions of around 26 MtCO_2eq (-6.2% of the total), mark the exceeding of the allowed limit for the same year (12.9 MtCO_2eq). This result is mainly due to the lack of reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from road transport which, despite European directives, continue to remain constant at the high emission levels of 2014, thus leading to the maximum limit being exceeded.

(Source Ispra)

Values ​​of reductions in economic sectors since 1990