Global energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions rose in 2022, but at a slower rate than expected due to the rise of green energy and technologies, it was announced Thursday.
Last year, CO2 emissions from energy sources rose 0.9% to a record of more than 36.8 billion tons, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in a report.
“The risk of an explosive growth in emissions due to the increased use of coal in the context of the energy crisis has not materialized, as the increase in solar and wind power, electric cars, energy efficiency and other factors accelerated the increase in CO2 emissions have slowed down,” the IEA said on the basis of an analysis of French public data.
Energy emissions (more than three quarters of total greenhouse gases) remain on an “unsustainable growth trajectory”, fueling climate change, the IEA warned and called for more energetic action.
But according to the IEA, 550 million tons of CO2 were also avoided through new low-carbon energy infrastructure. Last year, renewable energy accounted for 90% of electricity production growth.
In 2021, the annual increase in energy-related emissions was 6%, after the exceptionally low first year of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Last year’s emissions were driven by a growing reliance on fossil fuels due to a resurgence of extreme weather events and difficulties in operating an unprecedented number of nuclear reactors.
Emissions from the combustion of coal, which in Asia, but also in Europe, has often replaced overpriced gas, increased by 1.6%.
Oil emissions rose 2.5%, but remained below pre-COVID-19 levels. Half of this growth was due to the recovery of air traffic, the AIE explains.
By geography, Asia excluding China saw emissions rise by 4.2%, driven by economic growth. China, barring covid restrictions, maintained the same level of emissions.
In the EU, emissions fell by 2.5%, thanks to a record deployment of renewables in the face of coal’s return. In the US, they rose 0.8%, with energy demand rising sharply due to extreme temperatures.
“The impact of the energy crisis has not led to the huge increase in emissions we feared, thanks to the remarkable growth of renewable energy sources, electric vehicles, heat pumps and energy efficiency technologies. Without this growth, the growth in CO2 emissions would almost three times superior,” said IEA Director Fatih Birol.
However, fossil fuel emissions [petróleo, gás, carvão] continue to grow, hampering efforts to meet global climate targets,” he added, urging affected companies to take action.
“Global and national fossil fuel companies are making record revenues and must take their share of the responsibility, in line with public climate commitments. They must review their strategies to ensure that emissions are actually reduced “, he said.
Source: DN
