hope for the climate protection? In 2019, the emissions from coal, Oil and Gas are not increased, says the International energy Agency.
coal-fired power in Harbin, China: here, Too, the emissions are rising slower than expected photo: Jason Lee
BERLIN taz | In the global climate debate, widely used now, the International energy Agency (IEA) in Paris, carefully, a little bit of hope. According to the provisional Figures of the authority, the emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) are not increased from the combustion of Oil, coal and Gas in the past year.
“Contrary to widespread expectations of a renewed increase in the energy-related CO2 to grow emissions 2019 ceased,” said the IEA on Tuesday. The discharge persisted, therefore, to 33 billion metric tons, although the world economy grew by 2.9 percent. “The Trends suggest that the Transition to cleaner energy takes place, led by the electricity sector,” it says.
According to the IEA estimates, the analyses for the industrial countries, global energy policy, are for this Surprise a lot of factors are responsible: Decreased emissions, especially in the old industrial countries, while increases in the emerging countries such as China and India, with about the same amount (approximately 380 million tons).
reason for the CO2-Bremse in the USA, the EU and Japan, according to the IEA, the rise of the renewable energies, Wind and solar, the switch from coal to Gas and more nuclear power for electricity generation, especially in Japan. A mild Winter and a weaker economy came about in China.
other factors in the IEA’s hope: in the industrial countries, the economy grew by 1.7 percent, decreased CO2 emissions at the same time, 3.2 percent – the chimney must smoke for prosperity so. Eco-energy avoided 130 million tonnes of CO2, the switch from coal to Gas, 100 million, and the nuclear power of 50 million tons.
“We must now work hard to ensure that 2019 is seen as the definitive peaks of the emissions, and not only as a Pause in growth,” said IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol. He plays on the enthusiasm from climate activists, as around the Paris agreement, between 2014 and 2016, the global emissions are already virtually at the same level stayed. But then it went rapidly upwards, alone, in 2018 the emissions of CO2 from energy and industry sector increased by 2.7 percent.
Birol can use some good news, because on Wednesday he has organized at the headquarters of the IEA in Paris, a high-profile conference on climate policy. The year 2020 is crucial: In November, the UN must submit to States a new, better climate plans and the EU’s debate about its “Green Deal” to bring to the CO2-neutrality by 2050; in addition, the Europeans with China to conclude a new climate deal, even if the United States should be under a second Trump government continues this theme refuse.
In the USA show great progress in CO2-reduction: Cheap Gas displaces coal, the emissions decreased by almost 3 percent. Also Germany looks good because it leads with the decline of coal-fired power generation in the EU with a reduction of 8 per cent, and emissions has, according to the IEA “on a level we have not seen since the 1950s, as the economic performance was still ten times less”.
The jubilation over the zero growth in emissions, however, is to enjoy with caution, gives the IEA on demand. Because the data focus solely on CO2 emissions – the emission of extremely climate-damaging methane caused an increase in the gas consumption due to leakage, in addition, is not recorded.
various studies indicate that the switch from coal to Gas because of these methane releases to the atmosphere may relieve hardly. Gas burns significantly cleaner than coal, the whole System of wells and Pipelines heats up but depending on its conduction losses, the earth’s atmosphere similar to the burning of coal.
other CO2 emissions outside of energy and industry are not listed for 2019. The huge forest fires in the Amazon have set, in Siberia and in Australia, according to estimates of experts, more than 500 million tons of carbon dioxide in addition. Alone, Australia has initiated through the fire, according to a study by Nasa with 250 million tonnes of CO2 less than 50 per cent of its total annual emissions into the atmosphere.
