New figures show Wales is failing on climate challenge

7 Oct 2008

Recently released figures show that Wales is failing to meet greenhouse gas emission targets, with total emissions rising by almost two million tonnes in a year.

The latest official report¹ for figures between 2006 and 2007 show that emissions of climate-changing gases² are now just seven per cent below the 1990 level, well short of the target of a 12 per cent reduction by 2010 set under the Kyoto protocol.

Emissions of the main climate-changing gas, carbon dioxide, rose to 42.5 million tonnes a year. Despite the UK Government setting a target to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 20 per cent between 1990 and 2010, emissions in Wales are less than two per cent below the 1990 level. This compares to a reduction of over six per cent for the UK as a whole.

The Director of Friends of the Earth Cymru, Gordon James, said:

"These figures are extremely disappointing and reflect the failure of politicians to respond to the huge threat posed by climate change.

"It is a serious setback for the Welsh Assembly Government as it is attempting to take a lead role by aiming to cut climate-changing emissions in areas of devolved power by three per cent a year from 2011.

"As climate scientists warn that we are rapidly running out of time to avoid catastrophic consequences³, our political representatives in Cardiff and London need to urgently implement policies that will deliver cuts in emissions soon. Far more needs to be done, for instance, to improve energy efficiency, develop renewable energy systems and support public transport.

"Many of the solutions exist. What is lacking is the political will."

The government figures show that power stations are the main source of carbon dioxide in Wales, accounting for a third of the total. Emissions from this source have increased by 24 per cent since 1990 in Wales compared to a fall of 10 per cent in the UK as a whole.

Just over a quarter of Welsh carbon dioxide emissions are produced by manufacturing and construction compared with 15 per cent for the UK.

On Wednesday 8 October, item five of the National Assembly's plenary session will be a call from the Liberal Democrats for tougher action on climate change from the Assembly Government.

NOTES

1. Greenhouse Gas Inventories for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland 1990 - 2006 by AEA Technology for DEFRA.
2. The main climate-changing or greenhouse gases are carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hudrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs) and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6).
3. A recent report by the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at Manchester University, 'Revisiting Emission Scenarios in the Light of Post-2000 Emission Trends' by Dr Kevin Anderson and Dr Alice Bows, warned that industrial countries have to make draconian cuts in emissions of climate-changing gases if catastrophic and irreversible consequences are to be avoided. Similarly, one of the world's leading climate scientists, Professor James Hansen of NASA, stated in a letter to Gordon Brown, on December 17th last year, that there is just barely enough time left to turn things around: http://www.columbia.edu/~jeh1/mailings/20071219_DearPrimeMinister.pdf