12 hours before this magazine went to press, the European Environment Agency published its annual Energy and Environment Report. This wide-ranging snapshot of the industry today is essential reading for executives throughout the renewables industry. PES is proud to present an exclusive extract…
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1 What is the impact of energy production and use on the environment?
The production and consumption of energy places a wide range of pressures on the environment and on public health, some of which have been decreasing. Following are the key trends observed in Europe.
1. Energy‑related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions remain dominant, accounting for 80 % of the total emissions, with the largest emitting sector being electricity and heat production, followed by transport.
2. Between 1990 and 2005, energy‑related GHG emissions in the EU‑27 fell by 4.4 % but a significant part of this occurred in the beginning of the 1990s due to structural changes taking place in the economies of the EU‑12 Member States. The intensity of CO2 emissions from public conventional thermal power plants in the EU‑27 decreased by 27 % due to efficiency improvements and the replacement of coal with gas in the power sector.
