Despite the E.U.’s carbon markets and vast renewable energy subsidies
Negotiators from 197 countries will be meeting for the next couple of weeks in Germany, where they’re preparing for a larger United Nations climate change conference in Poland this fall. So how are all those countries doing when it comes to reducing emissions of greenhouse gases?
As the International Energy Agency recently reported,
Global energy-related CO2 emissions grew by 1.4% in 2017, reaching a historic high of 32.5 gigatonnes (Gt), a resumption of growth after three years of global emissions remaining flat. The increase in CO2 emissions, however, was not universal. While most major economies saw a rise, some others experienced declines, including the United States, United Kingdom, Mexico and Japan. The biggest decline came from the United States, mainly because of higher deployment of renewables.
Although the Trump administration is generally hostile to international climate change agreements, the Environmental Protection Agency reports that the U.S. reduced its carbon dioxide emissions by 2 percent in 2016. This drop is largely attributable to a continuing market-driven switch from coal to natural gas, to more renewable generation, and to a relatively mild winter.