Emissions to air, 2000, preliminary figures

Emissions increased by more than 6 per cent from 1990 to 2000, preliminary figures from Statistics Norway and the Norwegian Pollution Control Authority show.

Mild winter and petrol-miserly cars

Norway has signed the Kyoto Agreement, obligating it not to increase emissions by more than 1 per cent between 1990 and 2008-2012. Norways combined emissions of greenhouse gases have, however, increased by slightly more than 6 per cent in 1990-2000. In the last year emissions went down by just over 1 per cent. There are several reasons for the decline. Measured in degree days, the heating season in 2000 was the mildest since 1992, causing extremely low consumption of heating oil and heating kerosene. Furthermore, several air services were shut down, reducing sales of aviation fuel. Although road traffic has increased, more petrol-miserly cars have led to lower fuel consumption and emissions. The decline in emissions is, however, not uniform for all sectors. CO₂ emissions from offshore oil and gas operations in the North Sea continue to climb, increasing 10 per cent in 2000. Manufacturing emissions are also rising, but to a lesser degree.

The picture is not uniform

There is much to indicate that emissions in 2000 were actually somewhat higher than our figures indicate. Emission calculations for road traffic are based on sales figures, not consumption, and it looks like the consumption of auto diesel and petrol in 2000 did not fall as much as sales. This is because of the drawdown of stocks at filling stations in December 2000 as a result of the Norwegian national assemblys decision to reduce fuel taxes from 1 January 2001. Sales have risen since the taxes were cut. Total sales of auto diesel were 20 per cent higher in January and February 2001 than in the same period in 2000. The corresponding figure for petrol is 11 per cent.

Oil operations and road traffic have the largest emissions

Greenhouse gases is a general term for CO₂, methane, nitrous oxide, HFCs, PFCs and SF6. In 2000 CO₂ accounted for three-fourths of all greenhouse gases in Norway. Oil and gas operations contributed 24 per cent of CO₂ emissions in 2000, while road traffic contributed 22 per cent. Heating emissions on land accounted for 18 per cent of the emissions. Metal production accounted for 13 per cent. Emissions of CO₂ fell by about 1 per cent in 2000 in relation to the year before. This is the first time since 1991 that emissions have fallen.

Methane emissions up, nitrous oxide emissions down

With the exception of CO₂ total other greenhouse gases were almost unchanged from 1999. In 1999 methane accounted for 13 per cent of greenhouse gases. Emissions of methane went up 1 per cent in 2000 as result of increased emissions of offshore oil loading and from agriculture. Gas formed in landfills accounts for more than half of the methane emissions. Nitrous oxide emissions have fallen by nearly 2 per cent as a result of a large decline in chemical production. This decline is, however, counteracted by an increase in emissions from road traffic. The increase here is due to the catalytic converters in petrol-powered cars which create nitrous oxide as a by-product of emission treatment and that the share of cars fitted with catalytic converters is still rising. Emissions of HFCs, PFCs and SF₆ accounted for a total of nearly 4 per cent of greenhouse gases in 2000.