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FACTBOX-Germany's record on emissions

03 Jun 2007 23:05:29 GMT
Source: Reuters

June 4 (Reuters) - Germany hosts a June 6-8 G8 meeting that will focus on fighting climate change. Chancellor Angela Merkel has made the battle against global warming a centrepiece of her G8 presidency. Yet Germany has a mixed record on climate:

- Germany is Europe's largest and the world's sixth biggest emitter of carbon dioxide. In 2005, it had per capita emissions of 10.6 tonnes, 2-1/2 times the global average but half as much as the United States.

- German greenhouse gas emissions have barely changed in last 12 years even though government vowed to cut CO2 by 21 percent from 1990 to 2012. CO2 output is down 17 percent. It was down 16 percent in 1995; most cuts in early 1990s were due to collapse of East German industry.

- CO2 emissions in Germany rose by 0.6 percent in 2006.

- Germany is building 26 coal-burning power plants. They are needed to fill a gap that will be left by government's decision to phase out of nuclear power by 2020. The Deutsche Umwelthilfe organisation said those new coal plants being built will alone account for 150 million tonnes of CO2 emissions per year. About 80 percent of Germany's CO2 emissions come from power plants.

- The fuel efficiency of the German government's own fleet of cars has worsened. In 2005 the fleet had average fuel usage of 12.6 litres per 100 km, up from 11.8 litres per 100 in 2004, according to a recent parliamentary query by Free Democrats.

- The German government says CO2 from all cars in the country has dropped by 15 million tonnes, or 9 percent, since 1999. But analysts say this is a statistical distortion -- much of the cut is due to motorists living near borders travelling to neighbouring countries to fill tanks and avoid rising German petrol tax.

Poland, Austria, Luxembourg, Switzerland and the Czech Republic all have lower fuel prices at the pump than in Germany. The DIW institute for economic research in Berlin estimated German motorists bought 4 billion litres of fuel abroad in 2005 compared with 31 billion litres bought inside Germany.

- Many German government workers commute between federal offices divided between Bonn and Berlin -- 600 km apart. There are 8,726 jobs in Berlin and 9,148 in Bonn. Government staff take 132,000 flights each year between the two cities, causing 17,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

- The government opposes setting speed limits on motorways, where cars sometimes travel 250 kph and above. Analysts say a 130 kph speed limit would lead to an immediate 5 pct cut in car CO2 output and 15 percent in long run as consumers turn away from high-performance cars to more fuel-efficient vehicles.

- The government wants to promote renewable energy around the world. German firms in the sector are world leaders in the field and employ 157,000 now, a figure forecast to double by 2030. One recent Allianz AG study said 700,000 jobs in all environmental technology fields could be created in Germany by 2030.

- The German government waged an awkward three-month fight earlier this year against a European Commission cap on annual CO2 emissions for 2008-12, before agreeing to the 453 million tonnes cap the Commission demanded.

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Last updated:Sun Jun 3 23:09:11 2007