In the third quarter of 2024, greenhouse gas emissions in the EU economy amounted to 767 million tons of CO2 equivalent compared to 772 million tons of CO2 equivalent in the same quarter of 2023.
These are the data of the quarterly assessment of Q3 2024 greenhouse gas emissions by economic activity provided by Eurostat.
The decrease is 5 million tons or 0.6%. At the same time, the EU's gross domestic product (GDP) in the third quarter of 2024 increased by 1.3% compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
The statistics take into account the emission of the following gases: carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4) and fluorinated gases (hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) and sodium trifluoride (NF3).
Which industries reduced emissions the most
The most significant reductions were in the electricity and gas supply (-6.7%) and transportation and storage (-0.9%) sectors.
Source: ec.europa.eu.
Which EU countries showed a decrease in emissions
In the third quarter of 2024, greenhouse gas emissions decreased in 16 EU countries compared to the same quarter of 2023.
The largest decreases were in Austria (-7.8%), Hungary (-3.3%), and Denmark (-2.8%).
Source: ec.europa.eu.
Interestingly, two different trends were observed among these 16 EU countries:
- 4 countries recorded a decline in GDP (Hungary, Austria, Estonia, and Romania);
- the other 12 EU countries (Malta, Croatia, Spain, Denmark, Czech Republic, Portugal, France, the Netherlands, Poland, Belgium, Finland, and Germany) are estimated to have reduced emissions while GDP grew.
Which countries have increased greenhouse gas emissions
According to Eurostat, there were 6 such countries: Lithuania, Luxembourg, Sweden, Greece, Slovakia, and Latvia. Their emissions increased by more than 2% compared to the third quarter of 2023, while in the remaining 5 EU countries, emissions increased by less than 2% or remained the same (Bulgaria). Emissions in Latvia are estimated to have increased despite the economic contraction.
Recently, EcoPolitic reported that the German Federal Intelligence Service in its report warned of a threat to the existence of the EU due to global warming and climate change.
