Last year, the Netherlands emitted 9 percent fewer greenhouse gases than in 2021. This is mainly due to the energy crisis, which caused citizens and companies to use less natural gas. Aviation emissions did rise due to growing passenger numbers.
Last year, CO2 emissions were just under 32 percent lower than in 1990, according to preliminary figures from Statistics Netherlands and RIVM. Since 2020, the Netherlands must meet the ‘Urgenda target’: 25 percent less emissions than in reference year 1990. The government wants emissions to be reduced by at least 55 percent by 2030.
Natural gas consumption fell particularly rapidly last year in homes, offices and shops. As a result, the built environment emitted 21 percent less CO2.
Emissions in industry fell by 11 percent, also due to lower gas consumption. The use of coal and oil in industry remained about the same. Emission reduction by industry had stagnated in recent years, but the energy crisis has given it a boost again. In agriculture, emissions fell by 10 percent, because many greenhouse growers lowered the heating or left greenhouses completely empty.
Less CO2 was also released into the air during the generation of electricity. This is due to the increasing share of green electricity, which amounted to 40 percent for the first time last year. Emissions from coal-fired power stations remained about the same as in 2021, after the government canceled a planned production limitation in the summer.
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Gas consumption will also remain lower this year
Statistics Netherlands uses the international guidelines of the UN climate panel IPCC to calculate the emission figures. International aviation and maritime transport are not included in this, nor is the combustion of biomass.
If those CO2 sources are included, emissions fell by 8.4 percent compared to 2021. The difference is due to aviation emissions, which rose by almost a third. However, the climate impact of aircraft is still 20 percent lower than before the corona crisis.
Energy expert Martien Visser of Hanze University Groningen does not expect emissions to skyrocket again this year. Although gas prices have fallen, they are still much higher than before the corona crisis. “So far I don’t see any industries starting up again. For many households, 1.45 euros per cubic meter of gas is still too much.” In the first months of the year, gas consumption therefore remained lower than before the energy crisis.
Meanwhile, the production of sustainable electricity continues to grow steadily. A large new wind farm off the North Sea coast is expected to come into operation in the course of this year. “All in all, my expectation would be that emissions will remain about the same,” says Visser.
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