engleski

Towards a CO2 Free Future

In 2009, the EU-27 adopted a climate and energy package which committed Member States to reduce base-year emission levels by at least 20% by the year 2020. According to the European Energy Agency (EEA), the EU-27 had already reduced its base-year emissions by 15% by the end of the year 2010. However, this may be a short-term effect of the global economic recession. Under the Kyoto Protocol, the EU-15 agreed to achieve a common emission reduction target of 8% compared to base-year levels, over the period from 2008 to 2012. The EEA states that the Kyoto target was not only met but well exceeded in the EU-15, as the average emission levels in the period from 2008 to 2010 were 10% lower than base-year emission levels. Unfortunately, very few countries in the world share in the EU's plans for reducing greenhouse gases emissions. China and India as well as other emerging economies have taken the position of “business as usual”, arguing that the emission reduction efforts should be limited to the developed western countries which have contributed most to the climate problem. Recently, a very bold reduction target has been gaining popularity in the EU, the USA and Australia: to reduce greenhouse gases emissions by as much as 80% by 2050. To reach this target a significant share of renewables should be employed in power generation, high levels of energy efficiency should be achieved in all energy intensive sectors and new technologies such as carbon capture and storage should be introduced. By the end of 2012, Croatia will reach the assigned emission reduction target of 5% under the Kyoto Protocol ; although it could have been the other way around if the economy had not slowed down. Under the EU climate and energy package, Croatia has agreed to limit its emissions by 2020 to levels not above 11% relative to 2005 emissions.

climate and energy package; emission; CO2

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