UK GHG Emissions Well Above 1990 Levels - Guardian

[hatrack]

Britain's emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide are now higher than they were in 1990, the benchmark year used in government targets to tackle the pollution which is driving climate change. A study by scientists at the Tyndall centre, at Manchester University, shows that soaring carbon emissions from the aviation and shipping industries have swamped attempts to reduce pollution from other UK sectors.

The analysis is the first attempt to measure total UK emissions by including those from all ships and aircraft - one of the fastest growing sources of greenhouse gases, yet not included in official data on emissions. The news will give more ammunition to critics of the government's credibility on climate change amid mounting exasperation among scientists that politicians who acknowledge the threat of global warming are failing to take serious action to cut emissions.

Kevin Anderson, who led the study, said: "The atmosphere doesn't care where the carbon comes from, so in any rational approach you can't just conveniently forget to count some sectors."

Emissions from aircraft and ships entering and leaving Britain have more than doubled since 1990 and are expected to double again within a decade. The study comes as ministers are poised to publish a review of climate change policies intended by 2010 to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20% on 1990 levels. But the scientists say such targets are misleading, because they do not include all sources of pollution.

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/story/0,,1727886,00.html