by BP, Jul 10, 2022 in WUWT
Introduction
Every summer BP publish their statistical review of world energy.
One element of their comprehensive set of spreadsheets is a table of CO2 emissions country by country since 1965. For the purposes of this post, the CO2 emissions data provided by BP here is assumed to be valid. This post reviews the 2022 update to the BP data.
The 2022 dataset accounts for the 2020 effect of the Covid-19 epidemic, the CO2 emissions resulting in the aftermath of the epidemic, its impact on Global economic activity and the outcome for the recovery of Man-made CO2 emissions in 2021.
For an earlier post reporting the status of Man-made CO2 emissions as of 2020, see:
Developed nations: population ~1.3 billion, (~17%) – ~37% CO2 emissions.
United States of America: population ~330m, ~13.9% of global CO2 emissions.
President Biden has negated many of Trump’s climate initiatives, including the USA rejoining support for the Paris Climate accord. The actions of the Trump presidency had established USA energy independence for the first time in several decades. In the USA, simply by exploiting shale gas as opposed to Coal for electricity generation, has already reduced its annual CO2 emissions by some by ~1,000,000,000 tonnes, ie by one third, since 2005. That market driven initiative has already had a greater CO2 emission reduction effect than the entire Kyoto protocol and the Paris Climate Accord.
Japan, the former Soviet Union, (CIS), Canada and Australia, (JP CIS CA AU): population ~356m, ~12.1% of global CO2 emissions.
These are nominally developed nations with some ambivalence towards controls on CO2 emissions and not necessarily adhering to the Paris Climate Accord.
Europe including the UK, Turkey and the Ukraine: population ~650m, ~11.2% of global CO2 emissions.
This reassessment including Turkey and the Ukraine adds ~120 million to the wider European population with a resulting lowering of the overall CO2 emissions/head. Currently European governments are still largely committed to action to combat Global Warming; they have generally been enthusiastic supporters of the Paris Climate Accord, but the context is changing rapidly, including:
- since February 2022 the war in Ukraine has suddenly made Western nations realise that their immediate energy security in the is much more important than any Green agenda to save the World from possible warming by the end of the century and that their Energy Security and injudicious dependence of Russian energy sources has enabled that Energy Security as a weapon against their economies. But, after 30 years of unrelenting Green propaganda the Green agenda is still well established in the thinking of European Governments.
- European peoples will come to understand the substantial changes to their lifestyles, personal economies and freedoms that are demanded by their governments’ to pursue the Net Zero / Green agenda and voters may be losing enthusiasm as they understand the real life implications of the imposed policies.
- long-term policies providing generous subsidy support for “Renewables” as opposed to Conventional power generation have been pursued, particularly in Germany and the UK.
- the preferential support of “Renewable” technologies has fruitlessly undermined investment in conventional reliable power generation to the extent that there is now real doubt about the ability of European power grids to provide a consistent service 24/7.
- the subsidy support has meant that ~ 25% is aded to electricity bills go to support the “Renewable” technologies in the UK and elsewhere. With escalating power bills European are at last realising that much of their increased costs are for the support of “Renewables” and progressively these expenditures will meet increasing resistance as the level of waste and the unreliability they represent becomes appreciated.
- the Yellow Vests reaction in France was an immediate and violent reaction to the increase of fuel taxes on grounds of combatting climate change. The fuel price rises in 2022 are much more drastic than those that induced the “Yellow Vest” reaction.
- policies based on climate concerns are irrelevant to improving well-being in the Developing World, which has no interest for actions that would restrain their continuing development and well-being using their indigenous fossil fuels.
Nominally Developing nations: population ~6.6 billion, (84.6%) – ~63% CO2 emissions.
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