Australia carbon emissions rise in off-season for first time in a decade

By Michael Slezak and Nick Evershed
7 June 2017
(The Guardian) – Australia’s carbon emissions jumped at the start of 2017, the first time they have risen in the first few months of a year for more than a decade, according to projections produced exclusively for the Guardian.Emissions in the first three months of the year normally drop compared with the previous quarter, driven by seasonal factors and holidays. But in something not seen in since 2005, emissions rose in the first quarter of 2017 compared with the last quarter of 2016 by 1.54m tonnes of CO2, according to the study by consultants NDEVR Environmental. The rise was driven by increases in emissions from electricity generation.Government data on greenhouse gas emissions is released up to a full nine months after the end of a quarter. So NDEVR Environmental replicate the government data for the Guardian, releasing it about a month after the quarter finishes.

The unseasonal rise in emissions continues a trend of rising national emissions which began in 2014 and which the government’s own modelling suggests will continue for decades to come, based on current policies.Matt Drum, the director of NDEVR Environmental, said the results showed a clear trend of rising emissions.The projections showed the recent jump was almost entirely driven by an increase in emissions from the electricity sector, with emissions from other sectors remaining stable or dropping. [more]

Australia’s carbon emissions rise in off-season for first time in a decade