X. GREENHOUSE GASES EMISSIONS

The climate system of the Earth is influenced by a number of human activities, and the prevailing role in climate change is ascribed to anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG), which increase the so-called greenhouse effect. The most serious impacts of the ongoing climate change include the growing frequency of extreme climatic events (floods, droughts, windstorms), sea level rise, decreasing drinking water availability, desertification, biodiversity reduction, etc. Even in the conditions of the Czech Republic, the current climate change is manifested first and foremost by an increased frequency of floods and extreme temperatures.

In 1992 the UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) drafted the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (hereafter the Convention), which entered into force in 1994. The basic objective of the Convention was to create the preconditions for the timely stabilization of GHG global concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous interference of anthropogenic influences with the climate system. The Convention Parties meet every year at Conference of Parties and review the accomplished progress or accept strategies aimed at the meeting of set objectives.

However, as soon as in 1995 it was apparent that the commitments set by the Convention have no specific definition, and thus the global effect would not be sufficient. Negotiations therefore commenced with the aim to strengthen the common response to climate change, and two years later the so-called Kyoto Protocol, as an amendment to the Convention, was adopted at the Third Conference of the Parties to the Convention in Kyoto (Japan) in 1997. The Kyoto Protocol has its own system of meetings to review the implementation of its commitments. With regard to the fact that the parties to the Kyoto Protocol are also the parties to the Convention, the conferences usually take place simultaneously.

By the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol, industrialized countries are legally bound to reduce during the first commitment period (2008–2012), individually or jointly, their GHG emissions in total volume by at least 5.2 % as against the 1990 levels. This reduction concerns emissions and removals of carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), nitrous oxide (N₂O), partially (HFC) and totally (PFC) fluorinated hydrocarbons and sulphur hexafluoride (SF₆), expressed in the form of aggregated emissions of CO₂. As concerns the Czech Republic, there was the commitment to reduce total GHG emissions by 8 % as against the reference year 1990 (for HFC, PFC and SF₆, the year 1995 was set as the reference year).

In December 2012 the 18^th Conference of the Parties to the Convention (COP-18) in Doha (Qatar) adopted an amendment confirming the extension of the Kyoto Protocol and its second commitment period for eight years (2013–2020). Within the second period, some of the countries agreed to accept new reduction commitments which should contribute to the reduction of GHG emissions by at least 18 % below the level of the year 1990. As concerns the Czech Republic, the reduction commitment was set to 20 %. The EU will fulfil the commitment set by the Convention or Kyoto Protocol within the community.

At present the EU is engaged both in the question of emission reduction and the possibilities of adaptation to the climate change. The EU and its (at that time) 27 member states committed themselves to reduce by 2020 the emissions of GHG by 20 % as compared with the year 1990, and it even offered to increase this commitment up to 30 % on the condition that other world’s leading economies would accept the stricter commitment. However, the reduction by 20 % corresponds to the objective formulated in the respective EU legislation adopted in 2009 within the so-called climate and energy package. The climate and energy package contains, inter alia, the directive updating and extending the European Emission Trading Scheme (EU ETS). In May 2013 the text of the new Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council (EU) No. 525/2013 was adopted on a mechanism for monitoring and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions and for reporting other information at the level of EU member states.

One of the key requirements of the Convention, the Kyoto Protocol and other potential amendments, is to provide timely, accurate, transparent and consistent monitoring of GHG emissions which is comparable at the international level. The body responsible for the proper operation of the national inventory system in the Czech Republic is the Ministry of the Environment. The ministry authorized the CHMI to coordinate the preparations of the inventory process and to be in charge of the delivery of the requested data and text outputs published on the Convention website (http://unfccc.int) as well as the outputs of all other member states.

Results of National GHG Inventory

A number of recalculations were carried out in 2015, mainly due to the transition to the newly updated methodology IPCC 2006 Guidelines. Besides different default calculation factors, the implementation of these guidelines also brought altered categorization within individual sectors. Moreover, updated country-specific emission factors and oxidation factors (Energy sector) were implemented into the reporting system. Also implemented was an increase of the calculation quality level, the so-called Tier (Industrial processes sector and Agriculture sector).

The total GHG emissions, including their removals from the sector Land use, land-use change and forestry (LULUCF), expressed in equivalents of carbon dioxide (CO₂ eq.) decreased in the Czech Republic from the 1990 level of 190.5 mil. tonnes to 120.1 mil. tonnes in 2013 (Table X.1 and Table X.2). The emissions (without LULUCF) decreased from 196.2 mil. tonnes to 133.7 mil. tonnes, i.e. compared with the reference year 1990 they decreased by 32 %. Consequently, the Czech Republic fulfiled its commitment towards the Kyoto Protocol to reduce its emissions by 8 % as against the reference year by the year 2012.

The inventory also includes emissions of HFC, PFC and SF₆ (fluorine containing substances or so-called F-gases), which are also covered by the Kyoto Protocol. Their share in total GHG emissions was 2.2 % in 2013. The share of CO₂ emissions in total GHG emissions (without LULUCF) in 2013 was 78.6 %, the share of CH₄ emissions was 9.4 %, and the share of N₂O emissions was 4.5 %.

More detailed data on GHG emissions and removals in the Czech Republic are presented on the CHMI website (www.chmi.cz) or in the National Inventory Report of the Czech Republic (CHMI 2014a). Similar information from all EU states is regularly collected and published as EEA reports (Annual European Community greenhouse gas inventory 1990–2012 and inventory report 2012, EEA 2014b) and also in the interactive internet database (www.eea.europa.eu/data-and-maps). In 2015, however, a unique situation occurred in which the reporting of emissions and sinks of greenhouse gasses got delayed due to non-functioning reporting software. This situation affects all countries in Annex 1 to the Convention. Data presented in this publication have not yet been officially submitted to the secretariat of the Convention.

Carbon dioxide

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) is the most important anthropogenic greenhouse gas. In most industrialized countries, it has the greatest share in total aggregated emissions. In the Czech Republic, the 2013 share was 83.13 % (incl. LULUCF). CO₂ emissions are caused mainly by the combustion of fossil fuels. Other contributing processes are: desulphurization, carbonate decomposition in the production of cement, lime and glass, metallurgical and chemical productions. Emissions and sinks (CO₂ removals) occur in the LULUCF sector. Thanks to forest management, sinks are still larger than emissions. Removal or storage of CO₂ in industrial processes does not take place in the Czech Republic. In the country, the largest shares of CO₂ emissions from combustion processes are contributed by solid fuels, and to a lesser extent liquid and gaseous fuels.

Between 1990 and 2013, CO₂ emissions decreased by 34.8 % (Fig. X.1), which was contributed to mainly by the decrease in the Energy – Manufacturing industries sector and in Other sectors (Residential, Commercial/Institutional). The decrease of emissions from combustion in the sector Manufacturing industries in the early 90s was caused by the downturn and restructuring of several industries. At the end of the monitored period, the emissions decreased due to cost saving measures and the introduction of new technologies. The emission reduction in Other sectors is the result of more effective energy use (growing energy efficiency, mainly thermal insulation of buildings and economical use of energies).

On the contrary, the situation in the sector Transport is quite different; its emissions increased more than 2.3-fold as compared with the year 1990, which is given by the development of transport, mainly of individual car transport and truck transport. The development of CO₂ emissions was positively influenced by the decreasing share of solid fuel combustion and by the growth of the share of natural gas and from 2003 onwards also by the use of biomass. Since 2006, however, gas prices have markedly increased, which in some places resulted in the switch to other type of fuels.

Methane

Anthropogenic emissions of methane (CH₄) in the Czech Republic have their origin mainly in mining and processing and distribution of fuels; this type of emissions are referred to as fugitive (emissions escaping into the atmosphere). Other significant CH₄ emission sources are the following: animal breeding, anaerobic decomposition of biowaste during landfilling and treatment of waste water. Methane is created in animal farming during digestion processes (mainly in cattle) and during decomposition of manure.

Methane is the second significant greenhouse gas with regard to its production in the Czech Republic. Its share in total aggregated greenhouse gas emissions (including LULUCF) represented in 2013 roughly 10 %. In the period 1990–2013, CH₄ emissions decreased by 41.27 % (Fig. X.2), which was caused mainly by a reduction of coal mining and livestock numbers, and to a lesser extent also by lower consumption of solid fuels in households. The increase of emissions in the Waste sector is reduced by the use of landfill gas or biogas for energy production.

Nitrous oxide

The largest amount of nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions has its origin in agricultural activities, mainly in denitrification of nitrogen supplied to the soil in artificial fertilizers or manure and other organic material. The production of nitric acid is another major source of nitrous oxide. Transport (cars with catalytic converters) is responsible for nitrous oxide emissions to a lesser extent.

The share of N₂O emissions in total aggregated GHG emissions represented in 2013 roughly 5 %. In 1990–2013, N₂O emissions decreased by 54 % (Fig. X.3), mainly as a result of lower use of artificial fertilizers in agriculture, a decrease of livestock numbers, and recently also due to the implementation of technologies aimed at N₂O emissions abatement in the production of nitrous acid.

Fluorinated gases

Emissions of fluorinated gases (F-gases) increased since 1995 from 82.87 to 2,775.19 Gg CO₂ eq. in 2013 (Fig. X.4). Similarly, the share of fluorinated gases in total aggregated emissions from industrial processes increased as well (from 0.05 % in 1995 to 8.81 % in 2013). Fluorinated gases are not produced in the Czech Republic, and their whole consumption is covered by imports. They are used mainly in refrigeration and air conditioning equipment (mainly HFC), in electrical equipment (mainly SF₆ and since 2012 newly also NF₃), and in a number of other branches (e.g. plasma etching, fire extinguisher charges, aerosol propellants, blowing agents). The growth of emissions from fluorinated gases is caused by their use as substitutes for substances depleting the Earth’s ozone layer (CFC, HCFC – mainly as refrigerants), large-scale use of modern technologies (air conditioning) and the production specialization in the Czech Republic (production of cars and air conditioning systems).

In some cases, e.g. in window soundproofing and blowing agents, the used amount has stagnated or decreased, which is connected with the implementation of new technologies and/or the use of substitutes. The decline in the years 2007–2012 was caused partly by the economic crisis connected with the decline of production of passenger cars and production processes in general, but after 2012 their production is again starting to rise.

Emission trading system

The greenhouse gas emission (CO₂) allowance trading scheme is regarded as an effective economic tool for the reduction of GHG emissions. At present there are two integrated systems in the Czech Republic – The European Union Emission Trading Scheme (EU ETS) and flexible mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol: Clean Development Mechanism, Joint Implementation and International Emission Trading. The flexible mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol are repealed by the new Regulation of the European Parliament and the Council (EU) No. 525/2013.

Experts of the CHMI have participated from the very beginning in the preparation and implementation of the EU ETS in the Czech Republic, mainly as concerns the methodology (monitoring, reporting and verifying greenhouse gas emissions). The interaction of the national GHG emissions inventory and the EU ETS has a mutual character. The national inventory brings certain data for the calculation of emissions from selected processes and, on the other hand, selected data obtained through the EU ETS are used when processing the national inventory.

As concerns the use of flexible mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol, the implementation and operation of the National Inventory System were the fundamental and inevitable conditions for the possibility to participate in International Emission Trading. As regards Joint Implementation projects, this practice resulted in a markedly lower administrative burden, and consequently, lower costs of their implementation.

In 2013 the amount of greenhouse gases produced by Czech enterprises involved in EU ETS was by 3 % lower than in 2012. The 2013 emissions amounted to 67.23 Mt CO₂, which is a markedly lower value than expected by the National Allocation Plan for the Czech Republic. The results are presented in Table X.3, and the development of CO₂ emissions within EU ETS is apparent from Fig. X.5.

Tab. X.1 Total emissions of greenhouse gases, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010, 2013 [Mt CO₂ eq.]

Tab. X.2 Emissions of greenhouse gases, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010, 2013 [Mt CO₂ eq.]

Tab. X.3 Verified emissions of CO₂ reported in the ETS scheme, 2005–2013 [Mt CO₂ eq.]

 

Fig. X.1 Emissions of carbon dioxide structured by sectors, 1990–2013

Fig. X.2 Emissions of methane structured by sectors, 1990–2013

Fig. X.3 Emissions of nitrous oxide structured by sectors, 1990–2013

Fig. X.4 Emissions of F-gases, 1995–2013

Fig. X.5 Carbon dioxide emissions from the plants registered in EU ETS, 2005–2013