Tag Archive: CO²emissions

  1. Global food miles generate almost 20% of all food-related CO2 emissions

    Comments Off on Global food miles generate almost 20% of all food-related CO2 emissions

    Source: European Commission, Directorate-General for Environment

    Food transport in global supply chains is vital to the industry’s success as demand for diverse products increases. New modelling estimates the carbon footprint of food miles to be close to a fifth of all related emissions.

    ‘Food miles’ are a measurement based on the distance a product travels from farm to fork, or production to consumption. Environmental impact is measured in tonne-kilometre (tkm). Currently, the assessment of food miles is limited, with only a select few food items having a fully quantified food-mile analysis. A new study from The University of the West of England provides a more comprehensive estimate of global food miles and their impact – inputting countries of origin, destination countries, transport distances and food commodity masses.

    In its write-up of the study, the European commission shared the following: “When the entire food supply chain was considered in this analysis the researchers found that global food miles equate to about 3.0 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (GtCO2e) – higher than previously thought. This indicates that transport accounts for 19% of total food system emissions. The transport of fruit and vegetables contributes 36% of food miles emissions – around twice the amount of greenhouse gases (GHG) released during their production. Food miles only contributed 18% of the total freight miles, but the researchers found that the emissions from these made up 27% of total freight emissions, mostly from international trade (18%).“

    “The researchers also estimated the global food-system emissions to be 15.8 GtCO2e, equating to 30% of the world’s GHG emissions. With global food expenditure around US$5 trillion (€4.85 trillion) in 2017 and the global population rising annually, it is useful to consider the impacts of food miles on climate change. The researchers say that this should be coupled with more locally produced food items and add that improved food security through better food-systems management also requires integration of environmental protection targets.”

    The reduction of emissions in last-mile deliveries and trips will aid in the de-carbonization of the food industry, with LEV vehicles such as electric cargo bikes offering a proven solution.

    For the full study, see: Li, M., Jia, N., Lenzen, M., Malik, A., Wei, L., Jin, Y. and Raubenheimer, D. (2022) Global food-miles account for nearly 20% of total food-systems emissions. Nature Food, 3(6): 445–453. [Online version].

  2. EU transport emissions continue to rise; Luxembourg, Austria, and Slovenia are largest contributors

    Comments Off on EU transport emissions continue to rise; Luxembourg, Austria, and Slovenia are largest contributors

    Source: Mayor.eu, D. Balgaranov

    The latest European Environment Agency (EEA) report shows transport emissions have risen by 24% in the past 30 years.

    One very crucial takeaway from the EEA analysis is that, although carbon emissions from most sectors have fallen significantly between 1990-2020, they have increased in the transport sector. Additionally, the Austrian Automotive Club (Verkehrsklubs Österreich) published a complimentary analysis of transport emissions per capita per country based on the EEA data for 2020.

    According to the analysis, Luxembourg has the highest emissions per capita from transport at 7,355 kilograms of CO2 per capita. Next comes Austria with a considerably smaller 2,300 kilograms, and Slovenia with 2,180 kilograms. For comparison, the EU 27 average sat at 1,545 kilograms.

    Why Luxembourg?

    Data from Eurostat in 2019 placed Luxembourg as the country with the highest rate of car ownership (681 cars per 1,000 people). While this statistic could be argued to explain the country’s CO2 transport emissions, it loses significance when compared to Italy which has approximately 666 cars per 1,000 people, but places 22nd of the 27 European countries for transport-related CO2 emissions.

    The Luxembourg emission scenario becomes stranger still when considering the country’s free public transport policy, including cross-border travel. Transport specialists across Europe will be watching the country with interest in the coming years to see if it is able to successfully curb emissions.

    The EU 27 by emissions from transport, from the Austrian Automotive Club research:

    1. Luxembourg: 7,355 kilograms of CO2 per capita;
    2. Austria: 2,300 kilograms;
    3. Slovenia: 2,180 kilograms;
    4. Lithuania: 2,110 kilograms;
    5. Ireland: 1,930 kilograms;
    6. Denmark: 1,930 kilograms;
    7. Belgium: 1,795 kilograms;
    8. Finland: 1,785 kilograms;
    9. Germany: 1,720 kilograms;
    10. Estonia: 1,655 kilograms;
    11. Poland: 1,645 kilograms;
    12. Czech Republic: 1,625 kilograms;
    13. Latvia: 1,595 kilograms;
    14. Cyprus: 1,565 kilograms;
    15. France: 1,550 kilograms;
    16. Spain: 1,480 kilograms;
    17. Netherlands: 1,455 kilograms;
    18. Croatia: 1,435 kilograms;
    19. Portugal: 1,390 kilograms;
    20. Sweden: 1,355 kilograms;
    21. Bulgaria: 1,335 kilograms;
    22. Italy: 1,330 kilograms;
    23. Hungary: 1,270 kilograms;
    24. Greece: 1,255 kilograms;
    25. Slovakia: 1,250 kilograms;
    26. Malta: 970 Kilograms;
    27. Romania: 925 kilograms.

  3. New research highlights the user preference and environmental impacts of personal and shared micromobility

    Comments Off on New research highlights the user preference and environmental impacts of personal and shared micromobility

    Source: ScienceDirect

    A new study published in Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment reveals commuter LEV preference and impact.

    The research provides insight into travel behavior in the rapidly expanding micromobility market, analyzing the data of over 500 users. Understanding the influences on mode choice is essential for successful transport planning, allowing service providers and policymakers to better implement transport options in urban and rural areas.

    The first findings show that all else equal, the choice of transport mode is fundamentally altered by trip distance, precipitation,and access distance. Generally, users are willing to walk between 60-200m to access shared micromobility services; however, the ability to pre-book devices can extend this travel distance. Consumer choice patterns such as these should be fully considered when implimenting shared transport options, or undertaking vehicle repositioning schemes.

    The study also provides insight into the CO2 emissions of e-bikes and e-scooters, crucial for future policy when aiming to reduce transport-related pollution in city centres. It is found that while personal e-bikes and e-scooters emit less CO2 than the transport modes they replace, shared e-bikes and e-scooters emit more – though still less than a personal car. This goes against the common vision that shared mobility in city centres is a ‘green’ option; operational services and vehicle manufacturing are the two main emission contributers.

    While this may be a negative in the short-term, shared services can aid in sparking a sustainable mobility movement if long-term usage leads to personal ownership; additionally, city administrators may collaborate with micromobility providors to reduce emissions in the two main release stages.

    The full study can be found here.

  4. EU CO² transport emissions on the rise again

    Leave a Comment

    Source EEA – According to provisional data published by the European Environment Agency (EEA), the average carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from new passenger cars registered in the European Union (EU) in 2018 increased for the second consecutive year, reaching 120.4 grammes of CO2 per kilometre. For the first time, the average CO2 emissions from new vans also increased. Manufacturers will have to reduce emissions of their fleet significantly to meet the upcoming 2020 and 2021 targets.

    The EEA has published the provisional data for the average CO2 emissions from new passenger cars and vans registered in the EU and in Iceland in 2018.

    After a steady decline from 2010 to 2016, by almost 22 grammes of CO2 per kilometre (g CO2/km), average emissions from new passenger cars increased in 2017 by 0.4 g CO2/km. According the provisional data, the upward trend continued with an additional increase of 2.0 g CO2/km in 2018.

    Vans registered in the EU and Iceland in 2018 emitted on average 158.1 g CO2/km, which is 2.0 grams more than in 2017. This is the first increase in average CO2 emissions from new vans since the regulation came into force in 2011, following a sharp decrease in 2017.

    The main factors contributing to the increase of new passenger cars’ emissions in 2018 include the growing share of petrol cars in new registrations, in particular in the sport utility vehicle (SUV) segment. Moreover, the market penetration of zero- and low-emission vehicles, including electric cars, remained slow in 2018. With the 2021 target of 95 g CO2/km approaching, much faster deployment of cars with low emissions is needed across Europe.

    Many factors affected the increase in CO2 emissions from new vans in 2018, including an increase in the mass, engine capacity and size of the vehicles. The market share of petrol vehicles also increased, constituting 3.6 % of the new vans fleet (2.4 % in 2017). The share of zero- and low-emission vans remained at the same level (1.7 %) as in 2017. Further efficiency improvements are needed to reach the EU target of 147 g CO2/km set for 2020.

    Further details: https://bit.ly/31RBXsg

Campaign success

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.

Member profile

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.