Reports shame government emissions claims

News Article - Friday, August 01, 2008

filed under: Business

The government is facing eco embarrassment this week after two reports revealed efforts to reduce carbon footprints were not as laudable as initially believed.

In news that may interest firms looking to install carbon accounting software, the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) based at the University of York found greenhouse gas emissions have been steadily growing rather than falling since the 1990s.

CO2 caused by UK consumption rose by almost a fifth between 1992 and 2004, one study for government department Defra claimed.

The climb was attributed to an increase in the amount of products being consumed, as well as a manufacturing shift from the UK to countries like China, where production involves a higher carbon output.

Meanwhile, research to be published shortly by WWF will suggest greenhouse gas emissions are nearly 50 per cent higher than reported figures, because output from aviation, shipping and imported goods was previously ignored, the BBC reports.

Last weekend prime minister Gordon Brown urged business leaders to join him in maximising the opportunities of fossil fuel alternatives.

Speaking at the UK Low Carbon Economy Summit in London, Mr Brown maintained a move to greener alternatives could cut costs and create new growth areas.

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