According to a report released by the European Environment
Agency, an improved municipal solid waste management could
play a key role in reducing EU greenhouse gas emissions. 

The
report analyses three different scenarios for 2020 and takes into
account both direct and avoided emissions from waste
processing and transport. Between 1995 and 2008, EU annual
emissions from waste management system decreased by 48
million tCO2eq. 

Two main factors led to this reduction: a
decrease in methane emissions from landfill and an increase in
avoided emissions through recycling and energy recovery
operations. 

However, a further 62 million tCO2eq could be cut by
2020 (around 42 percent more than the business-as-usual
scenario) if EU member countries, plus Norway and Switzerland,
will seriously implement existing European waste legislation
(scenario 2).

The full report can be accessed at
http://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/waste-opportunities-84-past-and

Climate Policy News

• This news is extracted from the Climate Policy News : a CMCC weekly column that summarises the latest news on international climate change agreements, the updates on the carbon market and the energy and technology updates in the realm of climate change. Go to the web page and see all previous issues since March 2007.
• This week: Romania banned from carbon trading; The big potential of European waste; Japan passes feed-in-tariff scheme; Private finance will make a difference; The carbon market this week – Download the August 29 – September 4, 2011 Newsletter [pdf 106 kb].