Fascinating.
From Carbon Brief:
The most significant factors include a cleaner electricity mix based on gas and renewables instead of coal, as well as falling demand for energy across homes, businesses and industry...
* Emissions would have been twice as large today if underlying factors had not changed. Electricity-sector emissions would have been nearly four times higher.
* The largest driver has been a cleaner electricity mix based on gas and renewables instead of coal. This was responsible for 36% of the emissions reduction in 2017.
* The next largest driver is reduced fuel consumption by business and industry, responsible for about 31% of the emissions reduction in 2017.
* Reduced electricity use – mostly in the industrial and residential sectors – was responsible for 18% of the emissions reductions.
Changes in transport emissions from fewer miles driven per capita and more efficient vehicles accounted for around 7%...
Lest anybody jump to the conclusion that industry's falling CO2 emissions is because we manufacture less and import more, they've covered that as well:
* Domestic emissions reductions were largely offset by increased CO2 embodied in imported goods until the mid-2000s. However, reductions since around 2007 have not been offset by CO2 in imported goods.
All good stuff, in other words.
Debate Magazine
