Carbon emissions from fossil fuels reached record levels, but the 2012 rise was relatively small, and there are positive signs. As Fiona Harvey reported for The Guardian, the International Energy Agency (IEA) 2012 World Energy Outlook Report found that annual carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels rose 1.4 percent in 2012 to 31.6 billion tonnes (gigatonnes [Gt]).
The bad news is that this is a new record high level of emissions. The good news is that it represents the second-smallest annual increase since 2003, behind only 2009 when global fossil fuel carbon emissions fell due to the global recession. Emissions estimates from 2009–2010 have also been revised downward, so the reported 31.6 Gt 2012 emissions match the reported value from 2011...............................................Full Article: Source |