Scotland saw a sharp spike in carbon emissions in the country’s latest official figures, while data also shows that only a fraction of funding for carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS) has so far been disbursed.
Scotland’s carbon footprint jumped by almost 15% in 2021 to reach its highest level since 2015, marking the biggest annual increase since records began 23 years ago.
Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions rose from 51.6 million to 59.2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e) in 2021 – an increase of 14.6% – although the numbers must be seen in the context of the sharp decrease during the Covid-19 pandemic the year before. At the same time, the emissions are still strikingly high. In April last year, the government scrapped its key target of reducing its GHG emissions by 75% by 2030.
A related question is what has materialised in the last three years to stem emissions – and while policies have been forthcoming, change has been slow.
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