STOCKHOLM, Dec 16 (Reuters) – Sweden’s greenhouse gas emissions rose 7% in 2024, reversing a downtrend in recent years, after the government eased rules on mixing biofuels in petrol and diesel, data showed on Tuesday.
The upturn in emissions will make it harder for Sweden to meet its EU-mandated climate goals harder, the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency said.
Sweden’s emissions of CO2 and other greenhouse gases have been on a broad downward trend since 1990, but the current right of centre government has reversed some measures taken to fight climate change, including reducing the quantity of biofuels mixed in petrol and diesel.
Emissions from the domestic transport sector rose 24% in 2024 while emissions from heavy machinery rose 33%, figures from the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency showed.
“The last 15 years have seen a trend of falling emissions (in transport) and we have had a good chance of meeting both our national milestone targets and our EU-related commitments,” Roger Sedin, head of the climate goals unit at the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency said in a statement.
“The increase in emissions in 2024 has made achieving these harder.”
Sweden has agreed to reduce emissions from the transport sector by 50% by 2030 compared to the level in 2005 under the EU’s Effort Sharing Regulation (ESR).
Overall emissions, excluding CO2 taken up by forests and land use (LULUCF), rose around 3 million tonnes to 47.5 million tonnes compared in 2024.
POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT
One positive development was that the amount of carbon sequestered by forests and in other land use rose around 8 million tonnes to 54.3 million tonnes from 2023.
Sweden’s forests cover around 70% of the country but their ability to take up CO2 has diminished in recent years due to climate-induced drought and increased logging among other factors.
Sweden aims to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045. Emissions have to be cut by 85% compared to 1990 with the remaining 15% made up by CO2 uptake from the LULUCF sector and other measures.
Since 1990, Sweden has cut emissions by 33%.
(Reporting by Simon Johnson; Editing by Susan Fenton)
