Guernsey greenhouse gas emissions forecast to rise

The States of Guernsey said transport was the biggest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions

Guernsey's recorded greenhouse gas emissions are predicted to rise by 1.7% from 2023 to 2024, a report has found.

The States of Guernsey published its annual Greenhouse Gas Bulletin on Tuesday, which showed 283.2 kilotonnes (kt) of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent were emitted in 2023 - a fall of 3.1% from 2022.

However, it estimated 2024's would to increase to 288.1kt, although the bulletin did not indicate why the rise had been predicted.

The report said the emissions for 2023 in Guernsey were 50.6% lower than when figures were first recorded in 1990, when the total stood at 573.3kt.

Greenhouse gases such as CO2 and methane trap extra energy in the earth's atmosphere, causing temperatures to rise.

Transport was the island's largest producer of greenhouse gas emissions in 2023 at 97.9kt - 34.6% of the combined total, according to the report.

It added industrial combustion was the second largest contributor at 55.6kt, 19.6% of Guernsey's total emissions.

Waste had 2023's third highest share at 42.3kt - 14.9% of total emissions - with the report saying 79% of that was in the form of methane gas from landfill.

In 2020, the States agreed a strategy to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, along with setting a target of a 57% reduction on 1990 emission levels by 2030.