Bulgaria had largest reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in EU in Q1 2024

Sofia: Greenhouse gas emissions in Bulgaria in the first quarter of 2024 were 15.2 per cent lower than in the first quarter of 2023, the largest reduction in the European Union, EU statistics agency Eurostat said on August 16.

In 2023, Bulgaria had the largest reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in the EU in the first quarter of the year, the largest in the second quarter, and the second-largest in the third and fourth quarters.

In the first quarter of 2024, greenhouse gas emissions are estimated to have decreased in 20 EU countries, when compared with the same quarter of 2023, Eurostat said.

The largest reductions in greenhouse gases are estimated for Bulgaria (-15.2 per cent), Germany (-6.7 per cent) and Belgium (-6.0 per cent).

Out of the 20 EU members that are estimated to have decreased their emissions, eight also recorded a decline in their GDP (Czechia, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria and Finland).

The other 12 EU countries (Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Spain, France, Italy, Hungary, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Sweden and Croatia) are estimated to have managed to decrease emissions while growing their GDP.

In the first quarter of 2024, the EU economy greenhouse gas emissions were estimated at 894 million tonnes of CO2-equivalents (CO2-eq), a 4.0 per cent decrease compared with the same quarter of 2023 (931 million tonnes of CO2-eq).

The EU’s gross domestic product (GDP) remained stable, registering just a small increase (0.3 per cent in the first quarter of 2024, compared with the same quarter of 2023), Eurostat said.