BRUSSELS — The European Union saw carbon dioxide emissions from power plants and industrial sites drop a record 15.5 percent last year, the bloc’s executive said.
The main reason: Soaring renewable energy output caused fossil fuel-produced electricity to drop steeply in 2023, with power sector pollution falling 24 percent compared to 2022.
In a statement late Wednesday, the European Commission called the 15.5 percent decline in emissions covered by the bloc’s carbon market — also known as the Emissions Trading System (ETS) — a “record” reduction.
The 2023 drop was even steeper than in 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic drove ETS emissions down 13.3 percent, followed by a 7.3 percent rebound in 2021. In 2022, emissions declined by less than 2 percent.
