Turkey: Greenhouse gas emissions see a 3-percent annual increase

* Photo: Pixabay

The Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) has released the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Statistics for the period of 1990-2020.

According to the official statistics, the greenhouse gas inventory results have revealed that overall greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as CO2 equivalent (eq.) for the year 2020 increased by 3.1 percent to 523.9 million tonnes (Mt) compared to the previous year.

The 3.1-percent increase came amid the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which broke out in December 2019 and arrived in Turkey in mid-March 2020, when the first case was officially announced. 

Total GHG emissions per capita were calculated at 4 tonnes CO2 eq. for 1990, 6.2 tonnes CO2 eq. for 2019 and 6.3 tonnes CO2 eq. for 2020.

* Graph: TurkStat

Energy sector ranks first: 70.2 percent

According to TurkStat, in 2020, the energy sector had the largest share of total GHG emissions with 70.2 percent. The energy sector was followed by the agriculture sector with 14 percent, the industrial processes and product use sector with 12.7 percent and waste sector with 3.1 percent.

The energy sector emissions were calculated at 367.6 Mt CO2 eq. in 2020; this number increased by 163.3 percent compared to 1990 and also increased by 0.6 percent compared to previous year.

Emissions from industrial processes and product use sector were calculated at 66.8 Mt CO2 eq. in 2020, which increased by 190.5 percent compared to 1990 and increased by 14 percent compared to previous year.

Agriculture sector emissions were calculated at 73.2 Mt CO2 eq. in 2020, which increased by 58.8 percent compared to 1990 and by 7.5 percent compared to previous year. Waste sector emissions were calculated at 16.4 Mt CO2eq. in 2020, which increased by 48 percent compared to 1990 and also increased by 2.1 percent compared to previous year.

Biggest share in CO2 emissions: Energy sector

85.4 percent of total CO2 emissions originated from the energy sector, including 31.6 percent of total CO2 emissions originating from electricity and heat production which is a subcategory of the energy sector.

According to TurkStat, the remaining 14.2 percent of CO2 emissions originated from the industrial processes and product use sector and 0.4 percent from the agriculture and waste sectors in 2020.

61 percent of CH4 emissions originated from agriculture, 22.1 percent from waste, 16.9 percent from energy, and 0.02 percent from the industrial processes and product use sector, while 80.3 percent of N2O emissions originated from agriculture, 9.1 percent from energy, 5.6 percent from waste and 5 percent from the industrial processes and product use sector.

NOTE: As indicated by TurkStat, greenhouse gas emissions; include direct GHGs as carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and fluorinated gasses (F-gasses) with GHG precursors as nitrous oxides (NOx), non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOCs), ammonia (NH3), carbon monoxide (CO), and sulfur dioxide (SO2). Greenhouse gasses are compounds enhancing the greenhouse effect. 

Carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2 eq.) is expressed as the global warming potential of greenhouse gases in terms of carbon dioxide gas. (SD)