A report presented by the European Environment Agency (EEA) last week finds that emissions of most pollutants from transport fell in 2009. However, there is still a long way to go for achieving sufficient cuts in a sector which is still largely contributing to global warming...
The ´Transport & Environment Reporting Mechanism 2011´ (TERM 2011) report takes into account a range of impacts of European transport, such as energy consumption, emissions, noise and transport demand. In total, twelve indicators have been used in this TERM 2011 report, which aims to provides a baseline for futur annual assessments of progress made towards the greening of this sector.  The EEA applies the so-called "avoid-shift-improve" (ASI) approach, analysing ways to optimise transport demand, shift to cleener transport modes whenever possible and use the best technologies available.

TERM 2011 shows that some efficiency gains have been made, notably with new cars which in 2010 were approximately 20% more efficient than in 2000. However, the EEA warns that these relatively modest gains tend to be outpaced by a growing transport demand. Indeed, it finds that transport demand grew by approximately one third between 1990 and 2009, leading to a 27% increase in greenhouse has emissions from the sector over the same period. Transport was responsible for nearly one quarter of all EU greenhouse gas emissions in 2009. According to the EEA, transport emissions should be cut by 68% between 2009 and 2050, while the strategy proposed by the Commission in its Transport White Paper 2011 only includes a 60% target.

The European Environment Agency shows that annual energy consumption from transport grew continuously between 1990 and 2007 in Europe, and foresees that despite a 4% decrease between 2007 and 2009 due to the economic downturn, energy consumption is very likely to resume with economic growth. A lot of progress remains to be made in terms of air quality, as annual limit values of pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2) have been largely exceeded over the past years. Furthermore, the EEA estimates that almost 100 million people were exposed to damaging long-term average levels of noise from road vehicles in the analysed countries.

The new EEA report indicates that fuel prices are not sending strong signals to encourage more efficient transport choices, considering their evolution since 1980. It notes that the share of alternative fuelled cars in circulation has grown steadily, comprising more than 5 % of the fleet in 2009. Most of these were using liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), while electric vehicles represented 0.02 % of the total fleet.

Presenting the TERM 2011 report to the European Parliament´s Transport Committee on 10 November, EEA Executive Director Professor Jacqueline McGlade said: "Emissions levels of almost all pollutants from transport fell in 2009, as there was a drop in demand”. “But this fall was due to the economic recession. So now we need to see a more fundamental shift in Europe’s transport system, so that emissions do not increase even in times of strong economic growth", she went on.

Isabelle Durand (Greens/EFA, Belgium) feels that MEPs are “schizophrenic”: working towards increasing demand while working on supply and supporting large infrastructure works and “excessively” financing some sectors, such as low-cost companies and air fuel (kerosene), which is tax free. “It’s saying one thing and doing the other”, Ms. Durand said. “This is true”, agreed Jacqueline McGlade who argued that a “middle ground” between supply and demand must be reached.