Emissions to air by the Energy supply target sector in the Netherlands, 1990-2002*

There is a downward trend in the emissions of all macro-substances compared to 1990. The exception is carbon dioxide, emissions of which continue to increase slightly.

	1990	1995	1999	2000	2001	2002*
	million kg
Sulphur dioxide (SO2)	45	17	13	15	16	17
Furnaces	45	16	13	15	16	17
Process/other	0.25	0.22	0.079	0.10	0.10	0.07
Nitrogen oxides (NOx)	80	64	55	50	48	48
Furnaces	79	64	55	50	47	48
Process/other	0.99	0.28	0.49	0.091	0.18	0.02
Carbon monoxide (CO)	15	21	29	28	26	25
Furnaces	10	15	24	23	21	21
Process/other	5.0	6.9	4.5	4.3	4.6	4.3
Carbon dioxide (CO2)	41 058	45 993	45 475	49 803	52 789	53 104
Furnaces	40 673	45 538	45 096	49 248	52 231	52 484
Process/other	385	455	379	555	557	620
Particulate matter	1.6	0.68	1)	0.37	0.46	0.45
Furnaces	1.5	0.40	1)	0.30	0.35	0.37
Process/other	0.10	0.29	1)	0.07	0.11	0.07
VOC 2)	26	26	22	21	20	18
Furnaces	2.0	3.6	4.0	3.9	2.3	2.2
Process/other	24	22	18	17	17	15
Methane (CH4)	181	174	150	137	140	125
Furnaces	2.7	4.2	5.9	5.6	5.4	4.9
Process/other	178	170	144	131	134	120
Nitrous oxide (N2O)	0.35	0.38	0.37	0.37	0.36	0.38
Furnaces	0.35	0.38	0.33	0.37	0.25	0.38
Process/other	0.000	0.000	0.037	0.00	0.10	0.00
Source: CCDM (2003).		CBS/EDC/Aug03/0121
1) Incomplete observation. 2) Volatile organic compounds, excluding methane.

Developments in emissions to air

After a fall in the emissions of sulphur dioxide prior to 1999, the emissions increased again in subsequent years. This is the result of a rise in the use of hard coal in electricity generation and a higher sulphur level in hard coal than before.
The changes in the 2002 emissions compared to 2001 are largely the result of a change in the use of hard coal and natural gas in the years in question.
More electricity generation and lower imports of electricity have led to a slight increase in emissions of CO₂.

Methane emissions

Methane is mainly released during the extraction of oil and natural gas. Steps are being taken to reduce emissions.

Sources of emissions

Emissions are caused by:

• The combustion of fossil fuels or biomass in the electricity supply sector and heat production.
• Gas and oil extraction, both on land and off shore.
• The transportation and distribution of energy carriers.

Technical note

The table shows actual emissions to air. See the various CO₂ emissions explained for a discussion of the concept of actual emissions and a comparison of 'actual emissions' with other methods for determining CO₂ emissions. Given the incomplete information in environmental reports for 1999 in this target sector, the emissions of particulate matter are not available.

References

• CCDM (2003). Emissiemonitor. Jaarcijfers 2001 en ramingen 2002. Datawarehouse-Emissieregistratie. Coördinatiecommissie Doelgroepmonitoring, The Hague. You can find descriptions of the calculation method in the meta-information of the Emissiemonitor on the Emissieregistratie website.

Relevant sections and indicators in the Environmental Data Compendium

• Availability and consumption of electricity in the Netherlands, 1995-2002
• Installed combined heat and power capacity in the Netherlands, including district heating, 1998-2002
• Electricity plants in the Netherlands: production and environmental pressure, 1980-2002
• Emissions to air by target sector, 2002*
• Guide to Environmental theme of Climate change (greenhouse effect)
• Guide to Environmental theme of Acidification and transboundary air pollution

Relevant information outside of the Environmental Data Compendium

• Recent emission data and descriptions of the calculation methods used (meta-information) can be viewed in detail on the Data Warehouse of the 'Emissieregistratie' website.
• Emission data can also be found on Statline of Statistics Netherlands.