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Topics
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Climate change mitigation
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Greenhouse gas emissions inventory
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Intro

Intro

A greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory reflects the GHG impact of a country’s economic activities and its domestic carbon footprint. The EEA supports the European Commission to compile the EU GHG inventory, which is the EU’s official submission to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The EEA also has the mandate to implement quality assurance and quality control checks on the GHG inventories submitted to the EU by its Member States, and which are the basis of the EU GHG inventory.

About GHG inventory estimation and reporting methods

The EU GHG inventory and the data shown in the GHG data viewer are based on national GHG inventories reported to the EU in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2018/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2018 (EU Governance Regulation).

The EU and Member States’ GHG inventories are fully consistent with the international requirements for GHG inventories reported to the UNFCCC according to Decision 24/CP.19 (UNFCCC reporting guidelines), and from 2024, consistent with Decision 18/CMA.1 (Modalities, Procedures and Guidelines – MPGs- under the Paris Agreement).

According to the UNFCCC reporting guidelines and the MPGs, the methods to estimate GHG emissions and removals shall be those of the 2006 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Guidelines for national GHG inventories but Parties may use the IPCC 2019 Refinement to the 2006 IPCC Guidelines on a voluntary basis (Decision 5/CMA.3).  

What the data are telling us

  • In the EU, GHG emissions continue to decrease in absolute terms, per capita and per euro generated in the economy. Many factors and policies, such as the increased share of renewables and energy efficiency improvements, have contributed to lower GHG emissions in the EU. However, considering the pace of reductions in the past, more rapid emission reductions will be needed to achieve climate neutrality by 2050.
  • In the past three decades, most sectors in the EU reduced their GHG emissions. The notable exceptions are transport, where demand outpaces climate policy benefits and, more recently, agriculture.