New Energy

EU Emissions Fall as Renewable Energy Surges

New wind and solar and a decline in fossil fuels have driven a drop in emissions.

Wind turbines and electricity transmission pylons in Lindenberg, Germany.

Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg
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Greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union fell by more than 8% in 2023, driven by a growth in renewable energy sources.

The drop is the second-largest annual decline in decades, behind 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic led to a reduction of almost 10%, according to the European Commission. It follows a decrease of just 2% in 2022 compared to 2021. Emissions have fallen by 37% since 1990, despite GDP growth during the same period of 68%, showing the de-linking between the two factors, the European Commission said.