To limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, 55 percent of CO2 emissions must be reduced by 2030 and no more CO2 may be blown into the atmosphere by 2050. That is the goal of the so-called EU Green Deal, which Austria must also adhere to. On Thursday, the Austrian Energy Agency listed how high the contribution of each federal state must be in 2030 to meet the targets.
According to the figures presented, countries must reduce their emissions by 48 percent. This only concerns the emission of greenhouse gases in the non-emissions trading area, i.e. without major industry and energy. The challenge is especially great in Austria, where the emission figures have been about the same for thirty years, IG Windkraft director Stefan Moidl said at a joint press conference with energy expert Michael Rohrer and the director of Renewable Energy Austria (EEÖ). , Martina Prechtl-Grundnig.
Vienna has to save the most
In 2019, Austria had only reduced its emissions by eleven percent since 2005, which is not enough. In a comparison of the federal states, Carinthia takes first place with 15 percent, followed by Styria (14 percent). Only the states of Salzburg and Vorarlberg have set themselves climate targets that are in line with EU regulations. “Of course there is also potential for improvement and further development here, but there are these reduction decisions in some states,” says Rohrer of the Energy Agency. All in all, the most savings should be made in Vienna in the long term, also because many gas heating installations operate here.
“Child Traffic Problems”
There is a great need for action on traffic: “We desperately need the reduction of our problem child traffic, where we still tend to increase emissions,” explains Prechtl-Grundnig. Most passenger cars, about 1,054,000, are registered in Lower Austria. According to the study, traffic would have to decrease by about 30-40 percent to achieve the climate targets. Also in Burgenland, the state with the fewest registered cars (around 187,000), the targets can only be achieved if usage is reduced by around 25-35 percent.
But measures are also needed when it comes to “buildings”. In Vienna, about 452,000 fossil heating systems are used in main residences, which means that Vienna leads the comparison of the federal states, according to the study. To achieve the climate targets in 2023, about 240,000 heaters should have been exchanged for a climate-friendly variant by then. Lower Austria is in second place.
Source: Krone
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