November 17, 2010

November 17, 2010 - With the 2010 UN climate talks due to start in Cancun on November 29th, a new study rating 183 countries on their CO₂ emissions from energy use has identified United Arab Emirates, Australia, USA, Canada, Netherlands and Saudi Arabia as the six nations with the worst performance in relation to CO₂ pollution.

The CO₂ Emissions from Energy Use Index (CEEI) is produced by global risk advisory firm Maplecroft to raise awareness and help companies identify their risk exposures.

It also helps to identify those countries which may be subject to future regulation of CO₂ emissions or pressure from public interest groups to address emissions.

The index is calculated by evaluating countries' annual CO₂ emissions from energy use, CO₂ emissions per capita, and cumulative CO₂ emissions from 1900 to 2006 to provide a complete picture of a country's CO₂ polluting record.

UAE (1), Australia (2), USA (3), Canada (4), Netherlands (5) and Saudi Arabia (6) are bottom of the ranking and the only countries rated as 'extreme risk' by Maplecroft on the basis of their high CO₂ emissions from energy use.

The poor performance of UAE and Saudi Arabia is reflective of a near 100% reliance on fossil fuels and their use of energy intensive desalination plants to produce drinking water.

Saudi Arabia was the 11th highest global emitter in 2008 with 466 MtCO2. However, the desalination process that produces 70% of the country's drinking water accounts for 50% of CO₂ emissions. UAE dropped 15 places from last year to take the bottom spot due to a huge 25% jump in its overall carbon output between 2006 and 2008 and a 20% rise in per capita emissions.  

Maplecroft recognises that desalination is a positive way to address water security but high emissions underline the need to find more energy efficient innovations.

USA (3) and Canada (4) both achieved decreases in emissions per capita of 3.13% and 8.92% respectively, as well as reductions of 1.2% and 7.12% in their annual emissions from energy use. However, both countries remain extreme risk in the index.

According to Maplecroft, the index takes on particular significance for business when viewed through the lens of the upcoming climate talks in Cancun. "As the world moves towards a low carbon economy, more rigorous environmental policies may leave companies exposed to costly operating expenses and new investment requirements," said Maplecroft's Head of Maps and Indices, Fiona Place.

"Energy intensive sectors, such as the extractive sector and logistics, will be particularly vulnerable, but all areas of business need to monitor the associated risks."  

The Netherlands is the only European country to be rated 'extreme risk.' Natural gas discoveries in the 1980's saw consumer prices in the country drop, which pushed it towards a high carbon economy.

Emissions have since increased due to sustained economic growth; with annual per capita rates of 15.86 tCO₂ and total emissions of 264.01 MtCO₂. Germany (13), UK (15) and France (24) all saw decreases in emissions between 2006 and 2008, but this could be attributable to the economic downturn and they are rated as 'high risk' due to both high emissions per capita and high historical emissions.

The world's largest overall emitter of CO₂, China (26), is rated as high risk in the index. Despite the country registering the highest globally recorded CO₂ emissions in 2008 at 6533 MtCO₂, its per capita emissions are less than 20% of that in Australia, and its cumulative emissions of 99,204 MtCO₂ pale against the 323,916 MtCO₂ emitted by the USA since 1900.

China's recent high emissions reflect its huge economic growth, a reliance on coal as a fuel source, and large increases in the use of cars and household appliances throughout its population. China's president, Hu Juntao, has responded with an ambitious call to cut emissions per unit of economic output by 40-45% of 2005 levels by 2020.



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New research, claiming to be the first study to assess the impact of both daily maximum and minimum temperatures on irrigated rice production in tropical and subtropical regions of Asia, reveals billions of people could face starvation.

Published yesterday (August 9) in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) -- a peer-reviewed, scientific journal from the United States -- the report analyzed six years of data from 227 irrigated rice farms in six major rice-growing countries in Asia, which produces more than 90% of the world's rice.

The research team found evidence the impact of projected temperature increases will be to slow the growth of rice production in Asia.

Rising temperatures during the past 25 years have already cut the yield growth rate by 10 to 20% in several locations.

"We found that as the daily minimum temperature increases, or as nights get hotter, rice yields drop," said lead author of the report and graduate student of economics at the University of California at San Diego (UCSD), Jarrod Welch.

"Our study is unique because it uses data collected in farmers' fields, under real-world conditions.

"This is an important addition to what we already know from controlled experiments. Farmers can be expected to adapt to changing conditions, so real-world circumstances, and therefore outcomes, might differ from those in controlled experimental settings.

Around three billion people eat rice every day, and more than 60% of the world's one billion poorest and undernourished people who live in Asia depend on rice as their staple food.

A decline in rice production will mean more people will slip into poverty and hunger, the researchers said.



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