Global carbon dioxide expected to rise to record levels

Carbon dioxide emissions are expected to reach record levels this year, according to a new study, despite the recession and global efforts to reduce greenhouse gases.
The research, led by the University of Exeter and involving the University of East Anglia, found that growth in carbon dioxide levels fell in 2009, though by less than expected, because of the economic recession. However despite continuing problems in the economy in 2010 global emissions from the burning of fossil fuels will increase by three per cent, according to the annual survey.

The study, published in Nature Geoscience, found UK emissions were 8.6 percent lower in 2009 than in 2008. Similar figures apply to the US, Japan, France, Germany, and most other industrialized nations. An emission from deforestation in tropical countries is also down because of international efforts to stop illegal logging. However the massive growth of developing countries means that more fossils are being burned than ever before.

Carbon dioxide emissions from China, where there is also a large amount of coal, increased by eight per cent in 2009. This meant that the drop in emissions was much smaller in 2009, than the 2.8 percent originally expected. Also the overall amount of global fossil fuel emissions was still the second highest in human history, at 30.8bn tons, just below the all-time high of 2008.