Overview of Greenhouse Gases

Gases that trap heat in the atmosphere are called greenhouse gases and these are:

• Carbon dioxide (CO2): Carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere through burning fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, and oil), solid waste, trees and wood products, and also as a result of certain chemical reactions (e.g., manufacture of cement). Carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere (or "sequestered") when it is absorbed by plants as part of the biological carbon cycle.
• Methane (CH4): Methane is emitted during the production and transport of coal, natural gas, and oil. Methane emissions also result from livestock and other agricultural practices and by the decay of organic waste in municipal solid waste landfills.
• Nitrous oxide (N2O): Nitrous oxide is emitted during agricultural and industrial activities, as well as during combustion of fossil fuels and solid waste.

CO2 emissions are the primary greenhouse gas emissions and they account (in 2015) for about 82.2 % of all U.S. greenhouse gas emissions from human activities. In 2015, CH4 accounted for 10 %, whereas N2O for 5 %.

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Greenhouse gas emissions across EU drop slightly in 2016

Greenhouse gas emissions across the European Union decreased modestly in 2016, according to estimates published in the latest climate ‘trends and projections’ assessments released today by the European Environment Agency (EEA).

EU greenhouse gas emissions from transport increased in 2015

Total European Union greenhouse gas emissions increased by 0.5 % in 2015, according to new European Environment Agency (EEA) data published on the 1st of June. Transport was a key reason for that increase: better fuel efficiency in that sector was not enough to counter the effects of an increasing demand for transport.

The EU’s total greenhouse gas emissions increased in 2015 for the first time since 2010. Higher emissions were caused mainly by increasing road transport, both passenger and freight, and slightly colder winter conditions in Europe, compared to 2014, leading to higher demand for heating.

Compendium on GHG Baselines and Monitoring

A comprehensive guide for GHG quantification of different types of transport mitigation action was officially launched in the beginning of May during the Technical Meeting of United Nations – Framework Convention on Climate change (UNFCCC). The Passenger and Freight Transport Volume of the Compendium on GHG Baselines and Monitoring is a multi-stakeholder effort to provide a resource map of methodologies and tools for establishing baselines and monitoring emissions reductions from mitigation actions.

​The methodologies presented in the volume were chosen with a view to cover a broad range of different mitigation action types in terms of scale, type of intervention and affected modes.

​The publication is coordinated by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) in cooperation with the UNFCCC Secretariat and the Partnership on Sustainable Low Carbon Transport (SloCaT), with funding from the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB), and written with the assistance of the Center for Clean Air Policy (CCAP).

​Download the Volume here.

​For more information: click here.

Elon Musk Talks About Bringing Autonomous Transport to Cities

Elon Musk shows his concern for the greenhouse gas emissions and proposes solutions for reducing them. He has not yet provided details about his new project but he is thinking about creating autonomous vehicles which would solve the traffic problem for inner city situations.

Find out more details here.

Climate Change and Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Greenhouse gas emissions can be decreased through the increase of the public transportation usage. The Federal Transit Administration presents the public transportation as an alternative to automobiles in order to reduce the emissions from the transport sector.  This web page contains activities and research related to climate change, and also information and tools for measuring and reducing greenhouse gas emissions from transport.

Guideline for Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reporting

The Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change released the Guideline for Greenhouse Gas Emissions in December 2015. The purpose of this regulation is to introduce standard quantification methods for a range of activities that are engaged in the GHG emissions.

Overview of Greenhouse Gases

Greenhouses gases include Carbon dioxide, Methane and Nitrous oxide. More information is provided by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. This information includes the effect these gases have to the climate change.

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