Global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions – the main contributor to
global warming – show no sign of abating and may reach record
levels in 2010, according to a study led by the University of
Exeter (UK). The study, which also involved the University of
East Anglia (UK) and other global institutions, is part of the
annual carbon budget update by the Global Carbon Project. In a
paper published today in Nature Geoscience, the authors found
that despite the major financial crisis that hit the world last
year, global CO2 emissions from the burning of fossil fuel in
2009 were only 1.3 per cent below the record 2008 figures. This
is less than half the drop predicted a year ago. The global
financial crisis severely affected western economies, leading to
large reductions in CO2 emissions. For example, UK emissions
were 8.6% lower in 2009 than in 2008. Similar figures apply to
USA, Japan, France, Germany, and most other industrialised
nations. However, emerging economies had a strong economic
performance despite the finan