Decarbonization: Building a Zero Emissions Future

Significant drop in greenhouse gases in 2024: -3% compared to the previous year, mainly due to the electricity generation sector. This sector accounts for an average of a quarter of national emissions and over the years has proven to be among the most efficient in terms of reducing climate-altering gases: these have decreased by 64% from 1990 to today.

The transport sector remains problematic, with emissions continuing to grow significantly and representing 28% of national emissions: over 90% of them derive from road transport and have increased by approximately 7% since 1990. The Italian vehicle fleet is still characterized by traditionally fueled vehicles (petrol and diesel) and over the years the number of vehicles has seen a significant expansion (over 50%). All other economic sectors have seen marked reductions in emissions, with the exception of waste management, which however contributes only 5% of the national total.

This is the picture that emerges from the first elaborations of Ispra relating to 2024, presented today in Rome as part of the conference “Decarbonization: building a zero-emission future” promoted by Ispra. The report Greenhouse gas emissions in Italy: reduction targets and emission scenarios is available online from today. It outlines the Italian emission framework from 1990 to 2023 and presents an analysis of the emission scenarios for 2030 and 2055 compared to the reference one (with current policies) and the scenario with additional policies envisaged by the National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan (PNIEC). A specific focus is dedicated to the emission reduction objectives, with particular reference to the Effort Sharing sectors and the role of the LULUCF sector in balancing emissions. Ispra’s task is to annually develop and publish the national inventory and every two years the greenhouse gas emission scenarios to transmit them to European and international bodies.