Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the dairy industry decreased by 3% in 2019, according to figures from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Yesterday, Wednesday, April 22, the EPA published data on GHG emissions for last year. The figures also show a decrease in power generation and industrial emissions of 8.7%, in line with a European-wide decrease of 8.9% in this area.
Power generation emissions alone decreased by 12.3%. This is being attributed to a “strong presence” of renewable energy – mainly wind power – and less use of fossil fuels.
Other figures show that the cement industry recorded a 2% decrease in emissions, while the ‘pharmachem’ industry recorded a slight decrease of 0.4%.
Dr. Maria Martin, the senior manager of the EPA, said: “This is the third year in a row that we have seen a fall in GHG emissions from participants in the EU Emissions Trading System, mainly power generation and industry.
“This reflects a positive move to lower use of fossil fuels in electricity generation and an increase in renewables,” Dr. Martin added.
“Aside from power generation, the reductions have been more modest in other sectors and attributable to a small number of players, with an increase recorded from aviation,” she added.
APS for dairy
In other news related to the dairy sector, the European Commission announced yesterday an Aids to Private Storage (APS) scheme for European agricultural produce, including dairy produce.
Of the approximately €80 million earmarked for APS, some €30 million would be ring-fenced for dairy produce.
Divided into storage for skim milk powder (SMP), butter and cheese, the dairy package would allow storage for a total of 330,000t of dairy produce, according to market sources.
This storage would range in length from two months up to six or seven months, it is believed, for dairy produce across the union.