Many did not know it, but Spain is absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere. 45 million tons per year and the EU is on tenterhooks. After the surprising news of the incineration of 120,000 tons of carbon dioxide with a bomb, comes this revealing information about our territory. Everything that has to do with pollution falls under the European Union’s mantle.
There is already talk of sustainable goals for cars, buildings and other aspects of human life to lower their degree of pollution. Under these circumstances, the European Council has formally adopted the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, which is designed to help member states reduce emissions and energy use in their buildings.
The regulation stipulates that all new buildings must be zero-emission by 2030 and that the European Union’s building stock must be zero-emission by 2050. A path to follow that will come into force very soon.
Spain absorbs CO2 from the atmosphere: here are the details
In this context, Spain plays a key role in the search for cleaner air and, ultimately, a greener and healthier way of life for its citizens. It stands out as the leading country in CO2 absorption, with more than twice as many tons as countries such as France, Italy or Poland, according to data collected in the report Evolución de las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero en España 2005-2021 (Evolution of greenhouse gas emissions in Spain 2005-2021).
This study was prepared by the international environmental consulting firm Liken Carbon Hub and published by the Naturgy Foundation. In 2023, this study added a comparison with other European countries and reached its fourth edition. One more year, it exposed to the world the effort made by Spain to take another step towards climate neutrality.
In the European Union, agricultural and forestry lands cover more than 75% of the territory and, in 2021, made it possible to capture 229 million tons of carbon dioxide. Spain accounts for 45 million tons, almost one-fifth of Europe’s total.
With this number, it was the country that recorded the highest number of absorptions, followed at a considerable distance by France, Italy and Poland, countries in which the sector collects around 20 million tons.
Spain seeks climate neutrality and CO2 plays a key role
“The goal of climate neutrality implies that we must reduce our greenhouse gas emissions as much as possible, enhancing the removals of those that we cannot reduce; in this way, we will be able to achieve a net balance between removals and emissions,” states Luis Robles, managing partner of Linken Carbon Hub and co-author of the report.
Since 2005, Spain has absorbed an average of 45 million tons of CO2 every year, contributing around 15% to the reduction of total emissions by 2021.
Spain’s effort to reduce pollution
The Liken Carbon Hub document shows that between 2005 (year in which the emissions market began) and 2021, our country made a gigantic effort to lower its level of emissions. However, the data reflected in the study reflect the real need to continue working to reach the targets set in the draft update of the PNIEC to 2030, which stipulates a 32% reduction in emissions compared to 1990.
Robles emphasizes that “addressing emissions from diffuse sectors is a major challenge as they generally involve a wide range of activities and actors. It is essential to implement effective policies and measures in all countries to reduce emissions in these sectors and to achieve a transition to more sustainable and low-carbon practices”.
In short, the fact that Spain is absorbing 45 million tons of CO2 per year has the European Union on tenterhooks, although there is still a long way to go to meet the global targets set. Are you interested in these issues? Then you can’t miss the superbattery that saves 60 gigatons of CO2.
