Climate Efforts Falling Short, Report Says
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Tuesday, November 14, 2006
NAIROBI, Nov. 13 -- Sweden, Britain and Denmark are doing the most to protect against climate change, but their efforts are not nearly enough, according to a report released Monday by environmental groups.
The United States -- the world's biggest emitter of greenhouse gases -- ranked 53rd, with only China, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia doing worse.
"We don't have any winners, we only have countries that are better compared to others," said Matthias Duwe of Climate Action Network Europe, which released the data at the U.N. climate conference. "We don't have big shining stars."
The index ranks 56 countries that were part of a 1992 climate treaty or that contribute at least 1 percent of the world's greenhouse gas emissions. The countries produce 90 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions. The calculations by the environmental group Germanwatch took into account emissions levels, emissions trends and climate policy.
About one-quarter of the energy consumed in Sweden in 2003 came from renewable sources, more than four times as much as the European Union average of 6 percent. In Stockholm, one-quarter of city buses run on ethanol or biogas.
The country with the worst ranking was Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter.
