Scotland's emissions show slight decline amid slowing progress
New data reveals that Scotland's greenhouse gas emissions have decreased, but the pace of reduction has slowed. In 2024, the country's emissions fell by 1% compared to the previous year, which is nearly half the reduction rate of 1.9% observed in 2023.
Climate Action Secretary Gillian Martin emphasized the need for the government to accelerate efforts to reduce emissions.
Since 1990, Scotland has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by over half (50.5%), with all sectors except international aviation and shipping showing declines during this period.
The majority of the 2024 reduction was attributed to changes in land use. However, emissions from transport—including domestic transport and international aviation—as well as from buildings, increased.
Reactions from environmental groups
Stop Climate Chaos Scotland described the figures as "stark confirmation" that climate action has been insufficient in strength and speed.
"Climate change is already affecting people's health and well-being, livelihoods and financial stability in Scotland, with more frequent storms, floods, droughts and wildfires wreaking havoc across the country," said Fraser Sutherland, the group's coalition manager.
"The clock is ticking if we want to halt the worst effects of planetary warming but there is still time."
Catrina Randall of Friends of the Earth Scotland characterized the modest reductions as a "missed opportunity" to improve the lives of Scots.
"They mean ministers have failed to help more people move around by public transport and failed to fix homes so that they aren't leaking energy and costing a fortune in bills."
She highlighted that the recent climate change plan outlined £42.3 billion in direct financial benefits for Scotland, with the net-zero economy currently supporting approximately 105,000 jobs.
"It will also provide significant wider impacts, from warmer homes to better air quality and improved health outcomes."
Government targets and emissions data
The Scottish government has committed to achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045, five years ahead of the UK government's 2050 target.
After missing several annual and interim targets, the Scottish National Party (SNP) ministers abandoned these in 2024 in favor of five-yearly carbon budgets.
The government aims to reduce emissions by an average of 57% over the next five years, and by 69% by 2035 compared to 1990 levels. By 2040, the target is to increase reductions to 80%.
In 2024, Scotland produced an estimated 39 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e) from the seven greenhouse gases, representing a 0.4 MtCO2e decrease from the previous year.
Most economic sectors showed modest emissions reductions, with industry achieving the largest decrease of 0.3 MtCO2e due to reduced fuel consumption.
Conversely, international aviation and shipping emissions rose by 0.2 MtCO2e as these sectors returned to pre-Covid levels. Domestic transport and buildings also experienced slight increases in emissions during the year.
All other sectors demonstrated minor reductions.
Carbon footprint statistics
Separate government statistics indicated that Scotland's carbon footprint increased by 1.6% between 2021 and 2022. These figures estimate emissions related to Scottish residents' spending on goods and services globally, as well as emissions directly generated by Scottish households.
Between 1998 and 2022, Scotland's carbon footprint declined by 17.5%.
