Annual Report 2023/24 - Monitoring Progress
Carbon Emissions
Carbon Emissions
June 2024 saw the release of new Carbon Emissions figures. There have been methodological improvements with the latest release; road transport and land-based emissions accounting has changed to align with UK emissions estimates. The impact of this change is that it looks like Shetland has had a significant reduction in emissions between 2021 and 2022. However, in terms of trend, emissions have been relatively stable over the last 3 years.
In 2022:
- Carbon emissions in Shetland Islands Council area were 14.4 tonnes per capita compared to 4.8 for Scotland;
- Carbon emissions directly impacted by the Council in Shetland were 5.1 tonnes per capita compared to 4.3 for Scotland.
Shetland’s carbon emissions in the Council area are still significantly higher than Scotland’s, however the gap is not as large as it was reported last year. For carbon emissions directly impacted by the Council in the area, although still higher than Scotland’s, it is not to the same extent. Shetland’s emissions per capita is significantly higher than Scotland’s average due to remote location, population distribution, economy and geology. Shetland Island Council’s Climate Change Strategy team have completed Net Zero Route Maps for both Shetland Islands Council and Shetland as a whole. The Shetland Route Map enhances the national datasets with local specific data, giving a more accurate picture of emissions across Shetland.