EUROPE: Greenhouse gas emissions in the EU fell by 2.5% last year, despite higher coal consumption and a growing gross domestic product (GDP), according to new estimates from the European Environment Agency (EEA).

Emissions fell even further in the EU-15 Member States, going down by 3.5% between 2010 and 2011. Based on these EEA estimates, EU 2011 emissions stand approximately 17.5 % below the 1990 level. The EU-15 stands 14.1% below the base-year level under the Kyoto Protocol. The results were helped by the mild winter in most parts of the EU.

Renewable energy consumption also continued to increase in 2011.