The International Energy Agency published a report yesterday in which it said that Carbon Dioxide emissions across Europe are falling – but Malta is a laggard in this respect, and figures issued by Eurostat back up the findings.

Let us start on a positive note. This new Labour Government has committed to changing the Delimara power plant to operate on gas. It has also issued a call for a new power plant to be built and run on gas. Everything is still in the early stages, but it is a step in the right direction. Another positive is that the previous administration had laid down the foundations and process to link Malta to the international grid through an interconnector to Sicily. This government is continuing on the same path. Another fact is that this government seems to have dedicated a lot of time and resources to finding ways to reduce emissions and weaning us off our addiction to oil. It is still talk, at the moment, but things do generally seem to be moving and the commitment is there. The Environment Ministry is doing what it should – it is identifying problems, acknowledging them and trying to address them.

But at the end of the day, it is hard facts that count. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a naturally occurring gas – it is also produced through respiration – but industrialisation has increased emissions of the greenhouse gas significantly, and it is a key contributor to manmade climate change.

In 2010, the EU committed itself to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by at least 20% – compared to 1990 levels – by 2020, a target which, in some areas, was complicated by the fact that emissions had already increased considerably since 1990.

Meeting this target, for Malta, meant slashing its carbon dioxide emissions by half. But this drastic decrease has not yet started to happen: according to Eurostat estimates issued last month, Malta was one of only four EU member states to see their CO2 emissions increase between 2011 and 2012. Proportionally, the estimated increase of 6.3% is also the highest in the EU, and by a considerable margin.

The IEA predicts that electricity demand in 2035 will be more than 70% higher than today, due to a rapid growth in income and population in developing countries, the growth of electricity-driven industrial processes and the continuing increase in the number of electrical devices used in homes and commercial buildings.

The agency thus suggests four measures to help keep climate change in check. The most important, which would account for nearly half the emissions reduction, would be targeted energy efficiency in buildings, industry and transport.

Fuel combustion in Malta led to around 2.5 million tonnes being released into the atomosphere and the production of electricity accounted for 41.2% of the total in Europe, but this proportion surpassed 70% in Malta, which is almost-entirely dependent on fossil fuels for the generation of electricity. Malta actually releases more CO2 to generate its electricity than Ethiopia – whose population exceeds 80 million, but which has invested heavily in hydroelectricity.

The problem is there to see, Malta must change its power generation methods. We are literally choking ourselves. The government must continue to explore financially sustainable ways to bring us in line, as we are falling very far behind. At the end of the day, it is our own health which will suffer if we don’t change course.