Malta registered the highest increase in greenhouse gas emissions in the EU for the second quarter in a row, according to recently published Eurostat data.
Between July and September, the country’s greenhouse gas emissions rose by almost 8%, the same increase seen during the previous quarter. This was more than double the second-highest increase seen in Cyprus, where emissions rose by almost 3.7%.
Malta’s results stood in stark contrast to the rest of the EU, where emissions lowered in 23 countries. The biggest reductions were seen in Estonia (-30.7%), Bulgaria (-18.6%) and Germany (-12.2%).
In total, greenhouse gases reduced by just over 7% across the bloc compared to the same quarter in 2022.
Apart from Malta and Cyprus, the only other countries to register an increase were Latvia (3.4%) and Slovakia (0.9%).
But what does this mean in real terms?
In the third quarter of 2022, Malta pumped out an estimated 645,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas, according to Eurostat figures. By the same time last year, this had risen to 695,000 tonnes.
And while the country emitted 2.3 million tonnes of greenhouse gases in 2022, by the end of September last year Malta had already emitted more than 1.8 million tonnes, leaving it on track to exceed the total from the year before.
Across the EU as a whole, around 787 million tonnes of greenhouse gases were emitted in the third quarter of last year, according to Eurostat.
Despite Malta increasing its emissions at a faster rate than any other EU country, it emits the least emissions per capita across the 27-country bloc.
According to World Bank data, Malta and Sweden register the EU's lowest rate of emissions per capita. That is in large part due to Malta's lack of heavy industry.
Economic growth
Eurostat also included figures for changes in gross domestic product (GDP) – a measure of economic activity – for each country in the EU.
Between July and September, Malta’s economy grew at almost the same rate as its emissions, with GDP rising by just over 7% compared to the same period in 2022.
However, despite the temptation to link economic growth with emissions per se, this was not borne out in the data. Only 11 out of the 23 EU member states that decreased their emissions also saw declines in GDP.
The report notes that Italy maintained its GDP at the same level while decreasing emissions, while 11 countries managed to actually decrease their emissions while growing their economies.
A continuing trend
These latest reported increases in Malta’s emissions continue a trend that has been going on for years.
From 2017 to 2018, the country registered the second-highest increase in carbon dioxide emissions across the bloc. And in 2019, a report from the European Environment agency showed that while emissions had dropped across the EU over three decades, in Malta they had increased.
The agency’s Greenhouse Gas Inventory Report found that between 1990 and 2017, Malta’s total emissions grew by 2.3% while the EU saw a drop of 23%, equivalent to a reduction of 1.3 billion tonnes.
Carbon emissions in Malta have long been associated with the country’s reliance on cars, something which shows no sign of letting up.
Official statistics show there are some 18,000 vehicles for each square kilometre of road in Malta, with the latest figures showing 60 new vehicles being added to the road each day.