Europe Gets Tougher On Heavy Co2 Emitters

Legislators in Europe are getting increasingly tough on products which emit large quantities of Co2, with patio heaters and large cars coming into focus during the past week.

Patio heaters have seen a big increase in popularity in the past year: Since the introduction of indoor smoking bans in many European countries, smokers can often be found huddled under the heaters as they take their nicotine breaks outside of bars and restaurants. In some countries, the UK in particular, the heaters have also proved to be an effective way to extend outdoor eating beyond the 3 days per year usually permitted by the weather.

Many larger retailers have already removed the heaters from their shelves, considering them to be particularly anti-social products due to their heavy energy usage. However, many smokers and outdoor diners may soon be quitting the habit or shivering in the cold as the heaters and are set to be banned outright under new legislation currently being considered by the European Parliament.

Leading the proposal, European Member of Parliament Fiona Hall said "Patio heaters are scandalous because they are burning fossil fuels in the open sky, so producing vast quantities of CO2 with very little heat benefit.”

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However, critics of the proposal have pointed out that patio heaters actually have little net impact on Co2 emissions, drawing a comparison between the twenty two thousand tons emitted each year by Patio Heaters in the UK and the four and a half million tons emitted by televisions in standby mode. Particularly, many smokers feel victimized by the proposals, claiming that having been bullied out of bars and restaurants they are now being chased even further out into the cold.

In addition to emissions reductions initiatives already underway within Europe, such as industrial emissions quotas and renewable energy targets, it is likely that outright bans on certain products will become increasingly common.

What’s Next?

Next on the hit-list may well be sports / luxury cars. This week Sir Mark Moody-Stuart, ex chairman of oil giant Shell called for a total ban on cars returning less than 35 miles per gallon. Moody-Steward has said that large, heavy cars are unnecessary and that the auto industry will have little difficulty adapting to tougher rules. The US government last year set a long term target of reaching a national fleet average of 35mpg by 2020 despite howls or protest by automakers protesting the technical difficulties of such a move, apparently oblivious to the fact that standards in Europe and Japan have been way above this level for some time.

What’s your favourite Co2 monster, and what might be next?

Image courtesy of flickr

Sources & further reading: The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, BBC News, TCC – Bush Implements Hard Targets with Energy Bill

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