Wednesday 1 July 2009

Energy use forces up emissions

Age
Friday 26/6/2009 Page: 9

ENERGY generation in Australia increased by 15% in the past six years - indicating that domestic greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise. The Australian Bureau of Statistics yesterday reported that the largest increases were in natural gas, black coal and uranium - a reflection of the buoyant resources sector. About 61% of all energy generated between 2001-02 and 2006-07 was exported.

Under one key measure, energy intensity, the mining sector's greenhouse performance has deteriorated over the past 30 years. It now uses far more energy for every extra dollar of economic activity than it did in the late 1970s, largely due to a shift towards more open-cut mining. The agriculture industry is also more energy intensive than it was three decades ago. Domestically, the largest users of energy were manufacturing (36% ) and electricity supply (31% ).

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