UK greenhouse gas emissions dropped 9% in 2020 amid pandemic

LONDON: Britain's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions fell by 8.9% in 2020, largely driven by a slump in economic activity due to measures to limit the spread of coronavirus, provisional government data showed on Thursday.

Government measures over the past year to control the pandemic have at times shut down large parts of the economy, leading to lower power demand and fewer cars on the road. GHG emissions were estimated at 414 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2020, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) said in a preliminary report.