Energy and Environment

Transcription

1 254 Energy and Environment Snapshots Asia and the Pacific region accounts for close to 40% of world energy demand, but most countries rely on imports to fill their energy requirements. Fossil fuel subsidies in the region, though generally lower than those in the Middle East, are considerable, exceeding 20% of supply costs in several Asian countries. A majority of the region s economies improved the efficiency with which they use energy during , with some improving their GDP per unit of energy use by more than 60%. This is a welcome development, given that energy remains the largest contributor to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which tend to increase with the region s continued economic growth. Key Trends Asia and the Pacific account for the largest share of world energy demand. The region consumes over 39% of the world s energy while North America and Europe account for about 22% each. The People's Republic of China (PRC) accounts for almost half of Asia s energy consumption at 19%, more than three times India s consumption of 6% and almost five times Japan s consumption of 4% (Figure 6.1). The region s growing energy demand has real implications for the world s efforts to control GHG emissions. Fossil fuels, which account for over 70% of GHG emissions, continue to be the primary source for energy generation (EDGAR 2009). For example, the PRC used energy from fossil fuel for 87% of the total energy it used in 2009 (World Bank 2012). A majority of Asian economies rely on imports for their energy consumption requirements. Figure 6.2 shows net energy imports (imports less exports) as a percentage of each economy s domestic energy use from 2007 to Bars to the left are for economies that are net energy exporters, economies on the right side of the bar are Figure 6.1 Percentage Breakdown of Energy Use by Region, 2009 (kilotons of oil equivalent) Africa 5.1 West Asia and Rest of the World 6.2 South America 4.1 Asia and the Pacific 39.7 India 5.7 Japan 4.0 Korea, Rep. of 1.9 Indonesia 1.7 Europe 22.4 North America 22.5 China, People's Rep. of 19.1 Others 3.3 Australia 1.1 Thailand 0.9 Pakistan 0.7 Malaysia 0.6 Kazakhstan 0.6 Sources: Table 6.4 and World Development Indicators Online (World Bank 2012).

2 Energy and Environment 255 net importers. 1 Economies such as Singapore and Hong Kong, China import almost all their energy requirements and Armenia, Georgia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and the Kyrgyz Republic import more than 50% of their energy requirements. Concern about energy security has led some economies in the region to secure energy supplies through foreign direct investments in countries in Central Asia, Africa, and the Americas that have rich energy resources. The PRC, India, and the Republic of Korea are particularly noted for these activities (UNCTAD 2011). A parallel strategy has been to diversify into alternative energy sources by investing in renewables. Successful investments in renewables enhance efforts to reduce GHG emissions. Figure 6.2 Net Energy Imports as a Percentage of Energy Use, Most economies have improved their energy efficiency. GDP per unit of energy, or energy productivity, is calculated by first converting each country s GDP to US dollars using purchasing power parities. This is then divided by all types of energy, each type being converted to standard units or oil equivalents by the relevant conversion factors. Energy efficiency is an important constituent of climate change mitigation efforts, and has popularly been termed the fifth fuel. Energy efficiency is influenced by several factors, including changes in industrial structure, technology level, and energy mix. In general, agriculture and services generate higher GDP per energy unit than manufacturing. Gains in energy productivity may result from a shift from manufacturing to services. Another factor that may have an important influence on energy efficiency is fossil fuel subsidies, which tend to encourage overconsumption of fossil fuels (Box 6.1). Regional Trends and Tables Note: Azerbaijan, Brunei Darussalam, and Turkmenistan are omitted to avoid distorting the figure, as their net exports are several times larger than their domestic energy use. Source: Table 6.3. China, People's Rep. of 2007 Singapore Hong Kong, China Korea, Rep. of Japan Armenia Kyrgyz Republic Georgia Sri Lanka Thailand Philippines Tajikistan Cambodia India Pakistan Bangladesh New Zealand Nepal Viet Nam Uzbekistan Malaysia Myanmar Indonesia Kazakhstan Australia Mongolia Azerbaijan, Brunei Darussalam, and Turkmenistan are omitted to avoid distorting the figure, as their net exports are several times larger than their domestic energy use. Figure 6.3 shows the change in energy productivity between 2000 and Armenia, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan achieved improvements of more than 60%. The efficiency improvements in these Figure 6.3 Percentage Change in GDP per Unit of Energy Use between 2000 and 2009 Azerbaijan Turkmenistan Tajikistan Uzbekistan Armenia Singapore Cambodia Georgia Philippines Sri Lanka Mongolia India Hong Kong, China Indonesia Kyrgyz Republic New Zealand China, People's Rep. of Korea, Rep. of Nepal Japan Pakistan Kazakhstan Australia Viet Nam Bangladesh Malaysia Thailand Brunei Darussalam GDP = gross domestic product. Source: Table 6.1.

3 256 Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific 2012 Box 6.1 Fossil Fuel Consumption Subsidies The Figure in this box shows the subsidy rates (as a percentage of supply cost) for fossil fuel consumption of 37 economies. Oil and gas exporting economies in the Middle East (Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates); Latin America (El Salvador and Venezuela); (Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan); and Africa (Algeria) are notable for subsidy rates of over 50%, indicating that consumers in these countries paid less than 50% of the price prevailing in the international market. Fossil fuel subsidies encourage high and wasteful consumption patterns while ignoring the negative externalities to the environment through carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions and smog. Moreover, by underpricing fossil fuel energy sources, such subsidies also act as a deterrent to investment and innovation in renewable energies. According to International Energy Agency estimates, completely phasing out fossil fuel consumption subsidies by 2020 would reduce the global energy demand by 3.9% and cut energy-related CO 2 emissions by 4.7%. However, phasing out fossil fuel subsidies can be politically challenging for most economies, especially during times of high fuel prices. Nonetheless, some economies recognize that these subsides are not the most cost-effective or efficient way of helping the poor, and have taken steps to phase the subsidies out. For example, Indonesia plans to reduce spending on energy subsidies by 40% by 2013; Malaysia reduced subsidies on gasoline, diesel, and liquid petroleum gas (LPG) in July 2010; and India raised domestic prices for gasoline, LPG, and kerosene in June Source: IEA (2011). Latin America Middle East Africa Central and West Asia Eurasia Europe East, South, and Box Figure 6.1 Fossil-fuel Consumption Subsidy as a Percentage of Supply Cost, 2010 Kuwait Iran Islamic Republic of Saudi Arabia Qatar Libyan Arab Jamahiriya United Arab Emirates Iraq Venezuela El Salvador Ecuador Argentina Mexico Colombia Turkmenistan Uzbekistan Kazakstan Pakistan Azerbaijan Algeria Egypt Angola Nigeria South Africa Bangladesh Brunei Darussalam Indonesia Thailand Malaysia Sri Lanka Viet Nam India Philippines China, People s Rep. of Taipei,China Korea, Rep. of Ukraine Russian Federation Source: International Energy Agency (IEA 2012). Fossil fuel subsidy database. former Soviet republics that have access to cheap oil and gas are notable. Meanwhile, Brunei Darussalam is conspicuous for becoming less energy efficient, probably attributable to its substantial energy subsidy per capita, which at $840 is the highest in the region (IEA 2012). Asia s economic expansion was accompanied by rising GHG emissions. The environmental Kuznet s curve predicts that GHG emissions will continue to increase with economic growth, but taper off after countries reach a certain level of per capita income. 2 Figure 6.4 shows the per capita carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions plus the CO 2 equivalents of the other two principal GHGs nitrous oxide and methane gas for Brunei Darussalam, Australia, and New Zealand have the highest per capita emissions in the region, and only 9 of the 29 economies showed reduced or maintained their per capita emissions. 2 The Special Chapter discusses the environmental Kuznet s curve for Asia and the Pacific. Increases in per capita emissions were highest in the PRC (from 4.0 to 5.8 tons), Turkmenistan (from 12.7 to 15.3 tons), and Azerbaijan (5.8 to 8.7 tons). CO 2, which primarily comes from burning fossil fuels is by far the largest contributor to global warming among the GHGs. The PRC and India, the region s highest CO 2 emitters, accounted for 23% and 6% (respectively) of global emissions in 2008 (US EPA 2012); and they are the first and fourth largest emitters globally. Climate change is predicted to have severe economic and social costs for economies in the region especially those in major river basins such as the Ganges and Mekong, as well as small island and archipelagic countries. Unfortunately, rounds of international climate change negotiations, the most recent of which has been the Rio+20 conference, have yet to come up with concrete and binding agreements on cutting GHG emissions or

4 Energy and Environment 257 Source: Table 6.6. Figure 6.4 Per Capita Emissions of Carbon Dioxide, Methane, and Nitrous Oxide, 2005 (tons) Brunei Darussalam Australia New Zealand Kazakhstan Turkmenistan Singapore Korea, Rep. of Japan Malaysia Azerbaijan Mongolia Hong Kong, China Uzbekistan Thailand China, People's Rep. of Indonesia Georgia Viet Nam Armenia Cambodia Myanmar Kyrgyz Republic India Pakistan Philippines Sri Lanka Nepal Bangladesh Tajikistan Carbon dioxide Nitrous oxide Methane on assisting poorer economies with climate change adaptation strategies. This stands in stark contrast to the success of the Montreal Protocol, which has virtually eliminated the production and consumption of ozone depleting chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), as is evident from Table 6.6. Meanwhile, a carbon cap and trade scheme is a potential tool by which countries can efficiently reduce GHGs. Such mechanisms are nascent in the region. Only New Zealand has such a system in place, but if all goes according to plans, Australia may have one by 2013 and the PRC, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and Taipei,China will have nationwide systems by 2015 (Scott 2011). These plans have given rise to talk about the possibility of an Asia-Pacific carbon trading scheme, which can magnify the potential to cap emissions by forming the region s major emitters into a unified market. Data Issues and Comparability Most of the energy data are compiled by the International Energy Agency using standard procedures and conversion factors for all countries. Statistics on CFC consumption are collected by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization as part of the process of monitoring the 2006 Montreal Protocol on limiting CFC emissions. Other United Nations agencies monitor output of GHGs and other pollutants. Statistics on water pollution are based on analyses of water drawn from sites in a sample of lakes and rivers. It is expensive to identify and maintain a sample of sites that will accurately measure nationwide water pollution. Comparability between countries is generally less than comparability over time for a single country. The Food and Agriculture Organization monitors land use and forestry data using country reports and satellite imagery. References Asian Development Bank (ADB) Improving Energy Security and Reducing Carbon Intensity in Asia and the Pacific. Mandaluyong City: ADB. Emission Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR) ( php), accessed July International Energy Agency (IEA) World Energy Outlook. ( publications/weo-2011/) Fossil Fuel Subsidy Database. Available at: ( accessed July Scott, M Carbon Trading Schemes Launched in Asia Pacific. Financial Times. ( cms/s/0/c d6-11e feab49a. html), accessed July United Nations Commission on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) World Investment Report. Geneva: UNCTAD. U.S. Energy Information Administration (US EIA) International Energy Outlook. ( oiaf/aeo/gas.html), accessed July United States Environmental Protecion Agency (US EPy) Climate Change. ( ghgemissions/global.html), accessed 2 July World Bank World Development Indicators. ( accessed July Regional Trends and Tables

5 258 Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific 2012 Energy Table 6.1 GDP Per Unit of Energy Use (constant 2005 PPP $ per kilogram of oil equivalent) Regional Member Afghanistan Armenia Azerbaijan Georgia Kazakhstan Kyrgyz Republic Pakistan Tajikistan Turkmenistan Uzbekistan China, People s Rep. of Hong Kong, China Korea, Rep. of Mongolia Taipei,China Bangladesh Bhutan India Maldives Nepal Sri Lanka Brunei Darussalam a Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Cook Islands Fiji Kiribati Marshall Islands Micronesia, Fed. States of Nauru Palau Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands Timor-Leste Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu Australia Japan New Zealand WORLD = Data not available at cutoff date, GDP = gross domestic product, PPP = purchasing power parity. a Brunei Darussalam is a regional member of ADB, but it is not classified as a developing member. Source: World Development Indicators Online (World Bank 2012).

6 Energy and Environment 259 Energy Table 6.2 Energy Production (kilotons of oil equivalent) Regional Member Afghanistan Armenia Azerbaijan Georgia Kazakhstan Kyrgyz Republic Pakistan Tajikistan Turkmenistan Uzbekistan Regional Trends and Tables China, People s Rep. of Hong Kong, China Korea, Rep. of Mongolia Taipei,China Bangladesh Bhutan India Maldives Nepal Sri Lanka Brunei Darussalam a Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar Philippines Singapore 29 Thailand Viet Nam Cook Islands Fiji Kiribati Marshall Islands Micronesia, Fed. States of Nauru Palau Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands Timor-Leste Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu Australia Japan New Zealand = Data not available at cutoff date, = Magnitude equals zero, 0 = Magnitude is less than half of unit employed. a Brunei Darussalam is a regional member of ADB, but it is not classified as a developing member. Sources: World Development Indicators Online (World Bank 2012); for Papua New Guinea; and Taipei,China: Asia Pacific Energy Research Center; Fiji; the Lao PDR; Palau; Samoa; Solomon Islands; Timor-Leste; and Vanuatu: Energy Statistics in Asia and the Pacific (Asian Development Bank 2009) and Energy Statistics Yearbook (UNSD 2009).

7 260 Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific 2012 Energy Table 6.3 Energy Imports, Net (% of energy use) Regional Member Afghanistan Armenia Azerbaijan Georgia Kazakhstan Kyrgyz Republic Pakistan Tajikistan Turkmenistan Uzbekistan China, People s Rep. of Hong Kong, China Korea, Rep. of Mongolia Taipei,China Bangladesh Bhutan India Maldives Nepal Sri Lanka Brunei Darussalam a Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Cook Islands Fiji Kiribati Marshall Islands Micronesia, Fed. States of Nauru Palau Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands Timor-Leste Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu Australia Japan New Zealand = Data not available at cutoff date. a Brunei Darussalam is a regional member of ADB, but it is not classified as a developing member. Source: World Development Indicators Online (World Bank 2012).

8 Energy and Environment 261 Energy Table 6.4 Energy Use (kilotons of oil equivalent) Regional Member Afghanistan Armenia Azerbaijan Georgia Kazakhstan Kyrgyz Republic Pakistan Tajikistan Turkmenistan Uzbekistan Regional Trends and Tables China, People s Rep. of Hong Kong, China Korea, Rep. of Mongolia Taipei,China Bangladesh Bhutan India Maldives Nepal Sri Lanka Brunei Darussalam a Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Cook Islands Fiji Kiribati Marshall Islands Micronesia, Fed. States of Nauru Palau Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands Timor-Leste Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu Australia Japan New Zealand = Data not available at cutoff date, 0 = Magnitude is less than half of unit employed. a Brunei Darussalam is a regional member of ADB, but it is not classified as a developing member. Sources: World Development Indicators Online (World Bank 2012); for Papua New Guinea; and Taipei,China: Asia Pacific Energy Research Center; for Bhutan; Fiji; Kiribati; the Lao PDR; the Maldives; Nauru; Palau; Samoa; Solomon Islands; Timor-Leste; Tonga; and Vanuatu: Energy Statistics in Asia and the Pacific (Asian Development Bank 2009) and Energy Statistics Yearbook (UNSD 2009).

9 262 Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific 2012 Environment Table 6.5 Agriculture Land Use (% of land area) Regional Member Agricultural Land Arable Land Permanent Cropland Afghanistan Armenia 41.1 (1992) (1992) (1992) Azerbaijan 53.4 (1992) (1992) (1992) Georgia 46.5 (1992) (1992) (1992) Kazakhstan 82.0 (1992) (1992) (1992) Kyrgyz Republic 52.6 (1992) (1992) (1992) Pakistan Tajikistan 32.1 (1992) (1992) (1992) Turkmenistan 68.6 (1992) (1992) (1992) Uzbekistan 65.2 (1992) (1992) (1992) China, People s Rep. of Hong Kong, China Korea, Rep. of Mongolia Taipei,China a Bangladesh Bhutan India Maldives Nepal Sri Lanka Brunei Darussalam b Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Cook Islands Fiji Kiribati Marshall Islands 72.2 (1995) (1995) (1995) Micronesia, Fed. States of 32.1 (1995) (1995) (1995) Nauru Palau 10.9 (1995) (1995) (1995) Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands Timor-Leste Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu Australia Japan New Zealand = Data not available at cutoff date, 0.0 = Magnitude is less than half of unit employed. a Data do not include the counties of Kinmen and Lienchiang. b Brunei Darussalam is a regional member of ADB, but it is not classified as a developing member. Sources: FAOSTAT Database Access website ( for Taipei,China: Statistical Yearbook 2010 (Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics 2012).

10 Energy and Environment 263 Environment Table 6.6 Deforestation and Pollution Deforestation Rate a Nitrous Oxide Emissions Methane Emissions Regional Member (average % change) (thousand metric tons CO 2 equivalent) (thousand metric tons CO 2 equivalent) Afghanistan Armenia Azerbaijan Georgia Kazakhstan Kyrgyz Republic Pakistan Tajikistan Turkmenistan Uzbekistan Regional Trends and Tables China, People s Rep. of Hong Kong, China Korea, Rep. of Mongolia Taipei,China Bangladesh Bhutan India Maldives Nepal Sri Lanka Brunei Darussalam b Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Cook Islands Fiji Kiribati Marshall Islands Micronesia, Fed. States of Nauru Palau Papua New Guinea Samoa... Solomon Islands... Timor-Leste Tonga... Tuvalu... Vanuatu... Australia Japan New Zealand continued

11 264 Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific 2012 Environment Table 6.6 Deforestation and Pollution (continued) Consumption of Ozone-Depleting CFCs Organic Water Pollutant (BOD) Emissions Regional Member (ODP metric tons) (kilograms per day per worker) Latest Year Afghanistan (1995) (1997) (2001) (2002) Armenia (1991) 25.0 Azerbaijan (1996) (1995) (2007) Georgia 53.2 (1994) 21.5 Kazakhstan (1998) (2007) Kyrgyz Republic (1991) (1992) (2007) Pakistan (2007) Tajikistan 91.3 (1991) (2007) Turkmenistan Uzbekistan (1993) 41.7 China, People s Rep. of (2003) (2007) Hong Kong, China... Korea, Rep. of (1992) (2006) Mongolia 7.2 (1995) (2003) (2007) Taipei,China... Bangladesh (1995) (1998) Bhutan (1991) India Maldives Nepal 20.0 (1991) (1996) (2002) Sri Lanka (2006) Brunei Darussalam b 58.6 (1992) 46.6 Cambodia 94.2 (1995) (1993) (1995) Indonesia (1992) (1998) (2006) Lao PDR 3.6 (1992) (1999) Malaysia (2006) Myanmar (1991) 26.3 Philippines (1996) (2001) (2005) Singapore (1991) (2007) Thailand (1996) (2006) Viet Nam (1991) (1998) (2007) Cook Islands (1991) Fiji (2002) (2004) Kiribati (1991) Marshall Islands Micronesia, Fed. States of (1991) 1.1 Nauru 0.6 (1995) 0.4 Palau 1.7 (1995) 0.6 Papua New Guinea 28.3 (1991) 47.9 Samoa 4.0 (1991) 0.6 Solomon Islands Timor-Leste 36.8 (1995) 21.4 Tonga 1.8 (1995) (1991) (2004) Tuvalu 0.3 (1993) Vanuatu 0.5 (1995) 0.1 Australia Japan (1994) (2005) New Zealand (2007) BOD = biochemical oxygen demand, CFC = chlorofluorocarbons, C0 2 = carbon dioxide, ODP = ozone-depleting potential, = Data not available at cutoff date, = Magnitude equals zero, 0.00 = Magnitude is less than half of unit employed. a A negative value indicates that deforestation rate is decreasing (i.e., reforestation). b Brunei Darussalam is a regional member of ADB, but it is not classified as a developing member. Sources: FAOSTAT Database Access website (FAO 2012); World Development Indicators Online (World Bank 2012); United Nations Millennium Indicators Database Online (UNSD 2012).