The UK's contribution to greenhouse gases is not a new phenomenon. Since the time of William Shakespeare, carbon dioxide has been added to the atmosphere from burning solid fuels such as wood, coal and peat. But the real increase came during the 1900s. UK carbon dioxide emissions peaked in about 1960, with the bulk coming from burning coal and oil. In 1960, the UK contributed approximately 180 million tonnes of carbon dioxide from coal burning and 90 million tonnes from burning oil. Since then there has been a gradual decline in the amount of carbon dioxide released from coal burning, with a notable trough in 1984 owing to the miners' strike. The contribution from oil burning on the other hand has increased and stood at approximately 110 million tonnes in 1999.
Natural gas emissions rose from nothing in the 1950s to around 57 million tonnes by 2000. The reason is simple. Here in the UK, less coal is burnt, and indeed mined, than at the beginning of the 20th century, while natural gas from the North Sea has become far more important as a fuel for heating our homes.
Looking towards the future, a revised version of the National Allocated Plan (the amount of carbon dioxide which Britain is allowed to produce as a signatory of the Kyoto Protocol) is set at 756 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year. However, many consider this too large if the industrial nations are to act on reducing global warming.