Greehouse gas emissions
Greenhouse gas emissions
As Australia transitions to a net-zero economy, there will be significant changes for the Hunter region. The dashboard is now including latest data on emissions, and soon energy statistics to reflect this transition. However, there is currently a lag of 4 years on local-scale GHG emissions, with last available data published by the NSW Government being for 2021.
In 2021, 48 Mt or 37% of NSW emissions were in the Hunter. This is despite having only 8% of the NSW population. Sixty-eight percent of emissions are due to electricity generation, however. Sixty-three percent of these emissions are due to consumption of electricity (so called scope 2 emissions) outside the region. Adjusting for these emissions, results in 27 Mt of emissions in the Hunter, still 21% of the state’s emissions.
On a per-capita basis, emissions in the Hunter are 61 t/capita, and, after adjusting for exported electricity to other users outside the region, 34 t/capita. This compares to an Australian average of 19 t/capita (National Greenhouse Gas Inventory).
Progress in emissions reduction is being observed, particularly as some of the aging coal-fired power stations in the region are either being retired or reducing their capacity utilization. In 2021, Hunter emissions decreased by approximately 7%, primarily due to changes in electricity generation, with a notable decline in fugitive emissions from fuels as well.
Data source: NSW Net Zero Emissions Dashboard
A more detailed view of emissions by sector is provided below. In this view, for electricity, so-called “scope 2” accounting is used, where emissions due to electricity generation are assigned to the electricity customer (and thus emissions due to electricity exported from the region are not included).
Data source: NSW Net Zero Emissions Dashboard
Scope 3 GHG Emissions: Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions are those related to economic activity other than direct fuel and electricity consumption. This accounting of emissions provides a background to additional opportunities to decarbonize for industry, yet are often difficult to realise because of measurement issues and the need to involve multiple stakeholders. At the Institute for Regional Futures, the Scope 3 emissions of industrial production in the Hunter have been estimated based on a unique combination of data from the EXIOBASE global MRIO model, national IO tables and local IO data from REMPLAN.
The chart below shows greenhouse gas emissions by aggregated source and destination sectors in the Hunter region. Emission sources are broken down by sector and color: agriculture, forestry and fishing; mining; manufacturing; electricity and other utilities; construction; services; and transport. Further detail is available upon request, with emissions broken down into supply-chains. The scope 3 emissions shown below exclude scope 1 and scope 2 emissions.
Manufacturing is the largest contributor to Scope 3 Emissions in the region. The manufacturing sector’s Scope 3 emissions are close to 15 Mt of CO2-equivalent (CO2-e). Aggregate emissions are visible in the chart below, but due to the broad nature of the sector, these emissions are spread over many sources. Some key contributors to the results are scope 3 emissions from mining sources and from indirect electricity use due to non-ferrous metal manufacturing; agricultural emissions from meat product manufacturing; and emissions from cement and lime preparation for concrete manufacturing. The IRF provides insight into organizational scope 3 emissions in the region. Contact us below for more information.
The University of Newcastle acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands within our footprint areas: Awabakal, Darkinjung, Biripai, Worimi, Wonnarua, and Eora Nations. We also pay respect to the wisdom of our Elders past and present.