PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Incinerators: Carbon Emissions (4 December 2020)

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the effect of the use of waste incinerators on the Government's progress on the 2050 net zero emissions target.

Asked by:
Esther McVey (Conservative)

The latest data shows that, in 2018, an estimated 6.0 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e) were emitted from waste incineration in the energy supply sector and 0.3 MtCO2e from waste incineration in the waste sector.

The UK’s climate change framework enables the Government to determine how best to balance emissions reductions across the economy. Emissions are managed within the Government’s overall strategy for meeting carbon budgets and the 2050 net zero target, as part of an economy-wide transition.

The UK Government has reduced carbon emissions by over 40% since 1990.

Answered by:
Kwasi Kwarteng (Conservative)
14 December 2020