Hong Kong's greenhouse gas emissions down 2 percent in 2019

This undated photo show a wind turbine on Lamma Island, Hong Kong. [PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY]

HONG KONG - The greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) continued a downward trend in 2019 as the HKSAR government accelerated its green drive with the goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.

The total GHG emissions in 2019 amounted to 40.1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, representing a decrease of about 2 percent compared with that in 2018, the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) of the HKSAR government said Wednesday.

If compared with the peak of about 44.6 million tonnes in 2014, the emissions have been reduced by about 10.1 percent.

The per capita GHG emissions were about 5.3 tonnes, which was about 0.2 tonnes lower than that in 2018 and about 0.9 tonnes down from 2014. The per capita GHG emissions of 2020 are expected to be about 4.5 tonnes.

The drop in GHG emissions was partially attributed to the replacement of coal-fired units by natural gas and non-fossil fuel energy sources in local power plants, the EPD said.

The share of coal-fired electricity generation in Hong Kong was down from about 59 percent in 2014 to about 44 percent in 2019 and about 24 percent in 2020.

Earlier this year, the HKSAR government said it aims to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 and announced a new clean air plan that featured transport emission cuts and the application of new technologies.