Content

Carbon Dioxide Emissions 1995

Methodology

Certain basic delimitations had to be made in order to depict causers of CO2 emissions on a map. Table 3 shows that public power suppliers of electricity and district heating are especially prominent in CO2 emissions. Emissions are produced in power and heating works of the energy providers (EVU). In the strictest sense, emissions are caused by the consumers of electricity and heating. It is initially sensible to categorize electricity and heating emissions to the consumers, although the emissions are produced in the EVU facilities. This was done by formulating an average value for all Berlin for CO2 emissions per kilowatt-hour of electricity. Specific emission factors were formulated for various district heating networks from calculations of CO2 emissions from each heating facility.

Emissions from energy production outside of Berlin for consumption within Berlin are also relevant. Electricity is delivered to Berlin primarily from power facilities in the Lausitz area. The production of fuel oil in refineries requires heat and electricity, which leads to CO2 emissions in the State of Brandenburg and other places.

Analyses show that CO2 emitted in other places in the course of supplying fuel oil, natural gas and coal to Berlin amounts to about 5 % of the emissions produced by the combustion of these fuels in Berlin. These “grey-zone emissions” are significant for Berlin, particularly those connected with imports of electricity, for in 1995 one-fourth of all electricity used in Berlin was produced in power facilities outside the city. These CO2 emissions amount to about one-fifth of total emissions produced in Berlin.

A simplified procedure was chosen because of the size of these “grey zone” energy import emissions. CO2 emissions related to electricity were considered in the average value for consumption of electricity. The “grey zone emissions” related to coal, fuel oil, and natural gas supplies were not taken into consideration.

This allocation according to the “pollution causer principle in its broadest sense” is somewhat problematic. Electricity consumers can influence emissions from electricity production only by dealing sparingly with electricity. At the other side electricity provider decisions on production facilities have considerable influence on CO2 emissions. That means: Berlin consumers can reduce their use of electricity in order to reduce CO2 emissions. And the Berlin EVU energy producers could also reduce emissions by refitting power plants with more efficient technologies, such as energy/heat units, and use of low-CO2 fuels like natural gas. This form of emission reduction has pretty much escaped the influence of energy consumers up to now. The future liberalized electricity market could give energy consumers a method of achieving emission reductions by giving them a choice between energy suppliers. This is the reason that a consideration of the two aspects has been attempted both in the determination of data, and in its depiction:

  • Emissions from the supplying of electricity and heating are allocated to consumers.
  • A special calculation run and depiction was made nevertheless for CO2 emissions of the most important electricity and heating production facilities.

Calculations and comparisons were made to allocate the diverse data into six areas:

  • Households include energy use or the corresponding CO2 emissions in production of space heating, hot water, cooking, and use of electrical appliances.
  • Public facilities include the energy use or the corresponding CO2 emissions of public facilities. These figures were determined separately, as whole blocks or block segments, or as facilities which require operating permits. A school which occupies an entire block or block segment can be identified and classified as a public facility. A child-care facility on the ground floor of a building, however, cannot be identified and classified.
  • Industry was allocated the energy use or CO2 emissions calculated from workplace statements made for that industry, or from operator statements of facilities requiring permits.
  • Other was allocated the energy use or CO2 emissions that could be calculated from area, workplace, or facility data, but which could not clearly be classified into the other categories. This area includes statements regarding private sector service activities as well as “remainders” from other sectors.
  • The prominent significance of electrical supplies for the CO2 complex led us to determine electricity use for individual blocks and to study them separately sometimes.
  • The determined emissions of the primary road network were directly allocated to road segments. The study was made in commission of the Berlin Department of Urban Development, Environmental Protection and Technology.

In addition to the absolute CO2 emissions per block, the effective floor space per block was also determined. This not only allowed the depiction of emissions but also specific statements such as emissions per square meter of the floor space.