Introduction

This report presents an overview of Tasmania’s greenhouse gas emissions (emissions) from 1990 to 2019. It accounts for emissions from goods and services produced in, and exported from, Tasmania. Emissions are reported in financial years to 30 June, so the year 2019 refers to the financial year 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019. This report draws from the most recent official data in Australia on annual emissions.

Under the Climate Change (State Action) Act 2008, Tasmania has an emissions reduction target of 60 per cent below 1990 baseline levels by 2050. The Climate Change (Greenhouse Gas Emissions) Regulations 2012 require the Minister to publish the reduction in emissions compared with the 1990 baseline level.

What are greenhouse gases?

Greenhouse gases trap heat in the atmosphere and make the earth warmer. Those with the most significant impact on global warming are water vapour, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. Other common greenhouse gases include ozone and chlorofluorocarbons.

How are emissions measured?

Each greenhouse gas varies in terms of its contribution to climate change. Global warming potentials are used as a measure of how much heat a greenhouse gas traps in the atmosphere. They compare the amount of heat trapped by a certain mass of each gas to the amount of heat trapped by a similar mass of carbon dioxide. Using this method, greenhouse gases are combined into a single, consistent value of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂-e), which is presented in this Report.

What are carbon sinks?

A carbon, or emissions, sink removes more carbon from the atmosphere than it emits. The removed carbon is stored, often in the form of growing vegetation.

How are emissions reported?

Reporting framework

Tasmania’s emissions are reported in accordance with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reporting framework for national greenhouse gas inventories.

Data sources

State and Territory Greenhouse Gas Inventories (STGGI)

The main source of data on Tasmania’s emissions is the Australian Government’s State and Territory Greenhouse Gas Inventories 2019 (STGGI).

The STGGI is prepared as part of Australia’s National Greenhouse Accounts and the National Inventory Report, which is submitted annually in accordance with the international guidelines agreed under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol (KP).

The National Inventory Report runs two years behind the current date and represents the most recent official data in Australia on annual emissions. The current National Inventory Report details estimates of Australia’s emissions for the period 1990 to 2019.

Under the UNFCCC, the National Inventory Report must report net emissions from the following sectors:

energy;
industrial processes and product use (IPPU);
agriculture;
land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF); and
waste.

For the purposes of this Report, the energy sector is further broken down into three sub-sectors:

electricity generation;
the direct combustion of fuels from all other forms of stationary energy excluding electricity generation (direct combustion); and
transport.

Within the STGGI, electricity generation is reported under the energy sub-sector ‘Energy Industries’. Direct combustion has been aggregated to include the STGGI energy sub-sectors of ‘Manufacturing Industries and Construction’, ‘Other Sectors’ and ‘Other’.

‘Fugitive emissions’ forms another energy sub-sector. The Australian Government treats Tasmania’s fugitive emissions as confidential, so these emissions are reported in the total emissions from the energy sector.

The STGGI uses the information provided in the National Inventory Report and disaggregates it for each jurisdiction.

The STGGI data relates to production-based, rather than consumption-based emissions in Tasmania, also called Scope 1 emissions. The data account for emissions from goods and services produced in, and exported from, Tasmania.

Units of measure

Greenhouse gases are frequently reported in megatonnes (Mt) CO₂-e, with 1 Mt CO₂-e equal to 1,000 kilotonnes (kt) CO₂-e and 1 kt CO₂-e equal to 1,000 tonnes (t) CO₂-e.

Confidential information

In accordance with the Australian Government’s reporting protocols, where reporting at a sub-sector level could lead to the disclosure of commercially sensitive emissions data, the Australian Government treats the information as confidential and aggregates it with other sectors before publication. Examples in Tasmania include fugitive emissions, which are reported in the total emissions from the energy sector, and emissions from the metal industry and chemical industry, which are reported as combined emissions in the IPPU sector under ‘Other’.

Discrepancies in table totals

Data in the tables of this Report are sourced directly from the STGGI. Any discrepancy between table totals and the sum of sectors and sub-sectors reflects rounding anomalies and/or the inclusion of confidential emissions data in the total figure.