The UK’s energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions both rose in 2012, according to new figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS). The statistics show that record amounts of low carbon energy dampened the effect of increased consumption on emissions, but failed to cancel out the impact of a cold winter.

Data

Households and businesses consumed 1.2 per cent more energy in 2012 than in 2011, bucking a general trend for declining consumption since 2005 (as the chart below shows). Temperatures one degree celsius lower than a year before were largely responsible for the increase, the ONS says.

More fossil fuels were burned to meet the demand, the statistics show. The dashed blue line on the chart below shows the amount energy generated from fossil fuels such as coal and gas. Note how it pretty much mirrors the line on the chart above.

Burning coal and gas for power or heat releases lots of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. As a consequence, when energy consumption rises, so do greenhouse gas emissions. Emissions rose by 2.2 per cent in 2012 compared to a year before, this chart shows:

But thanks to there being more low carbon energy available, and homes gradually becoming more energy efficient, the impact of increased energy consumption on emissions was curbed – slightly. Renewables provided for 4.5 per cent of energy consumption in 2012, the statistics show, an all time high.

The ONS says this means “[t]he difference between energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions has gradually narrowed over time”. The economic recession also had an impact the ONS says, as people were less profligate with their energy use.

So while energy consumption is still liable to rise when it’s cold, the statistics show that having a greater amount of renewable energy online helps to slightly limit the impact on annual greenhouse gas emissions.