Sustainable development - Consumption and production

From Statistics Explained

Data from July 2011, most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Database.

This article provides an overview of statistical data on sustainable development in the areas of consumption and production. They are based on the set of sustainable development indicators the European Union (EU) agreed upon for monitoring its sustainable development strategy. Together with similar indicators for other areas, they make up the report 'Sustainable development in the European Union - 2011 monitoring report of the EU sustainable development strategy', which Eurostat draws up every two years to provide an objective statistical picture of progress towards the goals and objectives set by the EU sustainable development strategy and which underpins the European Commission’s report on its implementation.

The table below summarises the state of affairs of in the area of consumption and production. Quantitative rules applied consistently across indicators, and visualised through weather symbols, provide a relative assessment of whether Europe is moving in the right direction, and at a sufficient pace, given the objectives and targets defined in the strategy.

Contents 1 Overview of main changes 2 Main statistical findings 2.1 Headline indicator 2.1.1 Resource productivity 2.2 Resource use and waste 2.2.1 Domestic material consumption 2.2.2 Non-mineral waste 2.2.3 Hazardous waste 2.2.4 Recycled and composted municipal waste 2.2.5 Atmospheric emissions 2.3 Consumption patterns 2.3.1 Number of people in households 2.3.2 Household expenditure 2.3.3 Electricity consumption of households 2.3.4 Final energy consumption 2.3.5 Car ownership 2.3.6 Environmental management systems 2.3.7 Ecolabels 2.3.8 Area under agri-environmental commitment 2.3.9 Organic farming 2.3.10 Livestock density index 3 Further Eurostat information 3.1 Publications 3.2 Database 3.3 Dedicated section 3.4 Methodology 3.5 Other information 4 External links 5 See also 6 Notes

Overview of main changes

Changes in consumption and production patterns since 2000 show some highly unfavourable but also some highly favourable trends. On the one hand, consumption of materials and electricity, as well as the generation of hazardous waste, are still increasing (both in absolute terms and on a per capita basis). On the other hand, the final energy consumption and the amount of non-mineral waste generated in the EU have declined, and the share of waste recycled or composted has increased. Moreover, there have been substantial reductions in the emissions of important air pollutants, and there has been progress related to production patterns regarding the ecological dimension of corporate social responsibility and towards more environmentally friendly agricultural practices.

Main statistical findings

Headline indicator

Resource productivity

Despite an increasing trend in resource productivity (measured as GDP divided by domestic material consumption) in the EU between 2000 and 2007, resource use has been growing

• Resource productivity in the EU increased between 2000 and 2007, but the decoupling of material consumption from GDP was only relative

Resource productivity monitors the amount of gross value added (measured as GDP) an economy generates by using one unit of material (measured as domestic material consumption DMC), or, in other words, how productively an economy consumes resources in the creation of products and services for markets. If GDP increases more than DMC then the resource productivity increases.

Resource productivity in the EU increased from EUR 1.21 per kg in 2000 to EUR 1.30 per kg in 2007, representing an increase of about 1 % per year on average. The increase was particularly strong (2.4 % per year) during the economic downturn between 2000 and 2003, when DMC experienced a declining trend. This development was reversed in 2004 (DMC growing faster than GDP), followed by a period of relative decoupling from 2005 to 2007, during which GDP grew at a slightly higher rate (2.7 % per year) than DMC (1.8 % per year). Overall, during the period of 2000 to 2007 DMC increased at about half the growth rate of GDP, indicating that the increase in resource productivity was the result of a relative decoupling of resource use from economic growth.

• Resource productivity higher in old EU Member States

It was significantly lower in the most recent EU Member States than in the 15 oldest Member States. Differences in resource productivity between countries are determined by many factors, including the structure of the economy (basic industry or raw material processing versus hi-tech manufacturing), the share of the service sector, the scale and patterns of consumption, the level of construction activities, and the main sources of energy.

• Resource productivity increased in all but ten EU Member States between 2000 and 2007

Between 2000 and 2007 resource productivity increased in all but ten countries. Particularly strong increases were apparent in the Czech Republic, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg and Hungary, ranging from 3.5 % per year up to 6.5 % per year. In contrast, Estonia, Malta and Romania experienced notable declines in resource productivity over the same period, mainly due to high DMC growth rates outstripping GDP growth.

• From 2000 to 2007, whilst six countries achieved absolute decoupling, in another ten countries DMC grew faster than GDP

Plotting the Member States’ annual DMC growth rates against GDP growth rates for the period 2000 to 2007 shows that a stable or decreasing DMC is associated with relatively low GDP growth rates only, whereas high GDP growth rates tend to be associated with moderate or high increases of DMC. Between 2000 and 2007, absolute decoupling of resource use from economic growth (decreasing DMC) only occurred in six countries (see Figure 2.3). Of the remaining 21 EU Member States, 11 showed relative decoupling with DMC increasing at a slower rate than GDP. Decoupling was not achieved in the ten remaining countries, where DMC increased faster than GDP, indicating that resource productivity declined in those countries during 2000 to 2007.

Resource use and waste

Domestic material consumption

Domestic material consumption per capita in the EU increased between 2000 and 2007. This unfavourable development was driven by increases in domestic extraction and imports stemming from a growing demand for minerals

• In 2007 EU inhabitants consumed 45 kg of material per day on average

The amount of materials used in the EU, measured as domestic material consumption (DMC), increased over the period 2000 to 2007 from 15.7 tonnes to about 16.5 tonnes per inhabitant (corresponding to a consumption of 45 kg of materials per inhabitant per day). Between 2000 and 2007, DMC per capita increased by 0.7 % per year. However DMC per capita actually fell by more than 1.2 % per year over the period 2000 to 2003, this was then more than offset by a following 2.1 % per year rise until 2007.

• The four most populous Member States have relatively low DMC per capita

In 2007 17 EU Member States consumed more materials per inhabitant than the EU-27 average. Ireland and Finland, in particular, had per capita DMC more than twice the EU‑27 average. On the other hand less material was used per inhabitant than the average in ten countries, including Germany, France, Italy and the UK, the four most populous Member States, which together make up more than half of the EU population. Factors explaining this variation in material consumption patterns across Europe include climate, population density, existing infrastructure, availability of raw materials versus reliance on imports, composition of the power generation sector, the rate of economic growth, and the structure of the economy.

• DMC per capita rose in more than two-thirds of EU Member States between 2000 and 2007

Between 2000 and 2007 DMC per capita increased in more than two-thirds of the EU Member States. Increases were particularly strong in the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania), in the twonewest EU Member States Bulgaria and Romania, and in Malta, with growth rates ranging from 5.7 % per year up to 11 % per year. Estonia and Romania doubled the amount of materials used per capita over this period. Only eight countries reduced their DMC per capita, in particular Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, all of which achieved decreases of more than 1 % per year. Both increases and decreases were mainly driven by changes in the consumption of non-metallic minerals.

• Imports and exports of materials have increased steadily since 2000

The increase in DMC from 7 598 million tonnes in 2000 to more than 8 200 million tonnes in 2007 represents an average annual growth of 1.1 %. The decline of 0.8% per year from 2000 to 2003 goes hand in hand with the economic downturn during that period and was a result of a reduction in domestic extraction used (see Figure 6). However, exports and, even more so, imports of materials increased constantly during the period 2000 to 2007. Between 2003 and 2007 DMC rose by 2.6 % per year, with imports rising particularly strongly by an average of 3.3 % per year. This can be put in the perspective of the acceleration of GDP growth between 2003 and 2007.

• More than half of the materials consumed in the EU in 2007 were non-metallic minerals, which also grew the fastest between 2000 and 2007, driven by sand and gravel for construction

Non-metallic minerals represented the bulk of materials consumed in the EU in 2007 with a share of 51.8 %, followed by fossil energy materials/carriers (23.3 %) and biomass (21.1 %). Non-metallic minerals was also the category showing the largest increases between 2000 and 2007, growing at 1.9 % per year.

Non metallic minerals include in particular sand and gravel. While demand for sand and gravel between 2000 and 2007 fell by about 20 % in Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, it grew by more than 50 % in 13 EU Member States (EL, PT, ES, PL, IE, RO, SI, SK, BG, LT, EE, LV, MT). As most of the sand, gravel and other non-metallic minerals is used for construction, the construction sector was obviously a major driving force behind the changes in material consumption across the EU.

Growth in use of fossil energy materials/carriers was less pronounced, increasing by 0.5 % per year from 2000 to 2007, and even reversing in 2007 when demand fell by 1.9 % compared with 2006. This resulted in a reduction in EU energy consumption in 2007. On the other hand, biomass demand declined slightly by 0.1 % per year over the period 2000 to 2007.

Non-mineral waste

Between 2004 and 2008 the amount of non-mineral waste per capita generated in EU decreased considerably

• Less waste generated per inhabitant

The amount of non-mineral waste generated per EU inhabitant declined by an annual average rate of 1.9 % from 1 988 kg in 2004 to 1 843 kg in 2008. This reflects reductions in almost two-thirds of the Member States, which were particularly strong in Cyprus and Sweden.

• Generation of non-mineral waste per EU inhabitant fell in almost two-thirds of Member States

The exceptionally high arising of non-mineral waste in Estonia is mainly due to large amounts from the energy sector, originating from the enrichment and incineration of oil shale. This also explains the high amount of hazardous waste generated in Estonia (see indicator ‘hazardous waste’ below). In addition, considerable amounts of wood waste contribute to the high figures in Estonia and Finland. The sharp fall of the indicator for Sweden by about 46 % from 2004 to 2008 is the result of the reclassification of wood wastes and animal/vegetal wastes as by-products.

Non-mineral waste generation however increased in nine Member States, in particular in Portugal with a growth rate of more than 11 % per year between 2004 and 2008.

• Three categories (household, combustion and animal/vegetal wastes) accounted for more than 50 % of non-mineral waste generated in 2008

The most important non-mineral waste categories were household and similar waste, followed by combustion waste and animal and vegetal waste. Together these three categories accounted for more than 50 % of the non-mineral waste generated in 2008. However, it has to be noted that non-mineral waste represents only about one-third of total waste generation; in 2008 mineral wastes, soil and dredging spoil accounted for about 65 % of total waste generation in the EU.

The reductions achieved in animal and vegetal wastes (-5.2 % per year), mixed and undifferentiated materials (-12.4 % per year) as well as wood wastes (-5.5 % per year) contributed most to the decline in non-mineral waste generation between 2004 and 2008 (-1.1 % per year). The decreases in household and similar wastes (-1.0 % per year) and combustion wastes (-0.8 % per year) were less pronounced. Other categories such as metallic wastes (+4.5 % per year) and sorting residues (+8.5 % per year) increased their quantities over the same period.

• Manufacturing industries and households produced almost half of the EU’s non-mineral waste

Almost half of the non-mineral waste generated in the EU in 2008 came from manufacturing industries (26.3 %) and households (23.4 %), followed by waste management activities with 13.6 %.

Hazardous waste

Between 2004 and 2008 the amount of hazardous waste generated per capita in the EU rose considerably

• Driven by construction and water-related activities

Between 2004 and 2008 the generation of hazardous waste per capita in the EU rose by 2 % per year from 181 kg to 196 kg. This was mainly driven by increases in hazardous waste from the construction sector (+10.3 % per year) and from water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities (+7.2 % per year). In 2008, the manufacturing industry accounted for about 26 % of hazardous waste generated, followed by the construction sector (20.4 %) and the water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities (14.8 %).

• In 2008 hazardous waste generation varied considerably between EU countries

Overall, disregarding the exceptional cases of Estonia and Bulgaria, generation of hazardous waste per capita varied by a factor of almost 25 across the EU in 2008. The high amounts of hazardous waste per capita in Estonia and Bulgaria can be explained by the use of oil shale in energy production (see indicator ‘generation of non-mineral waste’ above) and by mineral wastes generated in the mining sector respectively. Between 2004 and 2008 hazardous waste generation increased particularly strongly in Latvia (44 % per year) and the Netherlands (25 % per year), but fell strongly in other countries such as Cyprus (33 % per year) and Romania (30 % per year). Changes in the arising of mineral waste and contaminated soils can be seen as the drivers behind the fluctuations in the generation of hazardous waste observable across many countries.

Recycled and composted municipal waste

The share of recycled and composted municipal waste increased considerably between 2000 and 2009 in the EU. Waste incineration also rose, but waste disposal through landfill declined substantially

• Between 2000 and 2009 municipal waste treatment in the EU changed significantly in favour of recycling and composting

Between 2000 and 2009 municipal waste treatment in the EU changed significantly. By 2009, 38.2 % of municipal waste was placed in landfills, compared with 57.6 % in 2000. This 4.5 % annual reduction from 2000 to 2009 supports the objectives of the EU directive on the landfill of waste. During the same period, the amount of municipal waste incinerated, recycled or composted increased substantially. Incineration rose from 16 % in 2000 to over 20 % in 2009, representing an average annual growth of 2.8 %. Similarly, recycling rose by an average of 4.7 % per year from about 16 % in 2000 to over 23 % in 2009. Composting showed the biggest average increase of 5.5 % per year from 11 % in 2000 to almost 18 % in 2009. Recycling and composting together accounted for about 41 % of municipal waste treatment in 2009.

Atmospheric emissions

Between 2000 and 2008 emissions of air pollutants contributing to acidification, eutrophication and ground-level ozone fell considerably

• Pollutant emissions have fallen considerably

Between 2000 and 2008 emissions of sulphur oxides (SOx), nitrogen oxides (NOx), non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOC) and ammonia (NH3) declined substantially. The reductions ranged from 1.2 % per year (NH3) to 6.7 % per year (SOx), but were generally slower than those recorded from 1990 to 2000 when falls were between 1.7 % per year (NH3) and 9.0 % per year (SOx).

• In 2008 energy-related sources accounted for 80 % of SOx emissions, after declining by 5.5 % per year since 2000

Of the four pollutants monitored here, SOx emissions decreased most. On average, they fell by 6.7 % per year from about 10 million tonnes in 2000 to slightly below 6 million tonnes in 2008. Energy production and use, in particular through the burning of fuel in public power and heat generating plants, is the main source for SOx emissions, accounting for 80 % of total emissions in 2008. Between 2000 and 2008 emissions from energy-related sources fell by 5.5 % per year, mainly because of switching fuel away from high sulphur solid and liquid fuels to low sulphur fuels such as natural gas.

• Due to the substantial cuts in SOx emissions, nitrogen is now the main acidifying component in the air

The decreases in SOx emissions slowed down during 2000 to 2008 compared with 1990 to 2000 when emissions fell by 9 % per year. In the previous decade, the significant structural changes in eastern European countries since the early 1990s have contributed to lower SOx emissions. In recent years however, due to high energy prices, coal use by power plants in some countries is again increasing. Nevertheless, due to the significant reductions in sulphur oxides emissions in the EU both before and after 2000, nitrogen (emitted in the form of nitrogen oxides and ammonia; see the indicators on NOx and NH3 emissions below) has replaced sulphur as the principal acidifying component in the air.

• The decline in NOx emissions between 2000 and 2008 was largely driven by reductions in transport emissions of 2.8 % per year

EU emissions of NOx mainly stem from transport and energy production and use, where NOx is emitted during fuel combustion. In 2008 these two sources accounted for more than 80 % of total NOx emissions. The 2.5 % annual decline in NOx emissions between 2000 and 2008 from 12.7 million tonnes to 10.4 million tonnes was mainly driven by a 2.8 % per year reduction in transport emissions. The decline in the energy sector was less pronounced at 0.7 % per year. The reductions in transport emissions are a result of the introduction of three-way catalytic converters in cars and stricter regulation of emissions from heavy goods vehicles across Europe. In the energy-related sources, measures such as the introduction of combustion modification technologies and fuel-switching from coal to gas have contributed to the decline in NOx emissions.

• NMVOC emissions fell by 3.4 % per year from 2000 to 2008 mainly driven by reductions in transport emissions

Between 2000 and 2008 emissions of NMVOCs, which are important ground-level ozone precursors, fell by 3.4 % per year, from 10.9 million tonnes in 2000 to 8.3 million tonnes in 2008. The main contributor to NMVOC emissions reductions over this period was transport, with emissions falling by 9.2 % per year. Solvent and product use remained as the main source of NMVOC emissions in 2008 (more than 40 %), after declining only moderately by 1.0 % per year between 2000 and 2008. Overall, the decline in NMVOC emissions in the EU was mainly a result of the introduction of vehicle catalytic converters as well as the introduction of legislative measures limiting the use of and emissions from solvents in non-combustion sectors.

• Emissions of NH3 fell at a slower rate than the other three pollutants described above

Of the four pollutants monitored here, emissions of NH3 declined the least, by 1.2 % per year on average from 4.2 million tonnes in 2000 to 3.8 million tonnes in 2008. Transport and industry had the most pronounced reductions, with emissions falling 4.0 % and 8.5 % per year respectively, but together they only accounted for 3.2 % of total NH3 emissions in 2008. The vast majority of ammonia emissions come from activities such as manure storage, slurry spreading and the use of synthetic nitrogenous fertilisers in the agricultural sector, accounting for about 95 % of total NH3 emissions in 2008. The decline of 1.0 % per year between 2000 and 2008 in agricultural NH3 emissions was primarily due to reduced livestock numbers (especially cattle), changes in the handling and management of organic manures and decreased use of nitrogenous fertilisers.

Consumption patterns

Number of people in households

During the period from 2005 to 2009 the average number of people per household decreased slightly in the EU, reflecting a trend towards more but smaller households

• The average number of people per EU household fell from 2.5 in 2005 to 2.4 in 2009

The average number of people per household in the EU fell from 2.5 in 2005 to 2.4 in 2009. This decline in household size reflects the increase in the number of single person households and of single parent households. Reductions in the number of births and marriages, increases in the average age at which people marry and increases in the number of divorces as well as a general increase in economic prosperity making it affordable to live in smaller households can be seen as the main drivers behind this development.

• The number of single person and single parent households is rising

In 2009 the largest group of households in the EU were single adults living without children (29.7 %), followed by couples without children (24.5 %), by couples with children (21.3 %) and by three or more people per household without children (12.9 %). Single adults with children and three or more people with children made up 4.2 % and 6.3 % of all households respectively.

As a result of the decline in household size across the EU, the total number of households increased in all but one Member State (Hungary).

Household expenditure

Between 2000 and 2007 household expenditure in the EU increased continuously, in particular for entertainment and housing and utilities. Due to the economic crisis household saving rates increased sharply, leading to a drop in expenditures from 2007 to 2009

• Household expenditure in the EU increased steadily from 2000 to 2007, but dropped in 2008 and 2009 as a reaction to the economic crisis

Per capita household expenditure in the EU rose by 0.6 % per year on average from EUR 11002 in 2000 to EUR 11592 in 2009, representing an increase of EUR 66 per inhabitant per year. Of the major items purchased, the biggest increases were in communications (4.4 % per year) and housing and utilities (1.0 % per year). Only the purchase of food and drinks declined between 2000 and 2009 (-0.1 % per year).

Because of the economic crisis, household expenditure dropped by 3.1 % (or EUR 368 per inhabitant) between 2007 and 2009. Less expenditure on transport (‑5.0 %), other goods and services (‑4.3 %), entertainment (‑3.9 %) and food and drink (‑3.6 %) drove this decline. Expenditure on housing and utilities and on communication continued to increase, but at a lower rate than before the crisis. The decline in household expenditure was accompanied by higher household saving rates, which increased particularly strongly in 2009.

Electricity consumption of households

Between 2000 and 2009 electricity consumption by households increased considerably in the EU

• Household electricity consumption rose in the EU as well as in most Member States both before and after 2000

Household electricity consumption in the EU accounted for more than 72 million tonnes of oil equivalent (toe) in 2009. Over the previous decade from 1990 to 2000, consumption rose at an average rate of 2 % per year. This trend continued between 2000 and 2009, at the slightly lower but still significant annual rate of 1.8 %. After a slight fall of 0.8 % in 2007 which was most probably the result of electricity savings during an exceptionally warm winter ^[1] Electricity consumption rose again by 1.9 % in 2008 and 1.6 % in 2009.

This growth can be attributed to several factors, including changes in consumption patterns due to declining household sizes and the rising number of households, as well as the so-called ‘rebound effect’, which occurs when efficiency gains are offset by behavioural changes that increase demand.

The rise in households’ electricity consumption between 2000 and 2009 was accompanied by an increase in the share of renewable energy sources in electricity production in almost all Member States.

• Consumption per household varies by a factor of six in the EU

In 2009 electricity consumption per household ranged from 128 kg of oil equivalents (kgoe) in Romania to 764 kgoe in Finland. This six-fold difference across the EU reflects considerable differences between Member States as regards to the amount of electricity used for heating and cooling due to lifestyles, habits and climate, among other things. Between 2005 and 2009 electricity consumption per household decreased by 0.8 % in the EU but this was more than offset by an increase of 5.1 % in the number of households. It increased most in France, Bulgaria, Romania and Latvia, whereas it fell considerably in Malta and Belgium.

Final energy consumption

Between 2000 and 2009 final energy consumption decreased very moderately. It increased significantly between 2000 and 2004, then changes were limited until 2008 and finally a significant drop occurred in 2009.

• Final energy consumption in the EU decreased by 5.2 % between 2008 and 2009

Between 2000 and 2009 final energy consumption decreased very moderately by 0.06 % per year on average from 1 120 to 1 114 million tonnes of oil equivalent (toe). It increased fastest between 2000 and 2004, by 1.2 % per year. This represents an acceleration compared with the previous growth rate of 0.4 % between 1990 and 2000. Final energy consumption stabilised between 2004 and 2006 and even fell by 2.2 % in 2007, most probably due to energy savings during a warm winter ^[2]. However, this trend was reversed in 2008, when final energy consumption increased by 0.7 %. Final Energy consumption then decreased significantly by 5.2 % in 2009.

• Consumption decreased in 2009 by 14.7 in the industry sectors

Industry and agriculture are the only sectors that have achieved decreases in final energy consumption before and after 2000. Between 2000 and 2009 consumption fell by 1.3 % per year in agriculture and by 2.2 % per year in industry. In contrast, consumption increased most in the category ‘other sectors’ (3.2 % per year) and in the services sectors (2.2 % per year). Between 1990 and 2007 the energy consumption of transport grew continuously, although the increase between 2000 and 2009 (0.8 % per year) was less pronounced than over the previous decade (1.9 % per year). Because of the economic crisis, 2009 showed a decline of 2.7 % in transport energy consumption and a decline of 14.7 % in industry energy consumption.

Car ownership

Between 2000 and 2009 the number of passenger cars per 1 000 inhabitants in the EU increased significantly. The highest increases were documented in Eastern Europe and in the Baltic region

• Car ownership continues to grow but at a slower rate

In the EU the number of passenger cars per 1 000 inhabitants grew 1.2 % per year on average from 423 in 2000 to 473 in 2009. In the previous decade, the motorisation rate had increased faster, by 2.7 % per year on average.

In 2009, at country level, the number of passenger cars per 1 000 inhabitants ranged from 197 in Romania to 678 in Luxembourg (data from 2008). There was more than one car for every two inhabitants in Germany, Italy, Cyprus, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Austria and Finland. Between 2000 and 2009 the motorisation rate increased by more than 50 % in Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Romania.

Reflecting the economic crisis, growth in passenger cars was more than halved from 2008 to 2009 (from 1.9 % to 0.8 %). This trend is also reflected in the decline in household expenditures for transport.

Environmental management systems

Between 2003 and 2010, the number of organisations in the EU certified according to the Eco-Management and Audit Scheme increased substantially, mainly due to high growth rates in Southern European countries

• In 2010, more than 80 % of the EMAS registered organisations were recorded in Germany, Spain and Italy

The number of organisations having an environmental management system according to the ‘Eco-Management and Audit Scheme’ (EMAS) regulation has grown substantially since it was introduced in 1995. Registrations in the EU increased by 5.7 % per year from 3 068 organisations in 2003 to 4 521 in 2010.

In 2010, more than 80 % of the EMAS-registered organisations were recorded in three Member States (31 % in Germany, 27 % in Spain and 23 % in Italy). Although the number of registered organisations in the 12 most recent EU Member States is steadily increasing, most of the registered organisations are still located in the 15 oldest EU Member States (98 % of the total number of registrations).

• Since 2004, the number of organisations and sites with EMAS registrations in the EU increased steadily

Since 2004 corporate registrations are possible and organisations can register all their sites under one registration number. In order to give a more accurate picture of EMAS development, the European Commission consequently started to collect information on the number of sites in 2004; this resulted in a documentation of a total of 7 773 sites certified according to EMAS in 2010.

While EMAS and ISO 14001 (Environmental Management Systems) share the same objective, EMAS goes beyond several ISO requirements. A comparison with statistics on ISO 14001 reveals that the popularity of EMAS is still relatively low: ISO reports a total of 89 237 certifications in Europe in 2009, with Spain, Italy, United Kingdom, Romania, Germany and Czech Republic in the top ten world-wide.

• Growth in EMAS registrations was strongest in Southern European countries

The picture at the Member State level is quite diverse. The Member States which have a long-standing EMAS tradition such as Germany, Sweden, Austria and Denmark experienced a decline in the number of registrations from 2003 to 2010. This can be partly explained by the fact that demonstrating continuously improving environmental performance (as is required be the EMAS scheme) is difficult to achieve for organisations that have already been implementing EMAS for some time as compared to companies just entering the scheme. The decline of EMAS-registered organisations in these countries was offset mainly by the growth in Southern European countries such as Greece, Portugal, Italy and Spain. These countries multiplied their numbers of EMAS-registered organisations by a factor ranging between three (Spain) and six (Greece).

Ecolabels

Between 2000 and 2010 the number of ecolabel licenses in the EU was multiplied by a factor of more than 20

• Since 2000 EU ecolabel licences have increased by 36 % per year

The EU Ecolabel, or ‘EU flower’, is a voluntary label informing consumers that products and services meet certain environmental criteria over their entire life-cycle. Between 2000 and 2010 the number of licences increased by 36.1 % per year on average, i.e. a multiplication by a factor of 21.8 over this period.

• In 2010 more than half of the ecolabel licenses were held by Italy and France

In October 2010 tourist accommodations and campsite services represented 37 % of the total certifications. They were followed by cleaning products (11 %), with textile products and indoor and outdoor paints and varnish each representing 9%. At the country level, Italy had the most ecolabel holders with 31 % of the EU total, followed by France with 21 %. A possible explanation of this rather high share in these two countries (which together hold more than half of the EU’s ecolabel licenses) is the non-existence of competing national labelling schemes. At the end of 2010, Bulgaria, Latvia, Luxembourg and Slovakia were the only countries without registered ecolabels.

• Ecolabelled products still have a very small EU market share

However, despite the significant increase in ecolabel licenses, the EU market share of ecolabelled products remains rather low. In addition, according to a Eurobarometer survey from 2009, 61% of EU citizens admitted never having seen - or heard about - the EU eco-label and its flower logo. The ecolabel scheme was revised in 2010 in order to introduce more product groups, a quicker criteria development process and simplification of the assessment procedure.

Area under agri-environmental commitment

In 2009, almost one-quarter of the EU's total utilised agricultural area was enrolled in agri-environmental measures

• In 2009, more than two-thirds of area in agri-environmental commitment in four countries

This indicator is calculated as the ratio between the surface of area under agri-environmental commitment and the total utilised agriculture area (UAA).

In EU-27, 24.7 % of the UAA were in 2009 under agri-environmental commitment.

A group of four countries (LU, FI, SE and AT) was far ahead of the others. In these countries, more than two third of their UAA were under agri-environmental commitment (between 69.2 % and 91.7 %). In 6 EU countries, the ratio was below 10% (BG, RO, LT, MT, CY, PT).

Organic farming

Between 2005 and 2009 the share of agricultural area occupied by organic farming in the EU increased considerably

• Organic farming in the EU increased by almost one third between 2005 and 2009

The share of organic farming in utilised agricultural area (UAA) in the EU increased from 3.6 % to 4.7 % between 2005 and 2009. This increase is also reflected in the number of organic producers in the EU, which rose by 9.5 % between 2007 and 2008.

At the level of Member States, the largest increases between 2005 and 2009 were in Malta (400 %), Poland (130 %), Spain (126 %) and Lithuania (109 %). Austria still held the largest share of organic farming in utilised agricultural area, with 18.5 % in 2009, followed by Sweden (12.8 %), Estonia (11 %) and the Czech Republic (10.6 %). The smallest share of organic farming could be found in 2009 in Bulgaria (0.2 %) and Malta (0.5 %). Overall, the organic farming sector grew during this period in all Member States, with the exception of Portugal, Bulgaria and France.

Livestock density index

Between 2003 and 2007 the number of livestock units per hectare of utilised agricultural area decreased considerably in the EU

• The number of livestock units per hectare decreased in the EU-15 after a peak in 2000

Since 2003, in the EU, the number of livestock units (LSU) per hectare of utilised agricultural area (UAA) has fallen by 1.2 % per year on average (from 0.82 to 0.78 LSU). The EU‑15 figures decreased from 0.92 to 0.88 between 2000 and 2007, representing an average decline of 0.6 % per year. Thus, the pre-2000 increase of 0.4 % per year between 1995 and 2000 was reversed.

• Large differences between Member States and regions exist

The EU aggregate masks large differences across Member States, with levels ranging from 0.3 LSU in Latvia to 4.8 LSU in Malta. Important regional differences also exist, in particular in large countries, which can be affected by abandoned areas and hot spots. Moreover, many of the low-input regions are dominated by grazing livestock farms (either cattle or sheep). Trends by farm type may reveal unsustainable patterns, affecting high nature value farmland negatively, which the current indicator cannot highlight due to data limitations.

Further Eurostat information

Publications

• Area under organic farming increased by 7.4% between 2007 and 2008 in the EU-27 - Statistics in Focus 10/2010
• Environmental statistics and accounts in Europe
• Sustainable development in the European Union - 2011 monitoring report of the EU sustainable development strategy

Database

• Sustainable development indicators, see:

Sustainable consumption and production

Dedicated section

• Sustainable development indicators

Methodology

• More detailed information on sustainable consumption and production indicators, such as indicator relevance, definitions, methodological notes, background and potential linkages, can be found on page 81-128 of the publication Sustainable development in the European Union - 2011 monitoring report of the EU sustainable development strategy.

Other information

• Commission communication COM(2008) 397 - Sustainable consumption and production and sustainable industrial policy action plan
• Regulation (EC) No 66/2010 on the EU Ecolabel
• Commission Staff Working Document accompanying the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on a Community Ecolabel scheme - Impact assessment, SEC(2008) 2118

External links

• European Commission

Europeans’ attitudes towards the issue of sustainable consumption and production - Flash Eurobarometer n°256

Making sustainable consumption and production a reality

• European Environment Agency (EEA)

The European Environment – state and outlook 2010

European Union emission inventory report 1990–2008 under the UNECE Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (LRTAP)

• Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

Household Behaviour and the Environment – reviewing the evidence

Promoting Sustainable Consumption: Good practices in OECD countries

• United Nations

Assessing the Environmental Impacts of Consumption and Production: Priority Products and Materials

Trends in sustainable development: Towards Sustainable Consumption and Production

Paving the Way to Sustainable Consumption and Production

See also

• All articles on sustainable development

Notes

1. ↑ Luterbacher, J., et al, Exceptional European warmth of autumn 2006 and winter 2007: Historical context, the underlying dynamics, and its phenological impacts, Geophys. Res. Lett., vol. 34.
2. ↑ Luterbacher, J., et al, Exceptional European warmth of autumn 2006 and winter 2007: Historical context, the underlying dynamics, and its phenological impacts, Geophys. Res. Lett., vol. 34