SMMT points to industry sustainability gains but new car CO2 emissions up after sustained fall
Thu 18 July 2019
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The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) says that automotive industry productivity has risen by more than 200% since 1999, pointing to sustainability gains in energy use, water and CO2 emissions over the 20-year period. SMMT says that CO2 per vehicle produced has more than halved and new car CO2 has declined by a third over the period. However, average new car CO2 emissions rose 2.9% from 121g/km in 2017 to 124.5g/km in 2018.
SMMT says that 20 years of energy savings - enough to power 9.5 million UK households have been achieved - while water use has been cut, equivalent to 810 litres for every person in the UK.
The 20th annual Sustainability Report reveals environmental, economic, and social gains achieved by the automotive sector over the past two decades, highlighting the substantial improvements in areas such as energy and water use, waste to landfill and CO2 emissions.
SMMT says that the UK's automotive sector is now one of the most efficient in Europe, outperforming the EU average for energy, CO2 and water. In addition, it says, manufacturers have saved 693,969 tonnes of waste from landfill, equal to the annual waste produced by households in Bristol, Leeds and Edinburgh combined.
For more information, see the full SMMT 20th Sustainability Report.
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