BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union emissions of global warming gases fell by 1.2 percent in 2007 aided by a mild winter, EU data showed on Friday, confirming a Reuters story last month.
Emissions by the 27-nation bloc were also 9.3 percent below a 1990 benchmark year under the U.N.'s Kyoto Protocol for fighting climate change.
The main reasons for the reduction were lower emissions from households, due to warmer weather, and from manufacturing, iron and steel industries. By contrast, emissions from air conditioning, transport and cement production rose.
Emissions in the 15 EU states that have commitments to reduce CO2 under the Kyoto Protocol fell 1.6 percent during 2007, despite 2.7 percent growth in their economies.
"The recent emission reductions among the EU-15 give us the confidence that we will successfully reach our Kyoto target," said European Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas.
There is no EU-27 emissions target under the Kyoto Protocol, as the 12 newer EU members, including ex-communist nations, did not sign up at the start.
"Although the 2007 reduction in EU-15 reductions was partly due to favorable weather conditions in some member states, the downward emissions trend over the last three years indicates that the pro-active climate policies... are now starting to pay off," said Dimas.
More than 190 nations will this year try to work out a new U.N. climate treaty to replace Kyoto to fight warming that the U.N. Climate Panel says will bring more droughts, floods, extinctions of species and rising sea levels.
(Reporting by Pete Harrison; Editing by Keiron Henderson)
