Scorecard summary:
Fulfilment of Rio Conference Commitment- Red
Current Government Position on Climate Change-Red
Per Capita CO2 Emissions-Green (6.56 metric tons per person in 1992)
National CO2 Emissions- Green (56 million metric tons in 1992).

OVERALL ASSESSMENT:
Trying, motivated, but not active in promoting EU position.

NATIONAL CLIMATE PROTECTION GOAL:
The goal set by the Parliament is to stabilise emissions of CO2 from fossil fuels in the year 2000 at the 1990 level and shall decline after that. However, Sweden appears to be one of the countries blocking the development of a flat rate target for greenhouse gas reduction in the EU.

SPECIFIC FEATURES:
Sweden has some particular circumstances which have meant that it reduced CO2 emissions by 40 percent between 1970 and 1990 owing to the development of nuclear and hydro power and developments in energy efficiency. A large problem looms as almost half of all primary energy comes from nuclear power, which Parliament has decided should be phased out by 2010 and the Government has recently decided (Feb. 1997) to put this into action. Further development of hydro power is very limited but there is some scope for expansion of biofuels. The exemption of the industrial sector in 1993 from the CO2 tax has meant that there are weak incentives to introduce energy-efficient measures. Swedish forests constitute a large carbon reservoir but keeping the level of carbon stored in the forest will demand a continued sustainable forestry policy.

NEGATIVE FEATURES:
Existing measures are not expected to be sufficient to fully stabilise emissions of CO2 (which show a 4 percent growth rate in the projections) or of all greenhouse gases (which show 5 percent growth) in 2000 at 1990 levels. The growth in CO2 is due to increasing emissions from the transport sector. This sector accounted for 38 percent of total emissions in 1990. Every Swede travels an average of about 40km per day and there are few population centers which at present have an efficient and competitive public transport system. CO2 emissions from the transport sector are increasing and are projected to increase with no credible government policy (or opposition policy) to counter this. There is also a substantial energy intensive energy sector ( predominantly wood, pulp and paper, but also chemicals, aluminum, iron and sulfide mining and steel).

POSITIVE FEATURES: Sweden introduced substantial carbon taxes in 1991 unilaterally which with other reforms in the tax structure has been the chief measure deployed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. But fossil fuels and peat used for energy generation are exempted and in 1993 rates for manufacturing industry were reduced. A special subsidy system for cogeneration based on biomass has been established. Between 1990 and 1994 the biofuel component in cogeneration more than doubled. General energy efficiency in Sweden is comparatively high in the residential sector. The nuclear phase- out provides the stimulus to accelerate the development of biomass, wind power and some types of hydro- power and further energy savings in the household sector.

Sources: Sweden National Report for the FCCC September 1994, USCAN and CAN Europe, Independent NGO Evaluations of National Plans for Climate Change Mitigation, Second Review, August 1994. and FCCC, Report on the in depth review of the national communication of Sweden July 1996 FCCC/IDR.1/SWE.