Italy last year was able to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 1.5% after 15 years of consecutive increases, according to a recent report.
Drawn up in view of the upcoming national conference on climate change, to be held in Rome September 12 and 13, the report said that in 2006 Italy produced 573 million tonnes of CO2 gas compared to 581 million tonnes in 2005.
However, the report also said that the decline was not across the board and that greenhouse gases from electricity production has risen 4.9% in 2006.
The greatest declines in greenhouse gases came from the domestic sector with a 18% drop from home heating and cooling.
This thanks to a warm winter and a mild summer in 2006.
The farming sector saw a 1.5% decline in gas emissions, while those from transportation were stable, despite a number of automobiles.
Based on current climatic trends, the report said that certain farm products will have to be moved 100 meters higher and 100 kilometers more to the north for every degree increase in average temperatures.
This would mean that in the future Sicily will no longer be able to produce citrus fruits, while Lombardy would offer the best climate for olives and other typical Mediterranean products.
According to the report, the decline in rainfall, the increase in periods of drought and flooding will result in a 20-30% decline in farm production in the future.
Since 1990, the report pointed out, the amount of land dedicated to farming has fallen from some 15 million hectares to just over 13 million hectare, equal to 44% of the national territory.
This in turn has resulted in the number of working farms falling from 2,593,090 in 1990 to 2,217,546 last year, the report said.
