Bulgaria Ranks Poorly In Climate Change Performance Index

Bulgaria's performance in the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2015 was ranked as “poor”.

The institute Germanwatch and the Climate Action Network Europe report, measuring CO2 emissions and corresponding national and international climate policies ranked Bulgaria at the 40-th position and noted that it never prioritises climate policies.

“In Bulgaria, national experts query the government’s approach to the renewables sector with its introduction of additional taxes and fees and the installation of administrative barriers,” note the authors of the report Jan Burck, Franziska Marten, Christoph Bals. “Bulgaria is politically unstable and with constantly changing governments, climate policies are never prioritised. The country’s ranking thus remains relatively steady, situated within the group of poor performing countries.”

For comparison, Denmark, which ranked the highest among the observed countries, is praised for its “outstanding performance, compared to other countries” for the third consecutive year. The authors of the report note that it is the most progressive regarding climate protection. “Denmark’s emissions have been more or less steadily declining since 1997, and its downward trend of emissions has grown rapidly by about 19% over the last five years,” the report says.

It is ranked as the best performer in CO2 emissions from heat and electricity production, growing number of renewable energy sources, rising efficiency levels and good implementation of national and international climate policies.

The CCPI is an annual publication by Germanwatch and Climate Action Network Europe. It evaluates the climate protection performance of 58 countries, responsible for over 90% of global energy-related CO2 emissions.

Denmark is followed by Sweden and the UK. Lowest ranking is Saudi Arabia, while China, the world's largest source of harmful emissions, is ranked 45, climbing several positions, thanks to its policies on renewable energy sources.

The report covers CO2 emissions from the fossil fuels, except emissions from the shipping industry emissions from deforestation, agriculture and waste. 50% of the evaluation is based on emissions trend, 30% on emissions level and 20% on national and international climate policy assessments made by more than 300 energy and climate experts from all over the world.

Its authors describe the CCPI as an instrument designed to enhance transparency in international climate politics. Its aim is to put political and social pressure on those countries that have, up until now, failed to take ambitious action on climate protection. It also aims to highlight those countries with best-practice climate policies.

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