Britain's ETS CO2 emissions reached 107.8 million tonnes in 2021

LONDON (Reuters) -Carbon dioxide emissions covered by Britain's emissions trading scheme (ETS) in the first year of its operation in 2021 were 107.8 million tonnes, the UK ETS Authority said.

The UK ETS - a scheme to incentivise big polluters to cut emissions by forcing them to buy permits to release CO2 - replaced the UK’s participation in the European Union's ETS on Jan. 1, 2021.

It applies to energy intensive industries, the power generation sector and aviation. The first phase of the UK ETS will run until 2030.

UK government data shows that total greenhouse gas emissions in Britain in 2020 were estimated at about 405.5 million tonnes, down around 10% from the previous year, of which CO2 emissions made up around 79% of the total.

"As a result of changes to aviation and stationary scope, UK ETS emissions and UK emissions under the EU ETS are not directly comparable," the UK ETS Authority said.

Under the EU scheme, emissions for aviation operators are recorded by origin of operator. But under the UK ETS, the rules capture UK domestic flights, flights between the UK and Gibraltar, and flights departing the UK to the European Economic Area by all aircraft operators, regardless of country of origin.

(Reporting by Nina Chestney; Editing by David Goodman and Jan Harvey)