Trends in greenhouse gas and pollutant emissions from the industrial processes and product use sector have been balanced since 1990 and have shown a significant decrease, especially in recent years, due to the introduction of new technologies and effective policies and measures, such as the emissions trading system. More information on emission trends from the industrial processes and product use sector in Slovakia.
Trends in greenhouse gas emissions
Greenhouse gas emissions in the industry sector arise from technological processes of raw materials and products. The most important gas in industry is CO2, with an almost 90% share, followed by the so-called technical gases, referred to as F-gases (these are hydrogen or perfluorocarbons and sulfur trifluoride – SF6). This sector covers greenhouse gas emissions generated from technological processes creating raw materials or directly products. Industry is the second largest contributor to the total greenhouse gas emissions after energy sector. These are mainly technological emissions (not the combustion of fuels in production as in the energy sector) from the processing of mineral products, chemical production and metal production. Reducing emissions from technological processes is financially demanding, and this reduction is also limited by technical limits. This is also why there was no significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in this sector compared to the reference year 1990 as in other sectors.
Total greenhouse gas emissions
Trends in air pollutant emissions
NOx emissions in the Industry sector have been relatively stable over the long term. A long-term but slight decrease with fluctuations is recorded in NMVOC emissions. A slight decrease is recorded in SOx emissions, although this decrease is minimal compared to the energy sector. That is why the metalworking industry has been their largest contributor since 2019. A decrease was recorded in PM2.5 emissions, although the industry sector only contributes to these emissions to a small extent. Until 2001, a significant decrease in lead emissions was recorded in this sector, but since this year, metal production has become the largest contributor to total emissions, overtaking emissions in the energy sector. Cadmium emissions have shown a stable decrease in this sector after long-term fluctuations. Mercury emissions have been relatively stable in the last decade. Industrial production is also a significant contributor to PAHs emissions, specifically metal production. Metal production is also the most significant source of PCB emissions. Due to fluctuations in the production volumes of individual commodities, there are also fluctuations in the amount of emissions.
Total pollutant emissions
Emission trends by category
Trends in greenhouse gas and pollutant emissions from the industrial processes sector by individual types of production have been assessed since 1990.
Production of mineral products: Mineral product manufacturing includes activities such as cement production (Danucem Slovensko; Považská cementáreň, a. s.; CEMMAC, a. s.), lime production (Calmit, spol. s r. o.; DOLVAP, s. r. o.; Carmeuse Slovakia, s. r. o.), glass production (Johns Manville Slovakia, a. s.; RONA, a. s.; VETROPACK NEMŠOVÁ, s. r. o.; R-GLASS Trade, s. r. o.), extraction of mineral raw materials, and others. Construction and demolition of buildings and roads are also included in this category. Only CO2 is reported as a greenhouse gas in this sector, with cement production as the dominant source, followed by lime and magnesite production. Compared to 1990, CO2 emissions from mineral product manufacturing show a slight decline. In this sector, particulate matter is mainly emitted due to material handling, storage, and transport. Other pollutants are released during the production processes themselves. Heavy metals and POPs are linked mainly to glass and cement production. Only PM2.5, PM10, and TSP are reported in this category, and the sector is not among the major contributors. Emissions have decreased in the long term thanks to stricter legislation and the introduction of abatement technologies.
Chemical production: Chemical production also has a long-term presence in Slovak industry, e.g. production of urea, nitric acid, mineral fertilizers (Duslo, a. s.) and various other chemicals (FORTISCHEM a. s.). In the case of pollutants, this category is not one of the most significant sources of emissions. Total greenhouse gas emissions from chemical production depend mainly on the current trend in demand for chemical products. The largest source of CO2 emissions is ammonia production, while nitric acid production is a significant source of N2O emissions. Nitric acid production consumes approximately 20% of all ammonia produced. Since 2021, a slight decrease in N2O emissions has been recorded, thanks to the use of secondary YARA catalysts.
Metal production: A significant industrial activity is the production of metals, specifically iron and steel production (U. S. Steel Košice, a. s.; ZTS Metalurg, a. s.; Železiarne Podbrezová a. s.), but also secondary metallurgical production and metal processing (U. S. Steel Košice, a. s.; ZTS Metalurg, a. s.; Železiarne Podbrezová a. s.; KOVOHUTY, a. s.), and aluminum production (Slovalco, a. s.). The amount of greenhouse gas emissions from metal production depends mainly on the production of metal products. Since 1990, amount of production has increased significantly, but emissions have nevertheless decreased slightly, thanks to more efficient production. The decommissioning of one of the three blast furnaces at US Steel, a. s. in June 2019 also contributed to the reduction of emissions in this category. The furnace restarted in early 2021, which was reflected in a further increase in emissions. The main source of emissions of pollutants, heavy metals and POPs is the production of iron and steel. The production of copper and aluminum also contributes significantly to these emissions. Despite the introduction of modern technologies, these sources are still among the main emitters of lead. Metal production releases significant amounts of dioxins and furans, the control and mitigation of which is very difficult and expensive.
Solvent use: The use of solvents is a significant source of emissions. In industry and in households, a wide range of substances are used, which contain non-methane volatile organic compounds, from which NMVOC and CO2 emissions arise. These include, for example, pure organic solvents, various mixtures used in industry, cleaning agents, paints, thinners, adhesives, cosmetics, toiletries and various household or car care products. This category also includes emissions from road paving. The versatile use of these substances leads to more complex monitoring of their flows. Some of the sources are estimated (in particular emissions from substances for domestic use). NMVOC emissions in industry have already been significantly limited in the past, and the solvent content in products for domestic use in retail has also been regulated. In the long term, these changes are reflected in a decrease in NMVOC emissions released into the air. This category is a significant source of carbon dioxide emissions. Its balancing, similar to NMVOC emissions, is considerably complicated by the non-existent statistics in this area, as well as the complex chemistry of these gases in the atmosphere, where hydrocarbons decompose and react with each other or with other components under the influence of photochemical radiation. Therefore, CO2 emissions in this category are balanced based on the stoichiometry of NMVOC emissions. Emissions of heavy metals and POPs occur mainly due to the use of lubricants in two- and four-stroke engines. These emissions are balanced in the transport category.