INTENSITY OF EMISSIO NS OF NITROGEN OXIDES
AND SULFUR OXIDES
Kg. air pollutants per NIS 1,000 GDP,
at 2005 prices
16. EMISSIONS OF AIR POLLUTANTS PER UNIT OF GDP
2000–2009
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0.0
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
Nitrogen oxides (NOx)
2006
2007
2008
2009
Sulfur oxides (SOx)
2.0
1.8
Nitrogen oxides (NOx)
Sulfur oxides (SOx)
1.5
1.3
1.0
0.8
0.5
0.3
( 50 )
Japan
Sweden
Germany
Ireland
Italy
France
Belgium
United Kingdom
Denmark
OECD average
Korea
Spain
Israel
United States
Portugal
Greece
Turkey
0.0
Canada
Kg. air pollutants per 1,000 dollars GDP at 2005 prices,
based on purchasing power parity (PPP)
17. EMISSIONS OF AIR POLLUTANTS PER UNIT OF GDP, INTERNATIONAL COMPARISON
2008
Description of the indicator
The indicator calculates the quantity of emissions of pollutant in Israel per unit of production.
It shows the ratio of the total sulfur oxide (SOx) and nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions to the
gross domestic product (GDP) in Israel in a given year. The ratio is calculated by dividing the
emissions of pollutant by NIS 1,000 of GDP at constant prices.
Relevance of the indicator to sustainable development
The emission of pollutants into the air, as a result of energy consumption in transportation
and industrial processes, is the main cause of air pollution. Air pollution causes harm to
human health and ecosystems, and, as a result, also to the economy and society. Poor air
quality can have substantial repercussions for achievement of objectives of sustainable
development. Air pollution problems have economic and social repercussions such as the
cost of health services, the need for rehabilitation of structures, decline in agricultural
production, and general impairment of the quality of life. The central objective is decoupling
emission of the pollutants from the economic development and growth reflected by the GDP.
Thus, the lower the value of the indicator, the stronger the trend of decoupling. The
objectives are achieved through emission standards and their supervision, technological
improvements, energy efficiency, and a sustainable transportation policy.
Selected findings

In 2009, the ratio of nitrogen oxide emissions to the GDP was 0.25 kg. per NIS 1,000,
compared to 0.4 kg. per NIS 1,000 in 2000.

In 2009, the ratio of sulfur oxide emissions to the GDP was 0.2 kg. per NIS 1,000,
compared to 0.5 kg. per NIS 1,000 in 2000.

The data demonstrate that along with the absolute decrease in the quantity of emissions
of air pollutants, there was also a trend of decoupling between the increase in GDP (an
increase of 30% since 2000) and air pollutant emissions.

Despite the decreases in emissions and the trend of decoupling between the emissions
and economic growth, pollutant emission intensity in Israel (1.06 kg. NOx per 1,000
dollars GDP and 0.98 kg. SOx per 1,000 dollars GDP) is relatively high compared to this
intensity in most OECD countries, and higher than the average in the OECD countries.
( 51 )