BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - Iron and steel production accounts for an important share of industrial greenhouse gas emissions in Germany. This is the result of a study conducted by the Öko-Institut on behalf of the environmental organization WWF Germany.

According to the Expert Council on Climate Issues, Germany emitted a total of 746 million metric tons of greenhouse gases last year - these are provisional figures. At 164 million metric tons, industry ranked second behind the energy sector as a source of climate-damaging gases.

In their paper, the Öko-Institut and WWF break down the top 30 industrial facilities in Germany by greenhouse gas emissions. The focus is on industrial production facilities. They largely exclude industrial power plants. Iron and steel production plants occupy places 1 to 13, followed by a lime plant.

There are different recording methods for greenhouse gas emissions by sector. The authors of the study based their analysis of the respective plants on the methodology used in EU emissions trading, in which emitters must prove that they have rights to emit gases that are harmful to the climate and can thus trade them. This means that the authors do not cover part of the industry, for example mobile machinery in the construction industry./hrz/DP/mis