Environment at a Glance: United Kingdom
Table of contents
The OECD Environment at a Glance Country Notes are designed to support transparent, evidence-based information. They provide concise and descriptive overview of progress across major environmental issues, including climate, air quality, freshwater resources, waste and the circular economy, and biodiversity conservation. They feature selected environmental indicators, building on harmonised datasets available on OECD Data Explorer. Differences with national data sources can occur due to delays in data treatment and publication, or due to different national definitions and measurement methods. The text of this country profile is complementary to and has benefited from the OECD Environmental Performance Review of the United Kingdom 2022. See the Reader’s guide to the Environment at a Glance Country Notes for more information.
The United Kingdom (UK)'s has a highly service-oriented economy. Its energy, carbon and material intensities are below the OECD averages and several environmental pressures have been decoupled from economic growth over the past decade. However, air pollution remains a health concern, while agricultural practices, climate change and infrastructure development continue to place pressure on the natural environment.
The population enjoys relatively high levels of well-being, although economic growth has been relatively sluggish since 2017. The economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic hit the country hard, but the economy recovered in 2021.
The UK comprises four countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The population is highly concentrated, particularly in south-eastern England and the Midlands, while Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are more sparsely populated, especially outside major urban areas. Despite its relatively small land area, the UK has a diverse range of habitats and species, and its marine area is approximately 3.5 times the size of the land area. The UK has significant, although declining, fossil fuel resources, with most oil and gas production coming from offshore fields in the North Sea. The energy mix is dominated by fossil fuels, but coal has been gradually replaced by gas and renewables (mostly biofuels, waste and wind) over the past decade.
Environmental policy is devolved to the Scottish, the Welsh and the Northern Ireland Governments. The UK government is responsible for environmental policy in England. After 47 years of membership, the UK left the European Union (EU) on 31 January 2020. The Environment Act 2021 lays out a domestic framework for environmental governance post-EU exit although most of its provisions apply only to England.
The UK has one of the strongest records of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction in the OECD since the early 1990s. Total emissions, excluding land-use change and forestry (LULUCF), have declined by 47% since 2000. Long-term improvements in energy efficiency and the phase-out of carbon-intensive fuels have further cut emissions. Fossil fuel production emissions have fallen sharply with the decline of deep coal mining and upgrades to the gas network that reduced methane leaks.
Transport remains the largest source of GHGs. A shift from petrol to diesel, fuel efficiency improvements and the use of biofuels have helped reduce emissions since their peak in 2007, despite higher travel demand and larger road vehicles. Emissions fell during the COVID-19 pandemic and remain below pre-pandemic levels. Agricultural emissions have gradually declined as livestock numbers and fertiliser use decreased, reducing methane and nitrous oxide emissions (UK, 2026). Both emissions from fuel combustion in buildings (largely for heating) and from agriculture have seen gradual declines.
The LULUCF sector is a net emitter, although its share in total emissions has declined considerably. Emissions from the waste sector, 6% of the total in 2024, mostly methane, mainly come from waste incineration (without energy recovery), biological treatment of solid waste and wastewater handling. Like most countries, carbon dioxide (CO2) represents the largest share of GHG, 78% of the total in 2024, followed by methane, at 15%.
The per person production-based (i.e. produced within the territory) and demand-based (or footprint, i.e. including emissions incorporated in imported goods) GHG emissions have been steadily declining since 2005 and are now below the OECD average. Demand-based emissions are higher than production-based ones, meaning that the UK is a net importer of GHG emissions embodied in its final demand (i.e. demand for goods and services by all residents).
The UK has significant, although declining, fossil fuel resources. Most of the oil and gas production comes from offshore fields in the North Sea. The energy mix is dominated by fossil fuels, but coal has been gradually replaced by renewables over the past decade. The UK’s commitment to end coal use by 2024, EU air quality regulations and increased carbon price support rates have contributed to this shift.
The country has achieved a remarkable growth in renewable electricity, particularly wind, where the UK is a world leader. Contracts that provide 15-year span to renewable generators at a guaranteed price have led to strong cost reductions and significant investment (OECD, Environmental Performance Reviews: United Kingdom, 2022).
Emissions of most major air pollutants have declined significantly over recent decades, with the shift from coal for domestic heating and power generation, and stricter emission standards. However, the rate of reduction has slowed down for most pollutants in recent years. Emission intensities are well below the OECD average. Industrial and domestic combustion (heating) are major sources of sulphur oxide (SOx), carbon monoxide (CO) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5), while road transport is the main emitter of nitrogen oxides (NOx), and non-methane volatile organic compound (NMVOC) emissions mainly come from solvent use. The country has met its 2020 reduction targets for SOx, NOx, PM2.5 and NMVOC under the Gothenburg Protocol, but has exceeded the 2020 target for ammonia (NH3 from agriculture) (DEFRA, Emissions of air pollutants, 2022). Further efforts are needed to meet 2030 targets for all pollutants, except SOx and NMVOCs.
Average population exposure to PM2.5 constantly decreased since 2005 but remains above the World Health Organisation guideline value of 5 µ/m3. The biggest human-made sources are stationary fuel combustion and transport. People in Scotland are the least exposed to air pollution, while people living in Greater London are exposed to levels twice as high. Air pollution, including from domestic heating and road traffic, continues to be the largest environmental risk to the public’s health.
Recent data on freshwater abstractions are missing but, according to the latest data available, UK abstracts less than 5% of its renewable resources and is therefore under low water stress. On the other hand, risks of water shortages are projected due to climate change, and parts of the UK are indeed experiencing water stress. The country has a low intensity of freshwater abstraction for public water supply per person compared to other OECD countries. Abstraction levels have varied with the use of cooling water in power generation (DEFRA, Water abstraction statistics: England, 2000 to 2018, 2019).
Data on wastewater treatment levels are incomplete. In 2016, the United Kingdom complied with the collection and secondary treatment targets of the EU Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive and was close to achieving the more stringent target. However, pollution from sewer overflows is of particular concern (OECD, Environmental Performance Reviews: United Kingdom, 2022). The data for 2024 shows a 2.9% decrease in the number of sewage spills compared to 2023. Spill durations increased by 0.2%, which is the number of hours overflows operated for, compared to the previous year. Spill monitors were installed at all storm overflows at the end of 2023 (DEFRA, Progress report on the storm overflows discharge reduction plan, 2025).
Since a peak in 2004, the amounts of municipal waste generated in the UK fell, while population continued to grow. As a result, municipal waste generated per person has fallen below the OECD and OECD-Europe averages. This is partially due to the UK’s definitions of municipal waste, which have varied slightly among the four nations and over time, and which exclude waste from businesses that do not use municipal collection services. Nonetheless, awareness raising for waste reduction, separate collection and greater environmental awareness may have also encouraged household waste reduction (OECD, Environmental Performance Reviews: United Kingdom, 2022).
Since 2000, the UK has sent a steadily decreasing share of municipal waste to landfills while the share of incineration with energy recovery more than quadrupled. A gradually rising landfill tax played a key role in this shift (OECD, Environmental Performance Reviews: United Kingdom, 2022). The share of composting operations also rose sharply while that of recycling operations increased more modestly.
Following a continued shift towards a service-based economy, the per person domestic material consumption (DMC) of the UK was falling until 2013, while material productivity has increased. The per person material footprint is larger than DMC, but below the OECD average.
Non-metallic minerals, as in most OECD countries, constitute the largest share of the material mix, almost all of which is used by the construction sector. Imports constitute half of UK’s overall DMC. The sharp decline from 2007 to 2009, in particular for non-metallic minerals, was due to the fall in construction during the financial crisis. Since 2004, there has been a steady decline in fossil fuel carriers due to the shift in energy supply from coal towards renewable sources. Since 2009, this decline has offset increases in biomass and non-metallic minerals (OECD, Environmental Performance Reviews: United Kingdom, 2022). Since 2020, consumption of non-metallic minerals has started to increase again.
Between 2012 and 2018, land converted to artificial built-up was among the highest in Europe. Pressures from habitat change and pollution are the key drivers of change across terrestrial biodiversity. Other threats are over-exploitation, invasive species and climate change. The main threats to the marine environment are fishing pressure, climate change, acidification, hazardous substances and eutrophication (OECD, Environmental Performance Reviews: United Kingdom, 2022).
The country hosts a diverse mix of habitats and species for its small land size. This is due to the diversity of geology, landforms and sea floors, a long history of land management, the warming effect of the Gulf Stream, and a large tidal range. The status of some threatened species is improving, but overall progress is insufficient to halt widespread and significant declines across many species (e.g. for groups such as farmland birds, woodland and farmland butterflies and other pollinating insects) (OECD, Environmental Performance Reviews: United Kingdom, 2022) (DEFRA, Wild bird populations in the UK and England, 1970 to 2024, 2025) (DEFRA, Butterflies in the United Kingdom and England, 1976 to 2024, 2025).
Knowledge gaps remain in the number and trends of threatened species in the UK. Overall, 14% of UK species have had their conservation status assessed; 21% of these are threatened but none have gone extinct since 2010 (OECD, Environmental Performance Reviews: United Kingdom, 2022).
The total extent of protected areas has remained unchanged since 2020, covering 28% of land area and 44% of the economic exclusive zone (EEZ), due to the designation of inshore and offshore marine protected areas under European Directives. Data are not yet available from the four countries of the UK for a comprehensive assessment of progress towards the 2030 target to protect 30% of terrestrial land under the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF). However, according to the World Database of Protected Areas, only 0.37% of land area has strict management objectives (IUCN management categories I and II). About 9.9% of the country’s land is covered by protected areas that have had management effectiveness assessments1 and the same is true for 7.7% of the EEZ.
This section shows selected policy instruments based on data available for most OECD countries and does not provide a complete overview of countries’ policy mix to achieve their environment-related objectives. Interpretation should consider the country specific context.
Revenue from environmentally related taxes, which had risen to 2.42% of GDP in 2010, decreased slowly, to drop to 1.9% in 2024. The COVID‑19 crisis largely explains this drop, as travel restrictions reduced revenues from fuel duty and air passenger duty. Between 2010 and 2019, fuel duty revenue – the largest source of energy tax revenue – did not keep pace with GDP growth. This was due to a reduction in the tax base (fuel consumption remained broadly stable) and effective tax rates (freeze of duty rates since 2011). Expressed as a share of GDP, revenue from environmentally related taxes has fallen at about the same rate than the OECD-Europe average over the past decade. The UK is one of the few OECD members to tax diesel and petrol at the same nominal rate (OECD, Environmental Performance Reviews: United Kingdom, 2022).
As in many countries, most receipts come from taxes on energy products and, to a lower extent, on motor vehicles’ purchase and use, as well as transport. Taxes on pollution and resource management such as landfill taxes and aggregate levy do not raise much revenue. However, high landfill tax rates have played a key role in diverting waste from landfills and a plastic packaging tax took effect in 2022.
52.5% of GHG emissions in the UK were subject to a positive Net Effective Carbon Rate2 (ECR) in 2023. Explicit carbon prices consist of emissions trading system (ETS) permit prices and carbon taxes, which cover 24.4% of GHG emissions in CO2 equivalent. With roughly 24.2% of total GHG emissions, coverage is largest for ETS. Fuel excise taxes, an implicit form of carbon pricing, covered 36.7% of emissions in 2023. Direct fossil fuel subsidies cover 21.6% of emissions. About 46% of GHG emissions have a Net ECR above EUR 60 per tonne of CO2 equivalent, a mid-range estimate of current carbon costs. Net ECRs are highest in the road transport sector, which accounts for 23.4% of the country's total. The Net ECR is on average negative in the buildings sector, which accounts for 21.2% of GHG emissions (OECD, Pricing Greenhouse Gas Emissions 2024: Gearing Up to Bring Emissions Down, 2024).
Despite the doubling of public budget on energy research and development (R&D) since 2014, the UK has remained behind leading countries, and the share of environment in the total budget stood at 2.5% in 2023. Spending on nuclear energy expanded significantly, while increasing less for cross-cutting technologies and energy efficiency. The share of renewables in total public budget on energy research, development and demonstration (RD&D) has fluctuated over the past twenty years and remains at a relatively low level, around 15% in 2024.
As in other OECD countries, innovation efforts in environmentally related technologies have slowly declined in the past decade, although they remain at a relatively high level in absolute terms and slightly below the OECD average as a share of total inventions.
The UK remains a top official development assistance (ODA) provider, with a strong focus on fragile contexts and humanitarian assistance, although its total ODA decreased in 2025, representing 0.43% of gross national income. Aside from humanitarian aid, the UK prioritises international action on climate change and nature loss with a new focus on unlocking private investment for development. Although fluctuating during the past decade, the share of bilateral ODA for climate stood at almost 38.7% in 2023-24, a share higher than many countries of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC). The share for biodiversity has increased, to reach 15% in 2023-24 (OECD, 2026).
References
DEFRA. (2019). Water abstraction statistics: England, 2000 to 2018. Retrieved from https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/785567/Water_Abstraction_Statistics_England_2000_2017_Final.pdf
DEFRA. (2022). Emissions of air pollutants. Retrieved from https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/emissions-of-air-pollutants
DEFRA. (2025). Butterflies in the United Kingdom and England, 1976 to 2024.
DEFRA. (2025). Progress report on the storm overflows discharge reduction plan.
DEFRA. (2025). Wild bird populations in the UK and England, 1970 to 2024.
Hockings, M., & al, e. (2006). Evaluating Effectiveness. A framework for assessing management effectiveness of protected areas. 2nd Edition. IUCN. Retrieved from https://portals.iucn.org/library/efiles/documents/PAG-014.pdf
OECD. (2022). Environmental Performance Reviews: United Kingdom. OECD Publishing, Paris. doi:10.1787/b6a2be87-en
OECD. (2024). Pricing Greenhouse Gas Emissions 2024: Gearing Up to Bring Emissions Down. OECD Series on Carbon Pricing and Energy Taxation, OECD Publishing, Paris. doi:10.1787/b44c74e6-en
OECD. (2026). Development Co-operation Profiles. OECD Publishing, Paris. Retrieved from https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/development-co-operation-profiles_04b376d7-en/united-kingdom_052bbc63-en.html
UK. (2026). UK Greenhouse Gas Inventory, 1990 to 2024. Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. Retrieved from https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/NID%2090-24.pdf
Further reading
Defra, England's material footprint, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/englands-material-footprint
Defra, UK and England’s carbon footprint, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uks-carbon-footprint
Office for National Statistics, UK Material flow accounts, https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/environmentalaccounts/datasets/ukenvironmentalaccountsmaterialflowsaccountunitedkingdom
Defra, UK Statistics on waste, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-waste-data
Defra (2021), Emissions of air pollutants in the UK - Summary, Department for Environment Food, and Rural Affairs, London,
Defra (2021), UK Biodiversity Indicators, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, London, UK Biodiversity Indicators | Advisor to Government on Nature Conservation | JNCC
JNCC (2019), Sixth National Report to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Joint Nature Conservation Committee, Peterborough, https://data.jncc.gov.uk/data/527ff89f-5f6b-4e06-bde6-b823e0ddcb9a/UK-CBD-6NR-v2-web.pdf
Office for National Statistics, UK environmental accounts, UK Environmental Accounts - Office for National Statistics
UNEP-WCMC (2024), “Protected Area Profile for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland”, the World Database of Protected Areas, www.protectedplanet.net
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← 1. Protected Area Management Effectiveness evaluations, can be defined as: “the assessment of how well protected areas are being managed – primarily the extent to which management is protecting values and achieving goals and objectives" (Hockings & al, 2006).
← 2. Effective Carbon Rate (ECR) is the sum of fuel excise taxes, carbon taxes and tradeable permits that effectively put a price on carbon emissions. The Net ECR equals the ECR minus fossil fuel subsidies that decrease pre-tax fossil fuel prices.