Quebec continues to lead the country in lowering greenhouse gas emissions, despite a rise in carbon production from transport trucks and cars, according to a new report.

The Quebec Environment Ministry released its annual inventory of greenhouse gas emissions, which compared 2006 levels to those measured in 1990.

Quebec's overall emissions have risen 1.6 per cent since 1990.

Emissions from large transport trucks and cars rose 22 per cent in that time period, which is "bad news," said Montreal Greenpeace spokesman Arthur Sandborn.

"The bottom line is our production of greenhouse gases [in] the transport sector – small cars, small vans and the big trucks that are running down highways – is up 22 per cent," he said Monday.

Quebec's industrial sector has shown a slight decrease in greenhouse gases in the past three years, due mostly to improvements in environmental standards in heavy industries such as aluminum production.

Household emissions have dropped by 30 per cent since 1990, mostly because homeowners are increasingly switching from oil to either electricity or natural gas, said Marcel Gaucher, a spokesman for the ministry.

Gaucher said the report is encouraging given Quebec's goal for 2012 is to decrease by six percent the emissions level recorded in the province in 1990.