Climate Concerns and Projections
According to this new report published as part of the United Nations’ COP29 climate summit in Azerbaijan, global carbon dioxide emissions, including fossil fuel emissions, have reached an all-time high and are forecasted to continue that way through 2024. It was written by over 80 institutions, led by the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom, under its banner of Global Carbon Budget. Overall, the report paints a dismal picture for the state of affairs of efforts made by the world to mitigate the devastating impacts of climate change.
Global CO2 emissions are forecasted to reach 41.6 billion metric tons in 2024, compared with 40.6 billion tons in 2023. The bulk of these, 37.4 billion tons, will be due to consumption of coal, oil, and gas. The rest is due to land use changes like burning forests and clearing.
Uneven Progress Across Nations
The report highlighted uneven steps taken by countries to reduce greenhouse gas emission. Although the US and the EU are likely to decline this year with a fall of 0.6% and 3.8%, respectively, India is expected to increase with an added rise of 4.6%, spurred by rampant power demands fuelled by economic growth.
China is likely to become the largest emitter, at the same time showing the world’s second-largest consumption of oil and, as emissions are expected to increase but only by 0.2%. Reportedly, China is at a point where oil usage for its purposes has peaked, as its electric vehicle market starts gaining the traction.
Failure to Meet Paris Agreement Goals
These are particularly alarming in the context of the commitment signed under the 2015 Paris Agreement to limit the world’s temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels. To reach that target, the world would have to make deep cuts in emissions annually, from now through 2030 and beyond.
“Without immediate and steep emissions cuts worldwide, we will just go straight into the 1.5C target, we’ll just pass it and continue,” said Pierre Friedlingstein, the lead author of the report and a climate scientist at the University of Exeter.
Tensions at COP29
The report came out as tensions boiled over at the COP29 climate summit, being held in Azerbaijan. Geopolitically, countries seem unable to agree on who should spearhead the rest of the world’s transition away from fossil fuels, which currently produce about 80% of global energy.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev urged other countries to “stop lecturing” them amid an escalating scandal over the host country’s energy record.
The Global Carbon Budget report is a timely reminder of just how direly world actions are needed to bring about immediate and definite change in combating this increasingly disturbing climate crisis.
Genre: World News
Tags: #ClimateChange #GlobalCarbonEmissions #ParisAgreement #FossilFuelDependency #UNClimateConference
