Our chances of avoiding extreme warming are very slim
27. November 2019Our chances of avoiding extreme warming are very slim.
New York, 27.11.2019
According to the United Nations‘ annual emissions gap report, nations are still pumping more poisons into the atmosphere, even though they have committed themselves to reducing emissions under the Paris Climate Treaty. Result: The ability to avoid permanently dangerous warming depends on „deeper and faster cuts“ being needed to keep the planet from crossing the 2 ˚C limit.
The causes: Strong global economic growth drove carbon dioxide emissions from private energy consumption and industry by 2% (37.5 billion CO 2) in 2018, despite the increasing use of clean energy. The report’s authors see no sign that these emissions could be halted in the coming years.
The consequences: Now only absolutely drastic measures can help. This means that if we do not want to exceed the 2 ˚C limit, the world must reduce emissions by 25% by 2030. If we want to prevent warming by 1.5 ˚C, a 55% reduction must be achieved. However, many energy and climate experts consider this to be unattainable.
Since the beginning of the industrial age, the planet has already warmed up by around 1 ˚C . Every additional half degree from this point on will cause greater dangers in the form of increasingly severe heat waves, droughts, wild fires, loss of species, sea level rises.
„Incremental changes will not be enough“, the report makes clear. Now only „rapid and transformative measures“ will help, it concludes.
Nations‘ annual emissions gap report