UN says current climate pledges fall far short of Paris goals
The United Nations stated on Monday that national pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are still far below what is required to limit catastrophic global heating.
In its annual report, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change said that the "nationally determined contribution" (NDC) already submitted to the U.N. by countries is enough to reduce global emissions by 2,6% between 2019 and 2030. This is up from 2% the previous year.
It warned that these cuts are not enough to reach the 43% reduction scientists claim is needed to meet a Paris Agreement goal to limit global temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
Simon Stiell said that as part of their Paris commitments, nations are required to deliver stronger NDCs by a February deadline next year. The findings in the report should be a "turning-point", he added.
He said that the current national climate plans are far from what is needed to prevent global warming from crippling economies and destroying billions of lives in every country.
Stiell said that the last generation of NDCs sent a signal for an unstoppable shift. Stiell said that the new NDCs for next year should outline a clear pathway to achieve this.
The success of the COP29 climate negotiations, which begin in Baku in Azerbaijan in two weeks, could determine whether nations are persuaded to make and implement more ambitious commitments.
Nearly 200 nations will work out the finer details of a global emissions trading system, as well as an annual $100 billion financial package that helps developing countries achieve their climate goals.
Pablo Vieira is the global director of NDC Partnership. This non-government organization is helping 60 countries to update their pledges.
He said that "they also want to ensure that the new NDCs have the necessary components that will not only attract public finance but also private"
ATMOSPHERIC CO2 AT NEW RECORD
The U.N. weather monitoring agency said in a separate report on Monday that greenhouse gas levels have risen "faster" than at any other time during the human history.
In its annual greenhouse gases bulletin, the World Meteorological Organization said that carbon dioxide concentrations reached a new peak of 420 parts-per-million (ppm) in 2013. This is an increase of 2.3 ppm over a year ago. They have also risen 11.4% in only 20 years.
The report warns that there are already signs of dangerous "feedbacks", which will increase the concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, as a result of rising temperatures.
The second-largest annual increase of the past decade in CO2 levels could have been caused by the explosion of forest fires. The carbon released in Canada's worst wildfire season in history exceeded the annual emissions from most major countries.
WMO reported that CO2 concentrations have risen 51% since 1750. Methane, another powerful greenhouse gas, has increased 165%.
Celeste Saulo, WMO Secretary-General said: "This should send alarm bells to decision makers."
These are not just statistics. Each part per million, and each fraction of a temperature increase has an impact on our lives. (Reporting and editing by Michael Perry; David Stanway)
(source: Reuters)
