New Delhi: The world is projected to release 40.6 billion tons of CO2 (GtCO2) into the atmosphere in 2022, with no signs of reduction, which is urgently needed to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, according to a new report released Friday. . United Nations Climate Summit in Egypt. Total emissions of 40.6 GtCO2 in 2022 are projected close to the highest annual total of 40.9 GtCO2 in 2019 so far. If current emissions levels remain in place, there is a 50 percent chance that a warming of 1.5 °C will be exceeded in nine years. for the “Global Carbon Budget 2022” report by a group of scientists who track emissions and publish in peer-reviewed scientific journals. The preferred warming limit set by the 2015 Paris Agreement is 1.5 °C – a limit that countries hope will be enough to avoid the worst effects of climate change.
Earth’s global surface temperature has increased by about 1.1 °C compared to the average in pre-industrial (1850–1900) levels, and this warming is thought to have caused record droughts, wildfires and floods around the world. In 2021, more than half of the world’s CO2 emissions came from three places – China (31 percent), the US (14 percent) and the European Union (8 percent). According to the report, India’s contribution to global CO2 emissions is 7 percent.
Projected emissions decreased in China (0.9 percent) and the European Union (0.8 percent), but increased in the US (1.5 percent), India (6 percent) and the rest of the world (1.7 percent). In India, emissions are to increase by 6 per cent in 2022, driven primarily by a 5 per cent increase in coal emissions. The data shows that emissions from oil have increased sharply, with an estimated 10 percent increase, but that returns them to 2019 levels.
Read also: ‘We must have zero tolerance for greenwashing’: UN chief at COP27 in Egypt
Emissions from natural gas in India are projected to drop by four per cent, but contribute little to the total change as gas forms a small part of the country’s energy mix. However, this data does not reveal who is responsible for the problem.
Carbon Brief’s analysis shows that the US has released more than 509GtCO2 since 1850 and accounted for the largest share of historical emissions, about 20 percent of the global total. At 2.4 tCO2e (tonne carbon dioxide equivalent), India’s per capita greenhouse gas emissions were well below the world average of 6.3 tCO2e in 2020, according to data published by the United Nations Environment Program last month.
Also read: COP27: UN prepares $3.1 billion plan to achieve early warning and response against disasters
To reach zero CO2 emissions by 2050, the world will now need a reduction of approximately 1.4 GtCO2 each year, which is equivalent to the drop seen in 2020 emissions as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown, highlighting the scale of action needed. Is. This year’s carbon budget shows that the long-term rate of increase in fossil emissions has slowed. Average growth during the 2000s peaked at 3 percent per year, while the growth rate in the last decade has been around 0.5 percent per year.
Ulka Kelkar, climate program director at the World Resources Institute, said: “At the current rate, the world could blow away our chances of staying within 1.5°C of global warming in less than 10 years. More than half of this loss has been done.” It was before 1990 when economies like India started developing.
“Even now, India’s emissions are growing at a lower base than other large economies, and the average Indian emissions are a fraction of European or American. Going forward, India will look to abundant renewable energy to fuel its growth. Lucky, but needs timely finance to build the infrastructure to store and transmit this energy,” she said.
Pallavi Das, program associate at the Council for Energy, Environment and Water, said that although the logic of historical responsibility is important, less attention is being paid to future responsibility. “The net-zero pledges of China, the European Union and the US will collectively eliminate 89 percent of the remaining carbon budget of 500 GtCO2 by 2050. Only a 10-year advance to net zero years by these countries could release 18 percent. Global carbon space for the developing world, making the transition more justifiable. Otherwise, the current net zero years of developed countries will only perpetuate inequality in the climate debate,” she said.