By Washington Post Editorial Board, Photo: Yuriko Nakao/Reuters, The Washington Post, April 5, 2022
Every half-decade or so, the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change releases an authoritative report on climate change, reflecting the consensus view among a vast number of experts and government officials. The latest installment, on the path humanity must take to avoid punishing climate consequences, came out on Monday. Another analysis filled with dire warnings, the latest report might seem depressing — or, depending on one’s point of view, encouraging.
The report found that humanity has used up almost its entire budget of heat-trapping greenhouse gas emissions if the planet is to avoid warming of more than 1.5 degrees Celsius, the threshold scientists warn the average global temperature should not surpass. Another decade of emissions at the level between 2010 and 2019 would expend nearly all of the rest. With the policies in place as of 2020, the world will warm 3.2 degrees Celsius. If nations meet the commitments they made under the landmark Paris agreement, they would nudge that down to 2.8 degrees. To get on track, global emissions must peak before 2025, then decline rapidly.
Sounds grim. The encouraging part is that progress is still possible — easier, in fact, than one would have expected even a decade ago. The cost of renewables such as wind and solar has plummeted. Battery technology has improved. Some 18 countries have cut their emissions for 10 years straight. The pathway is clearer now than it has ever been. Cheaper renewables need to be deployed quickly and at massive scale, with continued government aid. Building standards must cut energy waste from the built environment. Cities must require better public transportation and non-car infrastructure. Electric vehicles must become the norm and run on a cleaner energy grid. Better technology and less wasteful behavior could cut energy needs by half by 2050.
Comments (0)