Greenhouse gas emission targets
Human civilization has taken the great nature for granted for centuries. Green earth is now not that green in result of large-scale deforestation, urbanization, industrialization and immense pollution. That is the prime reason why climate change, weather extremities and other natural calamities are common in modern times. Nonetheless, world has to remain in fear of tsunami, earthquakes, avalanches and volcanoes all the times.
Human’s rude action of messing with nature has made the latter give its unnatural reactions time and again. Climate change has become one of the biggest global issues of this age. The entire world knows that in order to survive, they have no other option than reducing greenhouse gases. Only by this way, we can help the earth avoid seeing further highs in global temperature. However, the efforts in this regard have remained, more or less, only at planning level so far.
Greenhouse gas emission targets
Disastrous impact of temperature rise
United Nations, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), many agencies and several activists keep sounding alarm time and again. However, there have not been real signs of improvement seen in disastrous temperature growth estimates till date. However, it’s possible to keep global temperature rise to 1.5 Degrees Celsius as decided in Paris Agreement on climate change. According to a UN-backed Global Methane Assessment report, we will have to cut down methane emissions caused by human activity by up to 45%, compared to 2010 levels by 2030.
While Covid-linked global shutdown helped reduce carbon emissions upto some level, methane kept rising to record level in 2020. Extremely powerful greenhouse gas methane, main ingredient in smog, is responsible for nearly 30% of global warming since pre-industrial era. The gas causes 260,000 premature deaths, 775,000 asthma-linked hospital visits and not less than 25 million tonnes loss of crop annually, said the study of Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), governments and non-State partners, and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).
Global temperature goals for century
Most human-caused methane emissions occur in three sectors – fossil fuels (oil and gas processing), landfills & waste, and agriculture (mostly in livestock). Therefore, the report suggests cutting down of methane emissions by 60% in fossil fuels 30%-35% in landfill & waste and 20%-25% in agriculture to fulfill the 1.5˚C global temperature target. Reducing methane will help slowing down of climate change in next 25 years, said Environment Programme Executive Director Inger Andersen.
Finally, this will be complementary to necessary steps being taken to cut down carbon dioxide. Andersen referred methane cut down as a low-cost effort that can offer huge benefits to society, economies and the environment. The UN-partnered research was done collectively . Besides, UN Secretary-General António Guterres has also urged the world to commit for zero carbon emissions by 2050. This will be paramount in efforts towards averting disastrous 2.4 Degree Celsius temperature increase by the end this century.
