UN emissions gap report a ‘thundering wake-up call’

Current commitments to cut greenhouse gas emissions put the planet on track for an average 2.7 degrees Celsius temperature rise this century, a United Nations report said on Tuesday, in another stark warning ahead of crunch climate talks.

Governments will be in the spotlight at the COP26 conference next week to meet a deadline of this year to commit to more ambitious cut pledges, in what could be the last chance to put the world on track to limiting warming to below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and ideally to 1.5°C.

As extreme weather events ranging from wildfires to floods have hit countries around the world, a UN report in August warned that global warming due to greenhouse gas emissions could breach 1.5°C in the next two decades.
The annual “emissions gap” report by the United Nations’ Environment Programme (UNEP), which measures the gap between anticipated emissions and those consistent with limiting the temperature rise this century as agreed in the Paris accord, said updated pledges only reduce forecast 2030 emissions by an additional 7.5%, compared to the previous commitments.

If continued throughout this century, this would lead to warming of 2.7°C, slightly less than the 3C UNEP forecast in its last report. A 30% cut is needed to limit warming to 2°C and a 55% cut is needed to limit to 1.5°C.

It said current commitments to net zero could limit warming to around 2.2°C by the end of the century, but 2030 pledges so far do not put major emitters on a clear path to this.

“This report is another thundering wake-up call. How many do we need? The emissions gap is the result of a leadership gap,” UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres told a press briefing.

“The era of half measures and hollow promises must end.”
LONDON, Oct 26 (Reuters)