UN Calls For Substantial Reduction In Fossil Fuels

The United Nations’ Climate Change Panel is calling for a “substantial reduction” in the Global use of Fossil Fuels, in order to avoid the worst impacts of Climate Change.

The Panel says that by 2030, Greenhouse Gas Emissions need to be Cut by at least 43% to prevent 1.5 degrees Celsius of Warming at the end of the Century, a key Threshold that would help the World evade much of the potential Climate Damage. “We have a really, really stark task ahead of us,” said Stephanie Roe, a Lead Author of the Report and Global Climate and Energy Lead Scientist at the World Wildlife Fund.

“The amount of emission reductions that we need to achieve over the next decade is unprecedented and … it needs to be almost immediate, as soon a possible, and it needs to be at a very large scale,” Roe said.

To make the necessary Reductions, the Report calls for Limiting the use of Fossil Fuels. Combustion of Fossil Fuels and Industrial Processes are responsible for about 78% of Climate-Warming Emissions over the past several Decades. In particular, the U.N. Report calls for Limiting the use of Coal by 95%, Oil by 60%, and Natural Gas by 45% in 2050 when compared to their use in 2019. To Limit Warming to 2 degrees Celsius, which would allow substantially more Climate-caused Harm, the use of these Fuels would need to be cut by 85%, 30%, and 15%, respectively, by 2050 compared to their 2019 level.

These Ddeclines factor in the use of Carbon Capture, a still developing Technology, that is used to Capture and Store Emissions from burning Fossil Fuels and other Emitting Activities Without Carbon Capture, limiting Warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius would require a 100% cut in the use of Coal, and a 70% cut in the use of Natural Gas by 2050, the Report said.

The Report says that existing and planned Fossil Fuel infrastructure will leave the 1.5 degree target out of reach, unless steps are taken quickly to Cut Emissions. Many of the World’s largest Emitters, including the U.S., China, Russia, and India, have been hesitant to Cut down their use of these Fuels.

This Third Installment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Sixth Climate Report, focuses on Climate Solutions. Earlier installments, issued last year and earlier this year, highlighted the “unequivocal” Scientific basis for Climate Change and its deadly impacts.

These and other Reports have linked Climate Change to: Rising Sea levels, Floods, and Heat Waves, as well as more intense Hurricanes.

A prior Special Report from the IPCC, warned that if Warming is Not limited to 1.5 degrees, it would result in Hotter Temperatures and more Hot Extremes, among other risks.

While Fossil Fuels are the Main driver of Climate Change, other Sectors like Agriculture and Construction also contribute to Warming Temperatures, and the Report calls for Limiting their Emissions as well.

It said that Policies to Limit Emissions from the Agriculture, Forestry, and other Land use sectors “can deliver large-scale GHG emission reductions” but also Warned that it “cannot fully compensate for delayed action in other sectors.”










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