Period of soaring emissions may be ending & optimism high as Paris climate talks enter last lap
News
Period of Soaring Emissions May Be Ending, New Data Suggest
Emissions rose only slightly in 2014 and look set to decline this year, according to new, widely reported research. This year’s predicted 0.6% reduction would be “highly unusual at a time when the global economy is growing”, says the New York Times. It was already known that emissions barely grew last year, says the Financial Times. The research indicates a second year in a row of stalled emissions, says the Independent. A drop in coal consumption in China as well as a more renewables and lower growth for oil and gas are the main causes, says the Express. The decline marks the end of a decade of rapid emissions growth says Inside Climate News. The Telegraph and the Times focus their coverage on the detail that a small reduction in EU emissions this year was offset by a rise in India. One of the study authors discusses the research at the Conversation, asking if we have finally reached peak emissions. Carbon Brief also looked at the details. The BBC,Business Green, the Washington Post and the Guardian are among the many others to cover the news.
COP21: Despite differences, optimism high as climate talks enter last lap
Despite little sign of how to resolve differences, in particular over funding, there is optimism that a climate deal can be reached in Paris, Reuters reports. Senior ministers including the US’s John Kerry and UK’s Amber Rudd arrived on Monday, with Rudd appointed to head one of four working groups on crunch issues, reports the Guardian. Issues include pre-2020 action, finance and differentiation, covered in yesterday’s Carbon Brief explainer. Brazil has the task of resolving rich-poor differentiation, reports Climate Home. The EU gave further signs it may be willing to concede on climate targets not being legally binding, reports Climate Central, in what the EU’s climate commissioner called a “week of compromise”, according to the Indian Express. Rudd also expects to have to compromise, reports the Telegraph. The Dot Earth blog looked at this and other crunch questions “behind the brackets” of the draft deal. Support for including a 1.5C target in the text appears to be growing, reports Business Standard. Some of the world’s biggest emitters are on board says the Guardian, though the “aspirational” goal is not backed by all, says Xinhua. More than 100 countries back a 1.5C goal, says Climate Home, adding that scientists say this would need a fossil-fuel phase out by 2025-30. The UK is among those working to include 1.5C in the text, reports Business Green.
U.N. Secretary-General Warns of ‘Climate Catastrophe’ at Paris Talks
The clock is ticking on climate catastrophe, according to UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon in a speech opening ministerial talks at the Paris COP21. He said the world needs a clean energy revolution and outlined the must-have provisions of a good agreement, according to Russian outletSputnik. These include five-year reviews starting before 2020, says Reuters, and increasing responsibilities for developing countries “in line with their capabilities”. His speech praised last year’s US-China climate agreement as a “turning point”, says Xinhua.
China pollution: First ever red alert in effect in Beijing
Schools in Beijing are closed and outdoor construction halted as the Chinese capital’s first ever pollution “red alert”, the highest possible warning level, came into effect yesterday, and lasting until midday on Thursday. The warning comes as China, the world’s largest polluter, takes part in talks on carbon emissions in Paris. The Independent, the Guardian and the New York Times are among those to have covered the story.
Comment
The 2-Degree Warming Limit Is Arbitrary And Beside The Point
Christie Aschwanden, FiveThirtyEight
A feature article for FiveThirtyEight explores the “arbitrary” 2C warming limit. “2C isn’t a magic number that will somehow hold catastrophe at bay”, it says, noting we have already passed 1C. The best analogy is a speed limit, it says, making things safer without removing all risks.
The Guardian view on Britain’s floods: the reality of climate change
The current UK floods are “the reality of climate change”, says a Guardian editorial. Storm Desmond has unleashed gale force winds and record-breaking rainfall, with engineers battling to reconnect more than 33,000 homes left without power. The Met Office severe weather warning is forecast to last until Thursday, and David Cameron chaired an emergency meeting to discuss the flooding. Greenpeace Energydesk also explores the link to climate change. It’s too early to tell directly, but heavier rainfall is more likely with global warming than without it, Energydesk’s Christine Ottery explains. Meanwhile, Liz Truss, the Environment Secretary told MPs that Storm Desmond was ‘consistent’ with climate change. The Guardian’s Damian Carrington said that Cameron was only treating the symptom of the flooding and not the cause. Flood defences may be reviewed after ministers admit they underestimated the potential strength of severe weather events,the Telegraph reports. The BBC also carries the story.
COP21: The Paris climate talks require more from rich countries
Midway through the Paris talks, the draft contains “all manner of parentheses”, says an editorial in the Independent. Support from rich to poor countries is among the “most critical areas left open”, it says. If more money is not provided, poor countries are likely to “cripple any climate deal” by building coal-fired power stations, it says.
Science
A scientific critique of the two-degree climate change target
The 2 °C warming target is generally perceived as a universally accepted goal, identified by scientists as a safe limit that avoids dangerous climate change. But this perception is incorrect, according to a new study. The authors say the 2C goal is useful for anchoring discussions about climate stabilisation but this, and lower targets, are strongly at odds with the current level of real-world action. A separate paper in Nature Geoscience looks at the considerable biophysical and economic limits to negative CO2 emissions, which almost all 2C pathways require.
Global Carbon Budget 2015
In the latest update to the annual carbon budget, scientists assess how carbon dioxide emissions redistribute between the atmosphere, oceans and terrestrial biosphere. Based on data for 2015 so far, the researchers project the growth of emissions from fossil fuels will be near or slightly below zero, which is the top line finding of a Nature Climate Change paper that accompanies the new research. Assuming emissions from land use stay the same, the researchers estimate cumulative emissions from 1870-2015 of 555 billion tonnes of carbon.
Other stories
- How eight agencies are involved in the Paris climate change conference (PR Week)
- OECD report flags big gaps in carbon pricing (Carbon Pulse)
- Economists: Climate change is going to cost a lot more than previously thought (Washington Post Energy Environment)
- The Lyell Glacier has lost nearly 80% of its surface area since 1883 (Mail Online)
- Arnold Schwarzenegger says climate campaigns need to focus on ‘right now’ not 2050 (The Guardian)
- Once a fixture, climate skeptics say they are being stifled in Paris (Reuters)
- Heartland Institute Kicks Journalists Out of ‘Public’ Climate Denial Event in Paris (DeSmogUK)
- Africa plans renewable energy drive that could make continent world’s cleanest (The Guardian)
- Heavily polluting ‘diesel farms’ to make millions from subsidies, IPPR warns (The Guardian)
- UK ministers criticised for flying to Paris climate talks (BusinessGreen)
- UK opposition leaders urge climate policy rethink (Climate Home)
- IMF’s Lagarde calls for ‘wise’ taxes to foster greener fuels (Reuters)
- Texas Fracking Zone Emits 90% More Methane Than EPA Estimated (Inside Climate News)