Solution “more cost-effective than ever”: The world must quickly say goodbye to fossil energy to protect climate change
Updated calculations from the Climate Action Tracker show emissions continue to rise despite progress in renewable energy.
Quick Look
According to a study presented at the climate conference in Türkiye, global warming is likely to remain permanently above 1.5 degrees without a drastic phase-out of fossil fuels.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Updated Climate Action Tracker calculations were presented at the World Climate Conference in Turkey.
The expansion of renewable energies in India and China is progressing rapidly. Electric cars are reaching a new high and yet climate-damaging emissions continue to rise. There are important decisions to be made.
According to a study, global warming is likely to remain irretrievably above the critical mark of 1.5 degrees if the global community does not quickly and drastically say goodbye to oil, gas and coal. This is the conclusion reached by updated calculations from the Climate Action Tracker, which were presented at the World Climate Conference in Turkey. The experts examined whether the climate policies of states fit the internationally agreed protection goals.
According to new calculations, if current climate policy continues worldwide, the planet will warm by 2.7 degrees by 2100 compared to pre-industrial times - a slight increase compared to the 2.6 degrees of the previous year. If governments meet their targets for 2030 and 2035, warming would still be 2.6 degrees by 2100 - an unchanged figure from 2025. If all commitments and long-term goals to reach net zero emissions are taken into account, the warming would be 1.9 degrees by 2100.
Bill Hare of Climate Analytics, Climate Action Tracker's partner organization, said: "Governments face a stark choice: either they continue to support the fossil fuel industry - which would inevitably plunge humanity into devastating economic damage, rising heat-related mortality, and climate-related diseases and disasters to which it cannot adapt - or they rely on solutions that are already available and more cost-effective than ever."
In this context, the authors pointed to encouraging progress. By 2025, clean electricity would have covered the entire increase in global energy demand; In addition, India and China are expanding renewable energies at a record pace. The spread of electric vehicles has also reached new highs.
However, the report points out that the positive developments have not yet been enough to curb the emission of climate-damaging greenhouse gas emissions quickly enough. Increasing energy demand and the expansion of new infrastructure for fossil fuels have led to emissions continuing to rise.
Open Questions
- How will governments respond to the demands?
- Will emissions peak before 2030?
