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United Nations scientists say halving climate-damaging greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 is crucial to stop a rise in temperatures of more than 1.5 Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) that would unleash more extreme weather and heat.
Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change said the next two years are “essential in saving our planet”.
This comes as the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said that the global average temperature was 1.58 degrees Celsius above the average in the 1850-1900 pre-industrial period from April 2023 to March 2024.
Last year, the world’s energy-related CO2 emissions increased to a record high, driven partly by increased fossil fuel use in countries where droughts hampered hydropower production, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Current commitments to fight climate change would barely cut global emissions at all by 2030. “We still have a chance to make greenhouse gas emissions tumble, with a new generation of national climate plans. But we need these stronger plans, now,” said Stiell.
In terms of stronger climate plans, there are seven climate lawsuits pending at the European Court of Human Rights that rest their argument on the same rights violation as the landmark case in which a Swiss court ruled that the government had violated the human rights of more than 2,000 elderly women by failing to do enough to combat climate change.
Of the pending cases, two are against the Norwegian government that could hit the oil industry in the country. They argue that Norway’s decision in 2016 to grant oil exploration licenses in the Arctic violates human rights by further committing to the release of planet-warming emissions. Scroll down to read the full Reuters article.
