Lately we have been reading stories about a number of organizations like Ikea, Microsoft, EY, Shell, etc. setting their targets to net zero emissions in the upcoming years. A growing number of countries like Canada, European Union, Japan, New Zealand, United Kingdom, etc. are setting targets towards achieving net zero emissions over the next few decades, most of them by 2050 in line with the guidelines and goals recommended by the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement and the 2018 IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) report. It states that in order for us to avoid the worst climate impacts, the global greenhouse gas emissions will need to be dropped by half by 2030 and then reach net zero around mid-century.
Net zero emissions simply means that all man-made greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions must be removed from the earth’s atmosphere by various measures that help in restoring the Earth’s net climate balance. Our atmosphere reacts even to small changes in the levels of GHG like carbon dioxide, methane, etc. Reducing emissions of these greenhouse gases directly and indirectly is what will lead us to a low carbon economy and help regulate global temperature rise.
In simple terms, this is carried out by reducing carbon in the atmosphere by capture and storage in natural and artificial sinks. The 2018 IPCC report explains that it is necessary for us to limit global warming to 1.5℃ in order to reduce challenging impacts on ecosystems, health and wellbeing; any further rise in average global temperature over the next decade could result in extreme weather events, rise in sea levels, depletion of polar ice caps, coral bleaching and other harmful impacts on the ecosystems.
Before setting this target, it is important for a business or a government to develop a clear plan of actions to be carried out over the time period, in order to reduce emissions as much as possible.
This is primarily done by switching to renewables from fossil fuel in various sectors. For example, electricity generation can be carried out using solar, wind, geothermal and even nuclear power. Developing and designing a transport system that runs on electricity, biofuels and hydrogen instead of fossil fuels goes a long way in reducing emissions. This approach has its limitations in some sectors like manufacturing and even aviation, it is not possible to bring down emissions to zero. Offsetting carbon is carried out in such cases where an equivalent amount of carbon (carbon dioxide) is removed from the atmosphere, this is called negative emissions. This is done by restoring forests because plants absorb CO2 during photosynthesis. Carbon sequestration is carried out through afforestation and reforestation programs to restore forest lands that have been lost or depleted. Another way this is carried out is by using technology through options like bioenergy that is combined with carbon capture and storage and direct air capture and storage. (Although, most of these do not yet exist on a large scale that is ready to be deployed on the field.)
Policy changes, technological advancements and behavioral changes are paramount to reducing emissions. Changing dietary habits of people, halting deforestation, land restoration and reducing waste generation will have significant impacts on emission reduction. Stricter environmental regulations, increased investments towards removal of carbon in the atmosphere, changes in building design and efficiency, investments in clean energy and phasing out fossil fuels are some of the key solutions to this.
Strong commitments like this are essential to create targets that align with a low carbon economy in the future. We know that the extent of global warming is proportional to the total amount of GHG emissions and its accumulation in the atmosphere. GHG emissions need to be curtailed to keep global warming well below 2℃. We must work together to achieve a future where our planet is healthy and safe rather than be ravaged by the negative impacts of the changing climate.