Humanity Has Less Than Three Years to Halt Carbon Emissions: UN

UN climate experts have said that humanity has less than three years to halt the rise of carbon emissions and less than a decade to cut it by nearly half. It is still possible, but current policies are leading the planet toward catastrophic temperature rises, the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change made clear. 

In recent months, the IPCC has been the first two instalments in a trilogy of enormous scientific assessments of how greenhouse gas emissions are warming the planet and what it means for life on Earth. 

The report reveals that investments to reduce emissions are much cheaper than the cost of failing to limit warming. Scientists warn that above 1.5°C there is a risk that ecosystems will collapse and cause irreversible changes in the climate system. To reach that goal, the report states that carbon emissions must be reduced by 43% by 2030 and 84% by 2050.

By 2050, greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced by 40-70% by reducing long-haul flights, switching to plant-based diets, climate-proofing buildings, and other measures to reduce energy consumption that drives energy consumption.