Page 6 - AfrElec Week 43 2022

AfrElec COMMENTARY AfrElec

Climate window set to slam

shut warns Guterres

THE world is heading for 2.8°C of global make a negligible difference to predicted 2030
COMMENTARY warming by 2100 unless governments urgently emissions, the report said.
improve their emissions targets, the UN warned, Instead of the Paris goals of well below 2°C,
otherwise the window of opportunity to take the preferably 1.5°C, current pledges will cause a 2.4-
required climate action will slam shut. 2.6°C temperature rise by the end of the century.
United Nations Secretary-General António “Commitments to net zero are worth zero
Guterres said that the world faces a catastrophe without the plans, policies and actions to back
if governments do not dramatically scale up their it up. Our world cannot afford any more green-
efforts to counter the climate crisis. washing, fake movers or late movers,” Guterres
He warned that the world’s failure to take said.
climate change seriously enough means that “We must close the emissions gap before cli-
the “rapid transformation of societies” was the mate catastrophe closes in on us all.”
option to limit the impact of climate change. The report echoes the warning the UNEP
Put simply, the climate emergency is set to made a year ago when it released its 2021
seriously disrupt all aspects of the global econ- Emissions Gap Report. At that time, the report
omy, requiring a major re-orientation of infra- warned that pre COP26 climate promises would
structure investment towards green energy and put the world on track for a temperature rise of
clean technology. at least 2.7°C by 2100.
The UNEP’s Emissions Gap Report 2022 Compared to last year, the UNEP is warn-
identified key sector of the economy that require ing that over the past year, despite the hopes of
transformation: electricity supply; industry; COP26, virtually no progress has been made on
transport; buildings; food and financial systems. combating climate change and meeting the Paris
Agreement targets.
Current pledges
The UN Environment Programme’s Disappearing opportunities
(UNEP’s) Emissions Gap Report 2022 warned The report warned that it was not possible to
that since COP26 in Glasgow governments have delay any further, and that the last opportunities
failed to improve their Nationally Determined to limit global warming to the 1.5°C laid out in
Contributions (NDCs), which set out their the Paris Agreement were now fast disappearing.
actions plans to cut emissions and adapt to cli- It called for a 45% cut in greenhouse gas
mate impacts. (GHG) emissions by 2030 to keep the globe on
The report despaired of efforts by global track for 1.5°C by 2100, while a 30% by 2030 cut
governments, dubbing them, “inadequate.” The would limit global warming to 2°C by the end of
NDCs that have been updated since COP26 the century.

P6 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 43 26•October•2022