Daily Times

Resulting largely from the excessive consumption of fossil fuels, global warming not only poses a serious threat to economic security but also affects resource, energy, ecological, and food security, among other fields, and poses a severe challenge to human survival. In recent decades, the international community has begun paying close attention to global warming, aiming to address fundamental problems in the current economic development model, trying to establish a low-carbon and environment-friendly model. On December 12, 2015, the Paris Climate Change Conference adopted the Paris Agreement (PA), which prescribed arrangements for global action on climate change after 2020. The long-term goal of the PA is to limit the rise in global average temperature to less than 2 °C above pre-industrial levels, trying to limit it to 1.5 °C. Furthermore, the PA has established the general direction of the global green and low-carbon transformation, identifying the course of action needed to protect the environment and safeguard the survival of humankind. To achieve this lofty goal, every country should aim to achieve its global peak in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as soon as possible, which could enable the possibility of a climate-neutral world by the middle of the century. However, according to current research, the targets of 2 °C and 1.5 °C global temperature rise are merely a starting point. Even if all countries maintain their commitment to the intended nationally determined contribution (INDC) proposed in the PA, global temperatures are still likely to rise by 3 °C.

The time has already come to build further on the adoption and implementation of the landmark Paris Agreement on climate change. It is reassuring to witness that a promising movement for carbon neutrality is taking shape with full force and momentum.

Therefore, never was the need for carbon neutrality more pressing than it is now. It is an admitted fact that the relationship between emissions of greenhouse gases and climate change is a scientific certainty. The world will only achieve the lofty ideal of carbon neutrality when it reduces its net carbon emissions equal to zero. For this to happen on the ground, people must learn to reduce their dependence on energy derived from fossil fuels, improve the efficiency of energy processes, and invest massively in sustainable development. Needless to add that the transport sector plays a very pivotal role in improving regional connectivity and facilitating the movement of the individuals, and trade of goods across the country. Likewise, since the end of the nineteenth century, rapid economic growth and ever-growing urbanization have led to an unprecedented increase in the demand for mobility of goods and services. With the share of the manufacturing sector in the GDP poised to grow up to 25% by the year 2022 from 17% in 2018, freight transport demand is expected to rise far more quickly than ever before. On the one hand, phenomenal growth in the large-scale manufacturing led to rising in the private vehicle ownership rather than the public transport system, and on the other, growth in freight traffic was accompanied by the dominance of road transport in total traffic share compared to rail. These transformations and future possibilities along with government-led reform measures can have certain benefits and trade-offs for energy systems, the environment, and domestic economies across the globe.

Against this backdrop, carbon neutrality has become a buzzword and is one of the world’s most cherished aspirations aimed at promoting environmental protection. It is also being viewed as a tangible measure to combat climate change. Indeed, carbon neutrality is the equivalent of a net result of zero emissions. There are several actions that emitter agents can take to reach this balance, being achieved largely due to the phasing out the use of fossil fuels (oil, coal, natural gas, etc.), the main cause of global warming. First and foremost, there are reduction measures and compensation: reduction of energy consumption and emissions-producing activities, improving the energy efficiency of processes, technological innovation in low carbon, and consumption of renewable electricity (wind, solar, hydro, solar thermal, etc.). When it gets difficult to keep reducing emissions, or the cost of the measures is very high, CO? reduction certificates of offset projects are acquired which, in fact, allow to decrease global emissions and promote sustainable development.

The time has already come to build further on the adoption and implementation of the landmark Paris Agreement on climate change. It is reassuring to witness that a promising movement for carbon neutrality is taking shape with full force and momentum. Similarly, countries representing more than 65 percent of harmful greenhouse gasses and more than 70 percent of the world economy seem to have committed to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. It is so unfortunate to note that at the same time, the main climate indicators are worsening. While the Covid-19 pandemic has temporarily resulted in reduced emissions, carbon dioxide levels are still at record highs – and are constantly rising. Many credible studies suggest that the past decade was the hottest on record; Arctic sea ice was the lowest ever, and apocalyptic fires, floods, droughts, and storms are increasingly becoming the new normal. On the other hand, biodiversity is collapsing, deserts are spreading, and oceans are warming while choking with plastic waste. Scientific evidence suggests that unless we cut fossil fuel production by 6 percent every year between now and 2030, things will keep worsening. To add fuel to the fire, the world is on track for a 2 percent annual raise, instead.

Nailing on the issue of carbon neutrality on its head about two years ago, UN Secretary-General had emphasized a three-pronged strategy. He explained that Pandemic recovery had given us an unexpected yet vital opportunity to attack climate change, fix our global environment, re-engineer economies and re-imagine our future. Therefore, firstly, the world must build a truly global coalition for carbon neutrality by 2050. The European Union had committed to doing it already. The United Kingdom, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and more than 110 countries had done the same. So, too, has the incoming United States administration. China has pledged to get there before 2060. Every country, city, financial institution, and company should adopt plans for net-zero and act net-zero on the right path to that goal, which means cutting global emissions by 45 per cent by 2030 compared with 2010 levels. Furthermore, governments are obliged by the Paris Agreement to be ever more ambitious every five years and submit strengthened commitments known as Nationally Determined Contributions, and these NDCs must show true ambition for carbon neutrality. Technology can offer cost-effective solutions. As of now, it costs more to simply run most of today’s coal plants than it does to build new renewable plants from scratch. Economic analysis confirms the wisdom of this path. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), despite inevitable job losses, the clean energy transition will create 18 million net new jobs by 2030. However, we must recognize the human costs of de-carbonization, and support workers with social protection, re-skilling, and up-skilling so that the transition is just. Secondly, we also need to align global finance with the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals, the world’s blueprint for a better future. Thirdly, we must secure a breakthrough in adaptation and resilience to help those already facing dire impacts of climate change.

It is about time to put a price on carbon emissions. A comprehensive work plan encompassing concerted global action is urgently required to end fossil fuel subsidies and finance; stop building new coal power plants; shift the tax burden from income to carbon, from taxpayers to polluters. It is also equally imperative to make climate-related financial risk disclosures mandatory and integrate the goal of carbon neutrality into all economic and fiscal decision-making. Likewise, banks must align their lending with the net-zero objective, and asset owners and managers must de-carbonize their portfolios. The time to act is now before things slip by our hands and it gets too late to make amends.

The writer is a civil servant by profession, a writer by choice and a motivational speaker by passion!