Climate change is escalating on multiple fronts, with the United Nations warning of an imminent return of El Niño, a natural weather pattern that supercharges weather extremes, and a new report highlighting the significant scaling challenges facing carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies.
What Happened
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has warned that El Niño has an 80% chance of forming before September and a 90% chance before November, bringing drier conditions to Central America, northern South America, the Caribbean, Australia, Indonesia, and parts of south Asia. This comes as a new report on CDR technologies warns that they must be deployed at rates even faster than those seen for solar power if the world is to have a chance of limiting global warming to 1.5C by 2100.
Why It Matters
The report, written by more than 50 scientists, highlights that nearly all pathways to meeting the Paris Agreement's highest ambition of keeping global temperatures to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels in 2100 involve CDR techniques – ranging from tree-planting to sucking CO2 from air with machines. However, countries' current CDR plans would fall short of what is needed to limit warming to 1.5C by more than 5bn tonnes of CO2 (GtCO2) per year.
What Experts Say
"Humanity must suck carbon out of the atmosphere with new technologies even faster than the breakneck speed with which it has deployed solar panels if it is to limit global heating to 1.5C," said the researchers. "Novel forms of carbon dioxide removal must grow at 'highly ambitious rates' to bridge the gap between what governments have pledged to clean up and what is needed to comply with the Paris climate agreement."
Key Numbers
- 5bn tonnes of CO2 (GtCO2) per year: the shortfall in countries' current CDR plans to limit warming to 1.5C
Background
The Department of Energy has restarted home efficiency rebates, but electrification is the biggest loser, with federal energy efficiency rebate programs no longer covering a switch from fossil fuels to electricity for heating. Meanwhile, a proposed federal logging project near Yellowstone National Park is drawing growing concern from local residents, business owners, and conservation advocates who fear it could have lasting impacts on wildlife habitat, recreation, and tourism.
Key Facts
- Who: The World Meteorological Organization (WMO)
- What: Warned of an imminent return of El Niño
What Comes Next
As the world prepares for the imminent return of El Niño and the challenges of scaling CDR technologies, it is clear that the climate crisis is escalating on multiple fronts. The next five years will be critical in establishing the role of CDR technologies in limiting global warming to 1.5C, and governments, businesses, and individuals must work together to meet this challenge.