BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept.8
By Leman Zeynalova - Trend:
Radical steps are needed to introduce new carbon-free sources of energy, Trend reports with reference to the Oxford Institute of Energy Studies (OIES).
“The decarbonisation of the energy sector is the most urgent priority, in particular because at the current rate of GHG emissions the world’s total remaining “carbon budget” to meet the 1.5°C increase in global temperature target would be used up in only around 17 years. As there is already almost five times this amount of carbon in existing global reserves of coal, oil, and gas, radical steps clearly need to be taken both to decarbonise the existing energy system and to introduce new carbon-free sources of energy,” OIES said in its latest insight.
Brookings Institution notes that according to the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, capping global warming at 1.5°C will require cutting carbon dioxide emissions by around 45 percent from 2010 levels by 2030, and to net zero by 2050. Doing so will require rapid and far-reaching transitions in energy, land, urban and infrastructure (including transport and buildings), and industrial systems, as well as CO2 removal.
“Cutting CO2 emissions is only part of the task. Crucially, the world must also reduce drastically emissions of short-lived climate pollutants such as methane, in order to achieve a large reduction in Arctic warming and permafrost thawing, which threatens to cause the release of more nitrous oxide and methane.”
Recent months have seen a number of countries commit to achieve carbon neutrality (“net zero carbon”) by the middle of the century and there are indications to suggest that others may follow suit.
“The endgoal therefore appears to be firmly set, at least on paper, even if the pathway is as yet uncertain. The primary focus of the energy transition is on shifting the world’s socio-technical system away from one based almost exclusively on the production and consumption of fossil fuels, towards a system in which renewable energy sources are dominant, although some countries (mainly oil and natural gas exporters) are arguing for a technology neutral approach to emissions reduction which would also allow technologies such as CCUS and direct air capture to be developed. Nevertheless, the overall goal is to reduce emissions both from the combustion of fuels such as oil, gas, and coal and also from across the value chains that produce them. Indeed, the increasing move by countries to set ‘net zero emissions’ targets implies that hydrocarbon consumption is likely to go into decline in the near future,” reads the report.
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