Will we always have the Paris Agreement? Not if emissions continue to Explode

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Carbon emissions must fall based on efforts by the world’s nations and largest energy companies, with the UN saying that pollution must be cut by over 7% annually between now and 2035 to meet the original Paris Agreement metric. Instead, they will rise to the highest levels in history this year.

While this may not be a death blow to efforts to arrest global warming, it comes close. As Axios reports, “A peak in global emissions is necessary in the near-term, followed by steep reductions to net zero by 2050, to avoid potentially catastrophic consequences from human-caused global warming.” Carbon dioxide from fossil fuels is 8% higher than in 2015, and there is no reason to hope that trend will not continue.

The stakes are clear. Many scientists say the increase in emissions is causing a rise in violent storms both in number and frequency, with recent examples being hurricanes Helene and Milton, which battered the southern U.S. At the same time, drought is rampant in Africa and other parts of the world, with the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reporting that, “For the 2023/2024 El-Niño, six countries declared a state of emergency linked to severe drought, including Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.” It is estimated that 61 million people will need aid because of the situation.

In India, the heat and pollution will make some large cities, including Delhi, with a population of over 20 million, barely habitable in the next decade.

The push to hold back global warming may have already failed.