Mitigation Flashcards
What is climate change mitigation?
Climate change mitigation refers to efforts to reduce or prevent the emission of greenhouse gases.
What is the Paris Agreement?
A legally binding international treaty on climate change adopted by 196 parties in 2015 and entered into force in 2016. It aims to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celcius, preferably to 1.5 degrees Celcius, compared to pre-industrial levels.
What are some key facts about the Paris Agreement?
The Paris Agreement works on a 5-year cycle. In 2020, countries submitted nationally determined contributions (NDCs). Starting in 2024, an Enhanced Transparency Framework will track progress. It has not yet been ratified by Iran (2% of global emissions), Eritrea, Libya, or Yemen.
What are recent developments and current trends in climate change mitigation?
Total net anthropogenic GHG emissions have continued to rise during the period 2010–2019. Emissions have grown in most regions and are distributed unevenly, past and present.
What are some positive trends in climate change mitigation?
The cost of low-emissions technologies has fallen. The unit costs of some forms of renewable energy and batteries (EVs) have fallen and their use is rising. Innovation policy has helped reduce costs and support global adoption. There has been an expansion of mitigation policy and laws addressing the avoidance of emissions and increased investment in low-GHG tech and infrastructure.
What are some continuing challenges to climate change mitigation?
Innovation in low-emissions technologies has lagged in developing countries. Progress toward Paris Agreement goals has been slow. Financial flow for mitigation is distributed unevenly by region and sector.
What are modeled global emission scenarios?
Global GHG emissions in 2030 associated with implementing the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) make it likely that warming will exceed 1.5 degrees Celcius during the 21st century. Limiting warming to below 2 degrees Celcius would likely rely on a rapid acceleration of mitigation efforts after 2030.
What are Illustrative Mitigation Pathways (IMPs)?
Five IMPs show different combinations of sectoral mitigation strategies for a given global warming level. IMP-GS: Gradual strengthening of current policies, IMP-Neg: Extensive net-negative emissions, IMP-LD: Low demand, IMP-SP: Shifting development pathways, IMP-Ren: High renewables.
What are the effects of global net-zero emissions?
Reaching and sustaining global net-zero GHG emissions results in a gradual decline of warming. These pathways require deep GHG emissions reductions.
How can we limit warming to 1.5-2 degrees Celcius?
All global modeled mitigation pathways that limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celcius or 2 degrees Celcius involve rapid and deep and, in most cases, immediate GHG emission reductions in all sectors.
What will happen to global warming if current trends continue?
Without strengthening policies, GHG emissions will continue to rise beyond 2025, leading to warming of 3.2 degrees Celcius by 2100.
What is the economic benefit of reducing GHG emissions?
Mitigation options costing USD 100 tCO2-eq-1 or less could reduce global GHG emissions by 50% of 2019 levels by 2030. The economic benefit of limiting warming to 2 degrees Celcius will exceed the cost of mitigation.
What is demand-side mitigation?
Demand-side mitigation involves changes in infrastructure use, end-use technology adoption, socio-cultural and behavioral change. It can reduce global GHG emissions in end-use sectors by 40-70% by 2050.
What is sustainability?
Sustainability is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
How can individuals reduce their carbon footprints?
Choosing low-carbon options such as car-free living, plant-based diets, low-carbon sources of electricity and heating, and local holidays can reduce an individual’s carbon footprint by up to 9 tCO2-eq per person per year.
