Today’ celebration is also amplified by Covering Climate Now’ this week release which main cover of the kudos to Damian Carrington whose close reading of IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report, which he labeled as “map of climate optimism” in the Guardian’s “Down to Earth” newsletter. The wrap up is Carrington’s translation of IPCC chart into plain English provides fellow journalists, with specific intention to reach millions of people around the world who are working to change today’s political realities.
The solutions ranked by the IPCC “require no new technology” but rather needs political-will and/or vested interest to be pushed aside radically. Specifically on the side of too much recent climate coverage has channeled the view that the 1.5 degrees C target is hopelessly out of reach. This recent view is grounded in what its proponents assume is political reality, but it ignores what history teaches: political reality can be changed — sometimes very quickly — by elections, by public protest, and by skillful leaders.
At today’s celebration we again compile the chart lists of more than 40 courses of action that governments, corporations and people can take to cut emissions in half by 2030 — and thus keep the world within reach of the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Below are the five (5) options emerge as clearly superior, in following order:
- Solar and wind. Together, they could cut global emissions by 8 billion tons a year, the equivalent of today’s emissions from the United States and the European Union combined — and do so “at lower cost than just continuing with today’s electricity system.
- Stopping deforestation. Leaving trees standing, and restoring degraded forests and ecosystems, could cut emissions by an additional 7 billion tons a year, equivalent to current emissions from Africa and South America combined.
- Saving energy. Shifting to more efficient appliances, lighting, and heating and cooling technologies could cut emissions by 4.5 billion tons, again at cheaper cost than today’s practices. (More efficient transport, including expanded public transit, would bring further cuts.)
- Cutting methane. Plugging leaks at fossil fuel mining, drilling, and processing facilities could cut emissions by an additional 3 billion tons.
- Biochar. Burying charcoal in soil diverts carbon that otherwise would heat the atmosphere. Although relatively expensive, it could be paired with “no-till” farming to save 3.4 billion tons.
- Related link : Map of Climate Optimism” for Earth Week https://mailchi.mp/coveringclimatenow/a-map-of-climate-optimism-for-earth-week?e=e27c16261a
