The Amount of Carbon in the Atmosphere is at its Highest Level!

01 Jul 2018

The amount of carbon released into the world's atmosphere increased by 1.4% in 2017, reaching 32.5 gigatons, the highest amount in history.

According to the report of the International Energy Agency, global energy demand grew by 2.1% last year. The biggest reason for this demand is the energy consumption of China and India, which accounts for 40% of the total increase. While 72% of the energy demand was met by fossil fuels, one quarter of the demand was met by renewable sources.

The increase in carbon emissions started again after remaining stable for three years. This increase is a first after the signing of the Paris Agreement. However, the decrease in emissions of some important countries such as the USA, the UK, Japan and Mexico constitutes an exception.

According to information from the World Energy Agency, US emissions have been decreasing for the last three years. US emissions decreased by 0.5% last year. It is reported that the biggest reason for this is the decline in coal-fired power plants in the USA and the rise in renewable energy plants. Emissions in the UK decreased by 3.8%.

Executive Director of the International Energy Agency, Dr. According to Fatih Birol, last year's strong global economy caused an increase in energy demand, and most of this increase was met by fossil fuels; However, impressive giant steps have also been taken in the use of renewable energy. However, Dr. Birol says that the significant increase in energy-related global carbon dioxide emissions in 2017 shows the inadequacy of current efforts to combat climate change, and gives as an example that the dramatic slowdown in improvements in global energy efficiency is due to policy makers' less focus on this area.

These news are an “alarm bell” for the international community. Nowadays, calls to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy are increasing day by day. According to the research published last week, giving up fossil fuels "as soon as possible" rather than "later" means saving 150 million lives. The World Bank warns that reducing carbon emissions "now" could prevent millions of people from living as "climate immigrants".

Source: Climate Action Newsletter

Translated by: Mete İmer - ÇEVKO Foundation General Secretary

Latest
News & Updates

Customize Cookie Preferences

You can manage cookie categories separately

Mandatory Cookies

Always Active

These cookies are necessary for the proper functioning of the website and cannot be disabled.

Analytical Cookies

These cookies help us understand how visitors use the website.

Services Used: Google Analytics

Marketing Cookies

These cookies are used to show you personalized ads and to measure the effectiveness of our marketing campaigns.

Services Used: Google Ads, Facebook Pixel

For more information, you can check the Privacy Policy and Protection of Personal Data pages