IPCC Report Reveals Agriculture can Halve Emissions by 2030; Help Climate Change Adaptation

The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report released on April 4, 2022, reveals that the average annual global greenhouse gas emissions were at their highest levels in human history from 2010 to 2019, but has now slowed.

The Report states that limiting global warming requires major transitions in the energy sector that will involve a substantial reduction in fossil fuel use, widespread electrification, improved energy efficiency, and the use of alternative fuels (such as hydrogen). Options for all sectors to at least halve the emissions by 2030 include the following:

• Reduction in emissions in cities and urban areas can be achieved through lower energy consumption, electrification of transport, and enhanced carbon uptake and storage using nature. 
• Reducing emissions in industry—which accounts for a quarter of global emissions—will involve using materials more efficiently, reusing and recycling products, and minimizing waste. 
• Agriculture, forestry, and other land use can provide a large-scale reduction in emissions and also remove and store carbon dioxide at scale. Response options in this sector can benefit biodiversity, help climate change adaptation, and secure livelihoods, food and water, and wood supplies.

The report emphasizes that the next few years are critical in limiting global warming to 1.5°C (2.7°F), saying that this will be impossible without immediate and great emission reductions across all sectors.

For more details, read the press release on the IPCC website.