Global CO2 emissions are expected to fall about 7% in 2020 due to the restrictions in place to slow the COVID-19 pandemic. The drop is likely to be only temporary, however, as daily emissions have already started edging back to late-2019 levels.
The growing use of nitrogen fertilisers in world food production could put ambitious climate targets out of reach, as it leads to rising levels of nitrous oxide (N2O) in the atmosphere, a new study shows.
Daily global fossil CO2 emissions fell by 17% in early April 2020 compared to 2019 amid coronavirus lockdowns in most countries, with full-year 2020 emissions set to decrease by up to 7% depending on future social distancing.
The EU-funded project 4C (Climate-Carbon Interactions in the Current Century) aims to fill the knowledge gap surrounding climate sensitivity to carbon dioxide emissions by reducing the uncertainty in our quantitative understanding of carbon-climate interactions and feedbacks.
Global carbon emissions are likely to fall in 2020 due to reduced economic activity as a result of the coronavirus, and changes brought on by the crisis could influence how emissions evolve in future, writes CICERO researcher Glen Peters.
Global CO2 emissions are projected to rise a low 0.6% in 2019 due to robust growth in natural gas and oil use, and despite a decline in coal consumption. Natural gas has been the dominant driver of global emissions since 2012.