When world leaders meet in Paris later this month for COP21 their focus will be hammering out long-term commitments to reduce the threat of global climate change. The biggest goal of the negotiations is to strike a deal that would take effect after the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2020. It’s a noble cause and one that literally holds the health of our planet’s future at stake. But in the meantime, there are a number of immediate efforts that can be make by companies and local governments that will have a major impact within the next five years alone, i.e. right before the long-term Paris agreements go into effect.
A new report from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) – the same group that convenes the climate summit – highlights some of these areas where pre-existing agreements and initiatives have the potential to make a measurable impact reducing greenhouse emissions and maintain the overall goal of keeping the rise in average global temperature below 2 degrees Celsius. Because if countries don’t take action before 2020, that 2 degree goal will be all but impossible to meet.
“Under the UNFCCC, governments have over the past few years led a significant effort during a series of technical expert meetings to identify and scope out the policies that lead to effective climate action – this report is the fruit of that effort,” said Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC, in a statement released with the Climate Action Now report.
Here are the six areas identified in the report where companies and cities can make a difference today, reducing emissions by 2020 between 10 Gigatons and 19 Gigatons of carbon dioxide equivalent.
Increasing Use of Renewable Energy
According to the report, renewables accounted for around 9 percent of global energy in 2014. That’s a major increase from 10 years ago, when only 1.8 percent of energy was generated from renewable sources. For some perspective, more than half (58 percent) of power added to our global capacity came from renewables, more than coal and gas combined.
Energy Efficiency
Making energy more efficient isn’t just good for the environment, it’s good for the economy. Along with consumer demand, companies are upscaling their production of more energy efficient products in a big way and with good reason: The International Energy Agency estimates that upsclaing could net producers $18 trillion over the next 20 years alone.
Reducing Transportation Emissions
If you factor planes, trains, boats, and automobiles, transportation of people and goods represent over a quarter of all global greenhouse gas emissions. However, the UN Environment Program (UNEP) says we can reduce those emissions by up to one third by 2020. A leading example of this is a pilot program in Mexico City where a major expansion of its rapid transport system has seen a 10 percent reduction in the use of private cars for shipping.
Carbon Capture, Use and Storage
Today, there are 12 operational carbon capture and storage facilities around the world. And while there are 10 more already under construction, the IEA says that if these projects are properly funded, they could help capture 50 metric tons of C02 annually by 2020.
Non-CO2 Greenhouse Gases
From the UN Report: “The US Environmental Protection Agency estimates 2.7 Gt CO2 equivalent of global non-CO2 GHG emissions could be mitigated by 2020 at a cost below $50/t CO2 equivalent. Almost one-quarter of these reductions could be made at or below a breakeven cost with a substantial portion generating an immediate financial return.”
New Approaches to Land Use
Land development is a major contributor to C02 emissions. However, the UN says that the overall numbers can be reduced at a financially reasonable rate of around $50 to $100 per ton of C02. They say companies could reduce overall emissions in agriculture and forestry by as much as two-thirds over the next five years without having a negative impact on economic growth. They point to China, which while experiencing major economic and land development has also tied is land use directly into its carbon emissions pilot program, setting a goal of increasing net forest area by 40 million hectares by 2020.
Obviously it’s important to keep our eyes on the goal of making major reductions in greenhouse emissions over the long run, implementing sustainable practices that will reverse the long trend of bad practices that are contributing to climate change. But this report also gives us some simple and encouraging tips for creating real results before the upcoming Paris agreements even go into effect.
“The remarkable reality revealed in this report,” said Figueres, “is that the very policies that deal most effectively with climate change also offer a ready-made portfolio of actions that can equally assist the Sustainable Development Goals and achieve everyone’s ultimate aim of a prosperous, stable and environmentally healthy world for all.”