Rapid emissions reductions would keep CO2 removal and costs in check

Rapid greenhouse-gas emissions reductions are needed to keep in check both the costs of the transition towards climate stabilisation and the amount of CO2 that will have to be removed from the atmosphere, write researchers from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in an analysis, published in Environmental Research Letters. Emissions in 2030 would need to be at least 20 percent below what countries have pledged under the Paris climate agreement, writes PIK in a press release. “To stabilise the climate before warming crosses the Paris threshold, we either have to undertake the huge effort of halving emissions until 2030 and achieving emission neutrality by 2050 – or the emissions reductions would have to be complemented by CO₂ removal technologies," said lead-author Jessica Strefler.

Read the press release in English here and find the analysis in English here.