Peak Carbon Emissions; the Turning Point Towards a Carbon-Neutral Future

Content Number: 11
Author Name: Sohana Malik
Author I’d: SBPWNC – A11
Educational Institution: Xi’an Jiao Tong University, China
Content Title: Peak Carbon Emissions; the Turning Point Towards a Carbon-Neutral Future

1.     Introduction

Have the advocates of the apocalyptic thesis seriously considered the hypothesis that the key to preserving earth may be based on a single moment – the tipping point – when greenhouse gases stop increasing and begin to decline automatically? This event, called the maximum of carbon dioxide emissions, is much more than an environmental achievement: it is a civilized shift. Human caused carbon emissions are almost 36.8 billion metric tonnes of CO₂ in 2022 and this reflects the need for action.

This concept is very important for the countries, organizations, and persons to build a sustainable future into the environment as today we are struggling with our own footprints. Here in this blog, we will deepen into what powers the highest rates of carbon emissions, the way to carbon-less society, advanced technology that enables carbon capture and even extraordinary global initiatives which keep the hope for a healthier earth alive.

2.     Peak Carbon Emissions

Current Global warming and pollutions through urbanization and industrialization are enhancing the levels of CO₂ emissions thus resulting in awful global Climate change and poor natural environment such as high sea levels and disastrous extreme climate conditions. This challenge is made evident by plans such as the SDGs and Paris Climate Agreement rolled out in 2015 to steer change towards low-carbon economy. But, even in the light of these measures, number of states still face significant challenges in attaining one of the most crucial objectives, namely, the carbon neutrality.

Carbon neutrality involve the measurement of top greenhouse gas emissions, and through measures of afforestation, energy conservation, and emission, the ultimate goal of ‘zero emission’ is attained. Analyzing the rates of greenhouse gas emissions around the world in the period between 2009 and 2018, scientists concluded that they were growing 1.5% each year. To get an idea of the emitting giant, for the year 2018 the United States, China, India, and countries of the 28 EU members together accounted for an unprecedented 55.3 billion tonnes of GHG emissions inclusive of the land use changes. These emissions cause a lot of harm, deterioration and degradation of the ecosystem and the physical environment, and compromise the stability of the earth’s environmental systems.

3.     The Road to Carbon Neutrality

And can only be achieved with the necessary carbon neutrality of the planet to maintain the level of global warming at the level of 1.5- 2 degrees Celsius. In addition, CO₂ is another greenhouse effect gas that accounts for 60% of the greenhouse effect, and carbon and peaking are the first step and basis for carbon neutralization. The majority of countries along the “Belt and Road” are now still developing, and their carbon emission remain still on the rise.

The European Climate Law plan and The European Green Deal 2020 also aim at creating a climate-neutral economy and society in Europe by 2050. China pledged to cut CO₂ emissions per unit of GDP by 60-65% by 2030 based on UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change). New work firstly addressed temporal CO₂ emission reductions and then, by using dynamic emission scenarios to outline the low-carbon development path.  

Investigated ten CO₂ utilization paths that provide little possibility of lowering emission of CO₂. They realized that every of these pathways may involve each consume more than 0.5 gigatons of CO₂ every year. This requires a revolution in the way we produce electricity, grow crops or even produce goods and services.

Many countries have already declared net zero emission objectives or targets. For example, the European Union has a goal of climate neutrality in the year 2050. Currently, China has promised to get to net-zero emissions by 2060. Some companies like Microsoft are even going as far as being “carbon negative”, that is, they are eradicating way much more carbon than they emit.

4.     Challenges to the Path to Carbon Neutrality

The challenge is enormous bearing in mind that 80 % of global energy is harnessed through the use of Fossil fuels. Countries like India, where coal contributes for more than 70% of electricity generation, face a conundrum: how to balance economic development to transition to renewables. For instance, a decision like closing the mining activities of coal is sure to render thousands of people jobless.

Although using wind and solar energy is becoming more common, there are no efficient storage means thus limiting its usage. As an instance, during the high heat waves in California in 2020, blackouts pointed out the dangers of the renewable energy sphere not accompanied by sufficient backup facilities. Battery storage systems like Tesla’s Megapack are in a relatively nascent stage with global application yet to be fully developed.

Think about Sub-Saharan Africa today where several millions of people are still denied the basic right of access to electricity. But projects such as Kenya’s Lake Turkana Wind Power Farm are already underway; financing them, however, depends on the support and incentives from the global community.

Politics can either promote or poison the global climate change. In 2017 under Trump administration the United States pulled out of the Paris Agreement, but later rejoined in 2021. At a regional level, climate denial by fossil fuel lobbies can delay essential climate legislation, like the recent Australia’s struggles to prevent the mining of coal in the Carmichael Basin.

It is as hard to change the public behaviour. For instance, Germany, one of the leading countries in renewable energy, new local opponents of wind turbines arise because of noise or view.

5.     Innovative Solutions leading the way

However, the major challenge here is that the world doesn’t lack hope in as much as there are these calamities. Think of factories that can produce goods and processes that improve on air quality. This is coming through as carbon capture and storage (CCS). Sleipner Field is an offshore natural gas field in Norway and CCS has been operating here since 1996. It holds more than one million tonnes of CO₂ annually in the subsea sand layer. In Iceland, the Orca facility is applying direct air capture technique that converts CO₂ into stone and has a solution that appears exoplanetary.
Imagine a world in which cars, planes, and power plants run on the universe’s most abundant element: hydrogen. Renewable power-driven electrolysis of water, also known as green hydrogen is coming up as a shift in energy systems.

A case in point is Australia sought to build the largest green hydrogen production plant in Western Australia by wind and solar power. With this project the goal is to generate 15 million tonnes of green hydrogen per year by 2030 sufficient for feeding industries and transportation globally. Given that countries like Japan and Germany have made significant investments towards hydrogen infrastructure, this clean fuel will completely revolutionize energy networks globally.

Researchers at Stanford University have created a catalyst that improves the efficiency of turning carbon dioxide into ethanol. This breakthrough has the ability to recycle CO₂ emissions into useable fuel, closing the carbon loop.

Activities that include afforestation like the Great Green Wall of Africa, together with the aim of creating green corridors of production landscapes and preventing desertification in the Sahel area, will additionally store carbon while enhancing people’s well-being. The strategy to restore the mangrove forests in Bangladesh and Indonesia leads to the crucial concept called ”blue carbon”, so the coastal ecosystems can absorb the CO₂ at least 10 times faster than on land evergreen forests.

Some of the best examples include the current EU’s Green Deal which targets to cut the EU’s net greenhouse gas emissions by 55% in 2030. International initiatives like the Breakthrough Energy Catalyst spearheaded by World’s richest man, William Gates pool both government funds and private capital.

The message is clear: theoretically the amalgam of science and imagination and with the power of fearing action, turn contours into chances. The only question that arises is whether we are going to adopt these ideas fast enough to save our planet.

6.     Role of Individuals and Organizations

The fight against climate change is not solely for governments; everybody and everything has a part to play in eradicating emissions to net-zero. There’s Patagonia, an outdoor apparel manufacturer that committed to eliminating its carbon footprint by 2025 via renewable energy purchases and regenerative agriculture. Likewise, IKEA has committed itself to using only renewable or recycled material in its products by 2030 and trigger the world for sustainable consumption.

People’s individual actions in terms of avoiding meat, getting around on mass transit, or putting solar panels on your roof can have a massive group impact. For instance, if every household across the United States switched their incandescent bulbs with LEDs, then these benefits could be achieved and be equivalent to removing 1.5 million automobiles from the road every year.

Originally, it is possible to identify Greta Thunberg and her Fridays for Future as the example of personal and community actions to impact the change. Greta, who was just 15 at the time, started absenting herself from school every Friday to stage a protest at the Swedish Parliament. Greta is a symbol of a new generation who have spoken to governments across the world, telling them that climate change is not a political or an environmental matter but a moral imperatives for the future of this earth. That means people became engaged in one of the biggest climate movements by youth, which can mean that even small actions with passion and determination can have an international impact.

Conclusion

Carbon neutrality is a major shift to address that requires immediate steps. Highest level of carbon dioxide emissions in atmosphere act as a cue for a decline in emissions globally. Where there are problems, like relying on fossil fuels and financial problems, there are visions like carbon capture, green hydrogen, and reforestation. This subject is essential in fields like power engineering as well as chemistry regarding emergent sustainable energies as well as novel solutions towards CC&S. It is actually a noble cause which is not only required at the global level, but also mandatory for every government, organization or any other entity well aware of the facile consequences that are likely to follow if the carbon emissions are not curbed down. The time to act is now.

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