Climate change news from the ground, in a warming world Was this forwarded to you? Sign up here [[link removed]] Laurie Goering [[link removed]]

Climate editor

After years of delay, the fossil fuel emissions driving climate change now need to be slashed extremely rapidly and across every part of global economies, top climate scientists warned this week. [[link removed]]

But that dizzying transformation must also happen in a way that's fair and takes into account other priorities, such as development, or it may fail, they emphasised in the latest report [[link removed]] from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

"If you do (it) at the expense of justice, of poverty eradication and the inclusion of people, then you're back at the starting block," noted Ghana-based Fatima Denton, one of the report's authors.

The good news is the technology to make a clean energy transition is largely in place and getting ever cheaper - and can bring huge benefits, from lower energy bills to cleaner air and more liveable cities.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the dash away from Russian gas as a result of the Ukraine war have also shown how swiftly energy policies can be adjusted and funding found to deal with crises.

"Sometimes it's just about political will," said Denton, who directs the U.N. University Institute for Natural Resources in Africa.

A worker cleans solar panels, one of the sustainable energy options that help olive farmers, in Mosul, Iraq January 26, 2022. REUTERS/Khalid al-Mousily

As emissions continue to rise - despite all the promises to slash them - we will also need to suck significant amounts of carbon dioxide already emitted back out of the atmosphere to keep people and nature safe, the scientists warned, calling such a move "unavoidable" [[link removed]].

Forests do that work naturally - so protecting and expanding those fast-disappearing natural ecosystems could do part of the job, while protecting biodiversity at the same time.

But there's plenty of controversy over other methods.

Those include creating huge new plantations of carbon-absorbing trees, grasses or other biomass that could be regularly harvested and burned for energy, with the released emissions captured and injected into underground storage - a technique known as BECCS.

Critics fear BECCS would need huge amounts of land, uprooting people or reducing cropland, threatening food security.

Somewhat less controversial - but extremely expensive - are efforts to install machines [[link removed]] that work essentially as artificial trees, sucking carbon from the air and putting it into storage or products - though critics fear they could provide an excuse for continued fossil fuel use.

A view of machines used to capture carbon dioxide directly from the air, at a Climeworks plant in southwest Iceland. Credit: Climeworks

The IPCC report makes one thing absolutely clear: Real, deep cuts in fossil fuel emissions need to happen today. Pledges are no longer enough and other global problems, from war to pandemics, cannot be used to justify delayed action.

"Some government and business leaders are saying one thing, but doing another. Simply put, they are lying, and the results will be catastrophic," U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned Monday in stark remarks [[link removed]].

"Climate activists are sometimes depicted as dangerous radicals. But the truly dangerous radicals are the countries that are increasing the production of fossil fuels," he added, calling that "moral and economic madness".

See you next week!

Laurie

Clean energy transition must be fast and fair, IPCC scientists say [[link removed]]

Swift and deep emissions cuts are vital to keep people safe, but they must be equitable and include development aims, report says

Removing carbon from air vital to reach climate goals, IPCC says [[link removed]]

Climate science report says to meet warming limits, the world will need "carbon dioxide removal" - from planting trees to costly technologies that suck CO2 directly from the air

IPCC points to need for 'radical action' as climate clock ticks down [[link removed]]

Analysts, activists and officials point for need to quickly slash fossil fuel use as climate scientists release their latest report

Malaria surges in the Amazon as wildcat mining devours indigenous land [[link removed]]

By carving massive holes in the earth and disrupting local ecosystems, illegal gold miners in Brazil's Amazon create the perfect breeding conditions for the mosquito-transmitted disease

As Ukraine war hikes prices, Global South farmers struggle to find fertilizer [[link removed]]

As the conflict enters its second month, its effects are being felt by farmers around the globe - but it could also be an opportunity for farmers to adopt more sustainable methods

Will the EU's carbon import tax hurt poor nations? [[link removed]]

An EU border levy on climate-polluting imports aims to spur greener heavy industry - but could have costs for Africa

New global nature pact hangs in balance as 'world burns' [[link removed]]

About 195 countries are set to finalise a deal this year to halt human damage to plants, animals and ecosystems

OPINION: The war in Ukraine could spark a hurricane of global hunger [[link removed]]

The war in Ukraine shows the high stakes risk of concentrating food production to just a few countries – the latest in a series of overlapping food crises

OPINION: Europe's energy poor urgently need a wartime solidarity fund [[link removed]]

The Russian invasion of Ukraine is pushing energy prices higher - and to avoid social unrest, support is needed to help the vulnerable cope with a cost of living crisis

OPINION: Making the right choices for the climate, even in a time of war [[link removed]]

The Ukraine conflict has sent a ripple of change through the global energy sector. Our response can have profound implications for accelerating the energy transition

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