Net zero plans show limited climate ambition on 'residual' emissions

New research by the University of East Anglia reveals what countries think will be their most difficult to decarbonise sectors when they reach net zero, with agriculture expected to be responsible for the largest remaining emissions.

Harder to decarbonise areas include aviation, agriculture, and industry, with fewer alternatives to fossil fuels. Residual emissions are expected to come from these 'hard-to-abate' sources, which face technical barriers to reducing them beyond a certain level. Lead author Harry Smith, a Leverhulme Trust Doctoral Scholar at UEA, said current plans showed limited ambition in dealing with residual emissions:"Net zero targets have rapidly become the new norm of national climate policy. They imply a need to compensate for the remaining residual emissions through the deployment of carbon dioxide removal methods. Yet governments are only now exploring what this balance could or should be.

The study is the first to look in this level of detail, and for this number of net zero plans that describe what countries think will be their difficult to decarbonise sectors, and how low they aim to get their emissions before cancelling out the remainder with carbon dioxide removal. For developed countries, residual emissions are sizeable, on average 21% when compared to when their greenhouse gas emissions started falling. This average hides a large range, however: they could be as low as 5% or as high as 52%.

"This work highlights that what emissions remain when countries aim to reach net zero should be put under more scrutiny. A better understanding is needed of which emissions are truly 'difficult to decarbonise' and which could be addressed through changes to demand, for example dietary changes, reducing flying, the circular economy, alongside more investment in research and innovation.

Agriculture And Food Endangered Plants Environmental Policy Global Warming Climate Environmental Policies Resource Shortage Land Management

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