Scientists warn the 1.5°C climate change threshold could arrive by 2029. Collective government action on climate change has stalled for the fifth consecutive year, according to researcher Heck. New oil and gas drilling projects and governments that are "delaying, weakening or rolling back their climate policies" negate efforts to speed up the shift away from fossil fuels.
Stalled progress and rising temperatures
Even under the most optimistic scenario, assuming full implementation of existing policies and promises, global temperatures would rise 3.4° Fahrenheit above preindustrial levels by 2100. This increase is extremely dangerous for the planet. Niklas Hohne, a researcher with The New Climate Institute, says the "brutal truth is that these positive developments have not yet added up to bend the curve fast enough." He adds that developing new oil and gas projects is like discovering your food is burning and then turning up the stove instead of turning it off.
Failures at COP31
At the current COP31 negotiations, conference co-hosts Turkey and Australia oppose including the word "clean" in connection with electrification targets. Australia remains one of the world’s biggest coal exporters, while Turkey is a major coal consumer with a power sector highly dependent on coal. Neither country has offered specific plans to transition away from fossil fuels. Bill Hare, the CEO of Climate Analytics, noted that European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen failed to mention transitioning away from fossil fuels during her speech this week at COP31. If governments continue supporting fossil fuels, it would consign humanity and our ecosystems to insurmountable economic damage and irretrievable loss, according to Hare.
